6 days agoThe Algebra of WealthMy next book is the product of a lifetime spent as a founder, professor, parent, and mentor. The Algebra of Wealth contains 300 pages of…No Mercy No Malice10 min readNo Mercy No Malice10 min read
Mar 1, 2024SearchingEach year we pick a Big Tech stock we think will outperform its peers. In November 2022 we picked Meta as our stock of 2023. For 2024 our pick is Alphabet. I believe Alphabet has been over-punished for its flaccid response to AI, as Meta was for its stupidity regarding…No Mercy No Malice11 min readNo Mercy No Malice11 min read
Feb 24, 2024Corporate OzempicIf you want to understand how AI is reshaping business, picture it as the other massive innovation of our time: GLP-1 drugs. Both shed weight by suppressing cravings; both exacerbate existing inequities (aka the rich get richer) before generating wider prosperity; and both are having a greater impact than projected…No Mercy No Malice8 min readNo Mercy No Malice8 min read
Feb 18, 2024Dopa BowlOther than AI, gambling may be the fastest-growing $10-billion-plus industry in the U.S. A record 43 million Americans (1 in 6 people over the age of 18) bet on this year’s Super Bowl, wagering a total of $23 billion, a 35% jump from last year’s total. …No Mercy No Malice9 min readNo Mercy No Malice9 min read
Feb 18, 2024METAstasisLast week’s quarterly flogging of tech executives made for good theater. It’s a show meant to make us feel something before we return to our lives. American media soon pivoted to something more important and more American, money. Meta announced earnings on Feb. 1, posting one of the most impressive…No Mercy No Malice8 min readNo Mercy No Malice8 min read
Feb 2, 2024RotEight of the country’s elite colleges settled a lawsuit last week, agreeing to pay $118 million for colluding to match financial aid offers — price fixing. The schools deny any wrongdoing, but writing checks for $118 million does not signal innocence. The complaint lays out a strong case. In fact…No Mercy No Malice8 min readNo Mercy No Malice8 min read
Jan 26, 2024Quitting TimeIf success is the best thing, failing/quitting fast is the next best thing. — Few virtues are more celebrated in America than perseverance and grit. Commencement speakers offer a similar battle cry: “Never give up!” Jesus, what bullshit. Entrepreneurs aren’t voted into the hall of fame unless they have a story about mortgaging their house to make payroll or cleaning the first apartments rented…No Mercy No Malice9 min readNo Mercy No Malice9 min read
Jan 22, 2024AcktivismAftershocks — second-order effects — can shake the ground far beyond the original shift in tectonic plates. Few predicted that an unprecedented increase in interest rates would turn mortgages into handcuffs and send housing prices skyrocketing. Or that mobile phones could facilitate a bank run. The earthquake of the October…No Mercy No Malice9 min readNo Mercy No Malice9 min read
Jan 17, 2024Peak HollywoodYou are where you spend time. And my boys, like the rest of America’s youth, are TikTok. When asked whether they’d prefer TikTok or all other streaming platforms, tomorrow’s business/civic/military leaders pick the former. TikTok is the most consequential Asian import since … Datsun. Datsun was the first Japanese car…No Mercy No Malice11 min readNo Mercy No Malice11 min read
Jan 5, 20242024 PredictionsEach year, we review/make predictions re the past/coming year. Most years, we hit more than we miss. But we do miss — if we made 10 predictions that all came true, that wouldn’t be predicting but stating the obvious. The caliber of a prediction is a function of what it…No Mercy No Malice11 min readNo Mercy No Malice11 min read