“It’s avian anarchy in Gilbert, Minnesota.” | learn more
Banksy art shreds itself after being auctioned for $1.2MM.
The artist had secretly hidden a shredder in the frame long before it arrived at the auction house. Then, once the winning bid was announced, the surprise shredding began. Later, Banksy published a video on his Instagram! |learn more
How the potato ushered in an era of peace.
“Its arrival in Europe had consequences that went far beyond diet.” I really like the way that macro analysis of yield per area led to this insight. | learn more
New fish-oil heart medicine by Amarin is a big drug success.
“Vascepa was shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events like heart attack or stroke by 25 percent in high-risk patients, much more than analysts hoped for, and without side effects.” | learn more
Unanimous AI achieves 22% more accurate pneumonia diagnoses.
The swarm intelligence company does it again! This time, “a recent Stanford study showed that it’s less erroneous in medical diagnoses than individual clinicians.” | learn more
All things sales: 16 mini-lessons for startup founders.
This series of short videos by a16z partner Peter Levine is aimed at teaching sales basics to technical founders. | learn more
How to ask for a pay raise.
“Kelly Coffey, CEO of JPMorgan Chase’s US Private Bank, shared advice on the topic.” | learn more
Walmart showcases the custom apps that employees use to get their jobs done.
I love two things about this post: 1) they have a LOT of custom apps and think of them discretely, which makes me believe there’s a product team focused on each one, and 2) they share this with the world for all of us to see (and learn from, or in the spirit of the late Sam Walton – shamelessly copy). | learn more
Alibaba’s Hema store in China will drop your jaw.
This series of 10 tweets (with pics and video clips) by Rishi Taparia showcases a new retail story that puts Amazon Go to shame – seriously. | learn more
ConsenSys announces details on its first cohort of accelerator companies.
All the companies in the Tachyon accelerator seem very “early”, but innovation must start somewhere! | learn more
0x + Harbor partner to tokenize real-world assets.
I’ve grown more bullish in recent months on the real benefit of tokenizing all sorts of assets that are illiquid today. Imagine being able to easily buy/sell a stake in the apartment building you live in or any other asset where you might have specific and unique knowledge. I’m not suggesting a free-for-all on letting everyone invest in everything (yet), but I love the idea of at the very least creating liquidity for assets that have governance and income streams. This partnership seems to bring that reality closer by allowing tokens to also maintain regulatory compliance for issuance and transfer. |learn more
Video: Andrew Ng on the state of artificial intelligence.
This is a 30-minute talk by Stanford Professor (and former chief scientist at Baidu) Andrew Ng breaking down the state of AI and it’s excellent. The beginning is going to be redundant for those who have been paying attention to AI, but I suggest watching the whole thing because he has a great flow throughout the presentation and he moves quickly. | learn more
Amazon: to the moon!
Amazon is developing new space and satellite services. You’ll probably see me share more about space startups and technology over time as I grow more interested in the possibilities unlocked by lower launch prices. If you’re interested in the topic, reach out so we can talk about it! | learn more
Mobile Planet, a visual report.
This report should be required reading for everyone involved in web or mobile product development. It’s visual, data-rich, and paints a vivid picture of the landscape of mobile usage. |learn more
Outcomes of Chicago’s bag tax.
“Chicago’s bag tax has resulted in a decrease in the use of disposable bags since taking effect early last year, but a majority of shoppers still use at least one disposable bag per trip, a new study shows.” | learn more
Chicago’s increased minimum wage: helping or hurting workers?
A new Berkeley study shows that it has led to greater earnings and little job loss in the restaurant industry, but results look different for other industries. |learn more
What does ‘run the traps’ mean?
I recently googled it to find out! The phrase originally comes from hunting. | learn more
Are pop lyrics getting more repetitive?
A website called The Pudding has put together a thorough analysis with all sorts of colorful and animated charts. You are guaranteed to learn something. | learn more
A seal slapped a kayaker with an octopus tentacle.
You should drop everything and watch this video clip. | learn more
Gates foundation releases Goalkeepers report.
I haven’t made it through this whole report yet, but big ideas indeed! “The Goalkeepers Report is published every year and charts the progress toward the Global Goals. This year’s report focuses on youth population growth that will affect future world progress.” | learn more
Brain scans can predict when a placebo will be effective.
I was blown away years ago when I learned that placebos can work even when patients know they’re taking placebos. Well, this takes it to a new level: “The new Northwestern study, however, has shown it is possible to predict which patients suffering from chronic pain will experience relief when given a sugar pill…” | learn more
The contractor who blows away deadlines.
This is about “construction guru C.C. Myers.” What a guy! “In 2007, for example, when a stretch of Interstate 80 collapsed in Oakland, a competing firm came in with a bid of $6.4 million. C.C.’s bid? $800,000. As usual, he zipped through the project and finished in a breezy 17 days — compared to the 50 days estimated by the state — earning a $5 million bonus.” | learn more
The disproportional power of anecdotes.
“As humans, we make decisions emotionally, and justify them rationally. And nothing helps us do both quite like the anecdote. It gives us the push we need to make the decision we want, and enough data to feel good about it. BUT…” | learn more
Amazon Go cashierless store opens in Chicago.
I didn’t get a chance to visit this week in the Loop, but I’m excited to try. There was also media speculation that they’ll open as many as 3,000 more of these stores. Any readers check it out yet? Let me know your thoughts! | learn more
MIT students use AI to cook up pizza recipes.
“A group of MIT students set artificial intelligence loose on pizza recipes. The results were surprisingly good, in the end.” | learn more