Ben Thompson: Anthropic, the Pentagon, and the Limits of Private Power
In this conversation, previously aired on TBPN, John Coogan and Jordi Hays speak with Ben Thompson, founder of Stratechery, about his essay "Anthropic and Alignment" and the broader collision between AI power and state power that the Anthropic–Department of War standoff revealed.
Resources:
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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.
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Stratechery (with Ben Thompson)
Ben Thompson joins Acquired to discuss the business of Stratechery itself and celebrate 10 years (!) of the internet’s best strategy analysis destination. Even beyond Stratechery’s enormous impact itself on business and tech over the years, Ben’s work inspired a whole generation of business content creators — this show very much included — and it was super special for us to give the Acquired treatment to one of our own heroes. We cover the full history of Ben pioneering the subscription internet media business model (indeed SubStack’s seed round pitch was “Stratechery-in-a-box”), and how + why he’s evolved the business since and is now doubling down both on podcasting and a broader vision of the Stratechery Plus bundle… including for the first time content not made by Ben himself! Tune in and enjoy.
Sponsors:
Anthropic: https://bit.ly/acquiredclaude25
Sentry: https://bit.ly/acquiredsentry
WorkOS: https://acquired.fm/unpluggedPlaying Cards: https://bit.ly/workOSshop (Code: ACQDECK)
Statsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig26
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Links:
John Gruber’s Daring Fireball
Ben’s very first Stratechery post
Subscribe to Stratechery Plus
Note: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.
EP 15 Pt 2: Packy McCormick and Ben Thompson Talk About Their Own Start, Finding Your Audience and The Creative Process
(00:00:00) Intro
(00:02:28) Packy & Ben’s Businesses
(00:23:08) Finding Your Audience
(00:36:01) VC Hindsight
(00:46:18) Creative Process
(00:57:52) Web3
(01:05:57) Advice for Content Creators
(01:14:59) All-In and Twitter
(01:23:54) One Last Thing
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https://twitter.com/loganbartlett
Mixed and edited: Justin Hrabovsky
Produced: Andrew Nadeau and Rashad Assir
Executive Producer: Josh Machiz
Music: Griff Lawson
Not Boring - The Great Online Game - https://www.notboring.co/p/the-great-online-game?s=r
Not Boring – Schumpeter’s Gale - https://www.notboring.co/p/schumpeters-gale?s=r
Not Boring – Ramping Up - https://www.notboring.co/p/ramping-up?s=r
Not Boring – Ramp’s Double Unicorn - https://www.notboring.co/p/ramps-double-unicorn-rounds-behind?s=r
Stratechery – What Clayton Christensen Got Wrong - https://stratechery.com/2013/clayton-christensen-got-wrong/
Stratechery – Bubble Talk Revisited - https://stratechery.com/2020/bubble-talk-revisited-it-wasnt-1999-the-big-tech-basket/
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode of The Logan Bartlett Show, we sit down with the people behind today’s most important startups and extract the tactics, lessons, and frameworks they’ve learned the hard way. Conversations span hiring to GTM, product, growth, fundraising and everything in between - collectively forming the ultimate playbook to make you a better CEO, investor or board member.
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328: ‘The Warden’s Dilemma’, With Ben Thompson
Dithering CEO Ben Thompson returns to the show to go deep on the concept of the metaverse.
Sponsored by:
Rows: The spreadsheet with superpowers. Get started today.
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order.
Hello Fresh: America’s #1 meal kit.
LinkedIn Talent: Find and hire the right person. Your first job post is free.
Links:
Ben’s piece at Stratechery on the metaverse and the enterprise.
Ben’s interview with Mark Zuckerberg.
Facebook’s 2021 Connect keynote.
Steven Levy’s interview with Niantic Labs founder and CEO John Hanke: “AR Is Where the Real Metaverse Is Going to Happen”.
WALL-E’s dystopian vision of compulsive VR/AR addiction.
