Learnings of the week - June 30 2024

Podcast Link: https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/AKpLkQNZRKb

Weekly overview:

Opening Read:

• Intelligent Investor

• The Power Law

Documentary:

• Something Ventured

Websites:

• 2024 breakthrough technologies

Startup work:

• Finding B2B potential customers challenge

• Building the product for them in a non-scalable way

Company research:

• EvolutionaryScale

VC Research:

• Lux Capital

The Intelligent Investor Quick Summary

• Main idea: Value Investing - not going with the market's waves

Key points:

• Investing is long term

• Emotional discipline

• Diversification

• Must have margin of safety

• Focus on intrinsic value of a company instead of market fluctuations

• You are your biggest enemy in investing

Application:

• Always research value of companies and margin of safety when considering investments

Actionable Takeaways

• Only invest based on intrinsic value

• Extreme emotional discipline

• Market creates inefficiencies

Sharing

• Who would benefit: Any investor

Diving deeper & specific actions

• Read The Snowball - Buffett Biography (Alice Schroeder)

• Review 10-Ks - yearly reports of public companies

• Do DCF (discounted cash flows) project comparing DCF evaluations

• Way of calculating estimated value of an investment

Trust

• Extremely old source written in the early 1900s

• [Identify bias left blank in original]

Something Ventured Documentary

Quick Summary

• Main idea: The origins of VC and its impact

Key points:

• VC is new

• Many fail but the few successes pay for everything

• Entrepreneurship is the basis and VC is a tool for it

• Lots of personal stories of the good and the bad

Personal Insights

• VC is less than 75 years old, so there will be more industries that are non-existent then become huge

• Always question assumptions

Application:

• Life is like chess; if something changes, you need to re-evaluate all prior assumptions

Actionable Takeaways

• Don't accept the norms as correct

• Don't let the world stop you from breaking into VC

• Get actual practice doing real VC work

Sharing

• Who would benefit: People interested in venture capital, entrepreneurship, finance/investing, business, or technology

Diving deeper & specific actions

• Read biographies of Arthur Rock and Tom Perkins

Trust

• From real people in the industry telling stories who were actually part of the VC explosion

Identify bias

• Documentaries often try to make the story fit perfectly, potentially leaving out less exciting information

The Power Law

Quick Summary

• Main idea: Deep dive into the history of VC, how it operates, and economic influence

Key points:

• High risk, high reward

• VC takes lots of luck and lots of work

• VC creates lots of world economic value

• VC has to do with financing intangible assets

Personal Insights

• VC is all about math and unpredictability of life

Application:

• The power law is similar to chasing your dreams; while they may not succeed, the total percentage value add is greater than doing something with no risk and all certainty

Actionable Takeaways

• Embrace risk

• Focus on high-impact opportunities

• Find a systematic way to change the odds

• Stay informed and continue to be made of questions

Sharing

• Who would benefit: Entrepreneurs, startup founders, venture capitalists, investors, business students and academics, innovation and strategy professionals, anyone interested in the dynamics of technology and economic growth

Diving deeper & specific actions

• Follow VC news

• Go to industry events

• Study case studies

Trust

• Sebastian Mallaby is a reputable author and journalist with a strong track record in economic and financial analysis

10 Breakthrough Technologies of 2024 | SXSW 2024

Quick Summary

• Main idea: 10 technological breakthroughs in 2024 across many fields

Key points: 10 breakthrough technologies

1. AI for everything

2. Super efficient solar cells

3. Apple Vision Pro

4. Weight loss drug

5. Enhanced geothermal systems

6. Chiplet (Furthering Moore's law)

7. The first gene editing treatment

8. Exascale computers (tons of computing but tons of energy usage)

9. Heat pumps (efficient heating and cooling)

10. Twitter killers

Other mentions:

• Robotaxis

• Thermal batteries

• Lab-grown meat

• SpaceX Starship

• Drugs for Alzheimer's disease (slowing down but current severe side effects)

• Sustainable aviation fuel

Personal Insights

• If you're trying to become a pro in something, do it before it becomes popular

Application:

• In recent years, change has been vast, but instead of being on our back foot, we need to be looking forward now

Actionable Takeaways

• Innovation always happens, so to succeed in the long run, you need to be helping innovations take place or you will be left behind

Sharing

• Who would benefit: Tech enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, investors, policy makers, and learners

Diving deeper & specific actions

• Dive deeper into specific technologies of interest

• Attend conferences

• Learn about pilot projects to be on top of a niche market

Trust

• MIT Technology Review is a very reputable source

Identify bias

• Bias toward technology and ability for world to change fast

This week's startup work

Notes:

• Build your team who have aligned values but different skills than you

• Create your NO team to call you out

• Create a team to keep you honest and lean

• Always be thinking and researching about it with no mental breaks

• Just create the product instead of thinking about doing it

• Reminded of:

• Make a product for one person and do unscalable things

• The future is unpredictable in every way but people are the system which cause success

Other Resources Why Cofounder Partnerships Fail — and How to Make Them Last

• Putting yourself in their shoes

• Don't neglect interpersonal aspects initially

• Create the idea with partner

Company research Company: EvolutionaryScale About the company:

• Biotech startup that just raised $142M

• AI-powered protein design

• Created commercial and non-commercial version Connection:

• Seems amazing but was talking with a friend about if antibodies are possible then pathogens could be possible as well

VC research VC Firm: Lux Capital Differentiator:

• Contrarian perspective

• Focus on artificial intelligence, robotics, space technology, advanced materials, and biotechnology

Final Takeaways

• AI implementation outside of LLMs

• Needing to be differentiated in VC

• Always be learning about the future because the second you stop you can lose your edge

• Systematically calculate and embody risk (power rule)

• VC has no rules and is always changing

• Invest based on what you believe and calculate, not what everyone else thinks