Dithering: Two episodes per week, 15 minutes per episode. Not a minute less, not a minute more.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
Ben Thompson – Platforms, Ecosystems, and Aggregators - [Invest Like the Best, EP.176]
My guest today is Ben Thompson. Ben is the author of my favorite business strategy newsletter called Stratechery. He’s also the host of the exponent podcast, and now the Dithering, a podcast he recently launched with John Gruber. I think Ben is among the most interesting business analysts in the world, and I’ve learned from and directly applied many of his ideas. We cover many of the major concepts he’s introduced over the years, including his well know aggregation theory. I think that to understand how the internet has changed the business world for good, you must read Ben and follow his thinking. I’m excited to finally have him as a guest on the show. Please enjoy our conversation.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
(01:26) – (First question) – Companies that are built for the next disruption
(1:32) – The End of the Beginning
(9:58) – Aggregation Theory and the Smiling Curve
(13:18) – Steps to creating an aggregator
(19:46) – Pattern of successful aggregators or luck?
(24:34) – How aggregators interact with suppliers and consumers
(30:49) – Taking on other aggregators
(34:09) – Platform vs aggregator in the scope of Shopify vs Amazon/Walmart
(40:55) – The Moat Map
(46:16) – Value chain thinking and profitable business models
(51:58) – Future of media and independent content creator’s vs bundles
(56:07) – Bundling independent creators
(1:00:37) – The infrastructure layer of technology and software companies
(1:02:35) – His thoughts on gaming platforms
(1:06:13) – The atoms vs the bits in the tech world
(1:12:18) – What he’s learned from covering Netflix
(1:13:46) – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ben
(1:15:56) – Stratechery Podcast
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
285: ‘Fahrenheit Truthers’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show and there’s no sports talk because there’s no sports. Instead: temperature scales, Joe Rogan and Spotify, and Dithering.
Sponsored by:
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order.
Linode: Instantly deploy and manage an SSD server in the Linode Cloud. Use code talkshow20 and get $20 credit toward your next project.
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Links:
Dithering.
Ben at Stratechery: “Dithering and Open Versus Free.”
Me at DF: “Dithering” and “More on Dithering”.
Me at Macworld back in 2010: “It’s the heaviness of the Mac that allows iOS to remain light.”
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
276: ‘Bring It On, Haters’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the iPad.
Sponsored by:
Feals: Premium CBD delivered directly to your doorstep. Get 50% off your first order with free shipping.
Linode: Get an SSD server running in seconds with your choice of Linux distro, resources, and choice of 10 node locations. $20 credit with promo code talkshow2020.
Casper: Get your best rest, one night at a time. Save $100 on select mattresses using code talkshow.
Links:
DF: “The iPad Awkwardly Turns 10”.
Ben: “The Tragic iPad”.
Tweetie for iPad: Loren Brichter’s iPad masterpiece from 2010.
Ben in 2013: “What Clayton Christensen Got Wrong”.
Average times to brute-force crack iOS device passcodes.
The feds got Paul Manafort’s encrypted WhatsApp texts from his iCloud backup.
Ben’s and my favorite iPad drawing app: The Iconfactory’s Linea.
Obsessive Astros fan upset by scandal logged 8,200 pitches from 2017.
Randy Johnson tipped his pitches his entire career.
Randy Johnson faces John Kruk in the 1993 All-Star game and Kruk wants nothing to do with him.
Kobe scores 62 in 3 quarters in 2005.
Kobe scores 81 in 2006.
Kobe scores 60 in his final game in 2016.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
265: ‘Thompson’s Razor’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include the latest Surface hardware announcements from Microsoft, the state of the iPhone, and bulk purchases of charcoal.
Sponsored by:
Yes Plz: Upgrade your morning coffee routine with fresh beans delivered to your home. Use code TALKSHOW25 to get 25% off your first box.
Feals: Premium CBD delivered directly to your doorstep. Use this link for 50% off your first order and free shipping.
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code TALKSHOW for 10% off your first order.
ExpressVPN: Protect your online activity today with the VPN services rated #1 by TechRadar and get 3 months free with a 1-year package.
Links:
The Seattle Times: “Whistleblower: Boeing Rejected 737 Max Safety Upgrades Before Fatal Crashes”.
Matt Stoller on the disastrous leadership at Boeing after merging with McDonnell-Douglas.
The biggest announcements from Microsoft’s 2019 Surface event.
Yours Truly: “Apple and Hong Kong”.
Ben Thompson: “The China Cultural Clash”.
Microsoft’s Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard.
The old Microsoft Courier prototype.
iPhone “8S” rumors (a.k.a. the new iPhone SE).
Luna Display — use your iPad as a second Mac display without upgrading to MacOS 10.15 Catalina.
MacBook Pro displays, circa 2015, with bad anti-reflective coating.
Steve Jobs making peace with Bill Gates and Microsoft at Macworld Expo New York 1997: “We have to let go of this notion that for Apple to win Microsoft has to lose.”.
Microsoft’s 2010 “funeral” for the iPhone on the streets of Redmond.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
256: ‘A Bit Too Thin’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show to talk about Jony Ive’s departure from Apple.
Sponsored by:
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order.
Casper: Casper is a sleep brand that makes expertly designed products to help you get your best rest, one night at a time.
ExpressVPN: Rated #1 VPN service by TechRadar and comes with a 30-day money back guarantee.
Links:
Yours truly on Ive’s departure.
Thompson’s take on Ive’s departure.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
240: ‘Drastically Shakier’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include Apple's horrible no good very bad earnings warning, the Chinese market, Apple's push toward services for revenue growth, antitrust issues regarding the App Store, and more.
Sponsored by:
Alex Weinstein Music: Handmade music for your next video project. Use promo code thetalkshow and save 30 percent off your first purchase.
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10 percent off your first order.
Eero: Finally, Wi-Fi that works. Get $100 off a Wi-Fi system and a year of eero Plus with code thetalkshow.
Links:
“Apple’s Errors” — Ben’s take on Apple’s earnings warning.
“Apple’s Terrible No Good Very Bad Earnings Warning” — my take.
.
“Antitrust, the App Store, and Apple”.
Exponent — Ben’s podcast cohosted by James Allworth — is back.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
221: ‘Slathered in Incompetence’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include Apple's quarterly results, the discontinuation of Apple's AirPort product line, and more.
Sponsored by:
Tres Pontas: Freshly-roasted coffee from a single farm in Brazil, shipped directly to you. Use code THETALKSHOW at checkout and save an extra 10 percent on any subscription.
RXBar: Whole-food protein bars. We tell you what’s on the inside on the outside. Use code TALKSHOW and save 25 percent on your first order.
Casper: You can be sure of your purchase with Casper’s 100 night risk-free, sleep-on-it trial.
Links:
Ben Thompson on the race to a trillion-dollar market cap.
Ivan Seidenberg’s claim that Bob Iger carried an iPhone in July 2006.
Dr. Drang’s AirPort EOL tweet.
Apple LaserWriter II industrial sales training video.
Raiders of the Lost Ark: “It’s a date, you eat ’em!”.
Six Colors on Apple’s growing Services division.
New York Times piece on Fortnite.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Moisés Chiullan.
206: ‘Bed Is Where My Problems Are’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show to talk about the iPhone X.
Sponsored by:
Casper: You can be sure of your purchase with Casper’s 100 night risk-free, sleep-on-it trial.
Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order.
Fracture: Photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Save 15% off your first Fracture order with code TALK15.
Links:
My photo of Bernie Sanders and Bill de Blasio on the A train.
New York Post video of Sanders and de Blasio on the train that shows me in the background around 10 seconds in.
2007 NYT story: “Southwest Airlines gains advantage by hedging on long-term oil contracts”.
Nilay Patel’s video review of the iPhone X for The Verge.
Those YouTuber “first look” reviews that came out a day before the real reviews: Highsnobriety and Fashion Magazine.
Raymond Soneira’s review of the iPhone X display at DisplayMate.
IHS estimates that iPhone X’s components cost $115 more than iPhone 8’s.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
190: ‘Anything Luxury’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include Microsoft's announcements from Build 2017, search engines, Amazon's new (confusingly-named) Look and Show devices, the need for HAL 9000, Apple's WeChat problem in China, and more.
Sponsored by:
Pingdom: Uptime and performance monitoring made easy. Use code THETALKSHOW for 20 percent off.
Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code gruber for 10 percent off your first order.
Fracture: Your pictures, printed directly on glass.
Links:
Microsoft's Build 2017 Keynote.
Fish Shell.
Surface Laptop "luxury" treatment.
2007 Apple iPhone commercial.
Bob Borcher's iPhone guided tours.
Phil Schiller dumping Instagram in 2012.
WeChat and the iPhone in China.
When a ReadWriteWeb article became Google’s top result for “Facebook login”.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
179: ‘iPhone Is the New Hitler’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include the state of the Mac (and our shared belief that it’s death has been greatly exaggerated), the NFL playoffs, Chris Lattner leaving Apple for Tesla (and the general problem of talent retention), ruminating on the origins of the word “podcast”, and more.
Sponsored by:
Casper: An obsessively engineered mattress at a shockingly fair price. Use code thetalkshow for $50 toward your mattress.
Eero: Finally, Wi-Fi, that works. Use code thetalkshow for free expedited shipping.
Away: First-class luggage at a coach price, including built-in USB chargers.
Links:
“America’s slow but very real decline into a fascist state as told by the Milwaukee Bucks logo.”
Pittsburgh cab driver says John Elway is the best quarterback in history, not know that Elway was sitting in the back seat.
Yours truly back in 2005: “Is That a Podcast in Your Pocket?”
MPW, Apple's classic-era IDE.
Pastebot, a great new clipboard utility from Tapbots.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
170: ‘Kicking Dirt on Them While They’re on Fire’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include voice control with AirPods, how to get your entire music library onto an iPhone while using iCloud Music Library, Apple Watch durability, the Dash/App Store controversy, the disappointing and frustrating state of Siri and voice-driven AI assistants, Google's new Pixel phones and the strategy behind them, Snap's (née Snapchat) Spectacles (and why they're nothing like Google's ill-fated Glass), and more.
Sponsored by:
Backblaze: Online backup for $5/month. Native. Unlimited. Unthrottled. Uncomplicated.
Harry's: An exceptional shave at a fraction of the price. Use code talkshow and get a free bottle of Harry’s post shave balm.
Away: First-class luggage at a coach price, including built-in USB chargers.
Links:
How to download your entire music library to a device using iCloud Music Library.
1991 TidBITS story on NowMenus, a classic Mac OS utility.
BetterSnapTool, a Mac window management utility Ben uses.
Clipboard history managers for Mac:
Copy’em Paste
LaunchBar
Pastebot
Keyboard Maestro
Draft: web app that’s Ben’s preferred writing tool.
Fluid: longstanding utility that let’s you turn any website into a standalone Mac app.
Me on Twitter, posting a photo of my wife’s Apple Watch that fell apart coming off the charger. And then cracking wise.
Me on the the Dash/App Store controversy.
Dash developer Bogdan Popescu’s “full story”, in a statement to iMore.
The circumstances that led Apple to link to the two developer accounts.
Phil Stokes on Dropbox’s abuse of admin privileges and Accessibility permissions on MacOS: part 1 and part 2.
John Hempton of Bronte Capital on Twitter:
“Some Comment on the Twitter Buyout Rumors”
“Measuring How Bad Twitter Is”
Walt Mossberg: “Why Does Siri Seem So Dumb?”
Ben Thompson: “Chat and the Consumerization of It”.
Charlie Warzel, writing for BuzzFeed last year — “Apple’s Junk Drawer Problem” — under the premise that most people replace Apple’s apps on the iPhone with Google’s.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
153: ‘Chock Full of Whimsy’ With Ben Thompson
Ben Thompson returns to the show to talk about Apple’s recent quarterly results, what we think is going on with iPhone sales, Tim Cook’s misleading guidance, Apple Music, and a lot more.
Sponsored by:
Wealthfront: An automated investment service with over $3 billion in client assets under management.
Automatic: Your smart driving assistant. Get $20 off with this link.
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Links:
Yours truly, last week: “Apple and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Drop in iPhone Sales”.
Ben, two weeks ago: “Apple’s Organizational Crossroads”.
Neil Cybart: “iPhone Warning Signs”.
Due, an iPhone reminder app that I’ve been using daily for years.
Gary Allen, now-deceased writer behind IFO Apple Store.
Mini Microsoft.
Dodger Trayce Thompson, brother of Golden State Warrior star Klay Thompson, hit a run in Tampa that never came down from the rafters.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.
308: Workflows with Ben Thompson
David and Katie chat with Ben Thompson about how business strategy impacts technology, living and working in Asia and global views on the mobile market, and the upcoming March 2016 Apple event.
Thanks to MPU listener Jigar Talati for help with the shownotes this week!
This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:
Squarespace: Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
PDFpen from Smile With powerful PDF editing tools, available for Mac, iPad, and iPhone, PDFpen from Smile makes you a Mac Power User.
The Omni Group We're passionate about productivity for Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Marketcircle We help small business grow with great Mac, iPhone and iPad apps including Daylight and Billings Pro.
Guest Starring:
Ben Thompson
Links and Show Notes:
More Power Users: Ad-free episodes with regular bonus segments
Stratechery by Ben Thompson - On the business, strategy, and impact of technology.
Exponent | A podcast about tech and society, hosted by Ben Thompson and James Allworth
Stratechery (@stratechery) | Twitter
Ben Thompson (@benthompson) | Twitter
Smartphone Truths and Samsung's Inevitable Decline - Stratechery by Ben Thompson
Skype | Free calls to friends and family
Slack: Be less busy
Google Chromebooks
Send Better Email | MailChimp
Stripe
Fluid - Turn Your Favorite Web Apps into Real Mac Apps.
Memberful — Membership software. Simplified.
Draft. Write Better.
Pages for Mac - Apple
LaunchBar 6
Copy 'em Paste - Apprywhere
WorkFlowy - Organize your brain.
OmniOutliner - outlining & writing for Mac, iPhone, and iPad - The Omni Group
MarsEdit 3 - Desktop blog editing for the Mac.
Nuzzel: News From Friends And Influencers
NetNewsWire
145: ‘Anthropomorphic Human Bowel’ With Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include last Sunday’s Super Bowl 50 (and its mostly terrible commercials), Tim Cook’s tweet with a photo he took from the sidelines post-game, Twitter’s algorithmic timeline and the state of today’s Google- and Facebook-dominated online advertising industry, Yahoo’s dismal prospects, and more.
Sponsored by:
Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order.
Igloo: An intranet you’ll actually like. Try Igloo for free.
Fracture: Your photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Use promo code TALKSHOW10 for 10% off your first order.
Links:
Tim Cook, Super Bowl photographer.
The New Yorker advertising Josh Topolsky’s “The End of Twitter” article — on Twitter.
Concussions suffered in this year’s Super Bowl.
How we used to finger our friends in college.
Dustin Curtis computed the 2015 revenue and profit per employee for Yahoo, Twitter, MSFT, Google, Facebook, and Apple.
Xifaxan’s Super Bowl 50 commercial, starring a diarrhea-stricken human bowel.
This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Moisés Chiullan.
129: ‘90 Minutes or Bust’ With Guest Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include: our top complaints about Apple Watch, Apple making a car, the New York Times's profile of Amazon's work culture, and more.
Sponsored by:
Harry's: High-quality shaving products. Use the promo code "talkshow" to save $5 off your first purchase.
Casper: An obsessively engineered mattress at a shockingly fair price. Save $50 off any mattress with promo code "thetalkshow".
Warby Parker: Boutique-quality, classically crafted eyewear at a revolutionary price point.
Hover: The best way to buy and manage domain names. Save 10 percent off first purchase with code “ThreeStarPodcast”.
Links:
The NYT: "Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big
Ideas in a Bruising Workplace".
Julia Cheiffetz: "I Had a Baby and Cancer When I Worked at Amazon".
Me, back 2010, writing for Macworld: "This Is How Apple Rolls".
115: ‘Turd on the Front Porch’ With Guest Ben Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson returns, with the intention of not talking about Apple Watch — and so of course we spend two hours talking about Apple Watch. Other topics include the launch of Jay Z’s streaming music service Tidal, audience ceilings faced by different types of dedicated TV devices, and Meerkat-vs.-Periscope and the nascent revolution of ubiquitous live-streaming video. We make some NCAA men’s basketball Final Four picks, too.
Sponsored by:
Dash: Create your own beautiful, fully-customizable dashboards on the web.
Igloo: The intranet you’ll actually like.
Casper: Premium mattresses at great prices, with a no-questions-asked refund policy.
Fracture: Your pictures, printed directly on glass. Use code “daringfireball” and save 15 percent.
Links:
Ben’s website: Stratechery.
David Pierce, writing for Wired: “iPhone Killer: The Secret History of the Apple Watch”.
Daring Fireball, back in 2013: “Exhibit A in the Case That Newly-Hired Apple Vp of Technology Kevin Lynch Is a Bozo, a Bad Hire”.
Kevin Lynch’s personal website.
Billboard: “Jay Z on Competing With Jimmy Iovine: ‘I Don’t Have To Lose…For You Guys To Win’”.
Steve Jobs unveils Apple’s “Digital Hub” strategy at Macworld Expo in January 2001.
Panic: “The True Story of Audion”.
Yahoo Finance: “YouTube’s Highest-Paid Star Is a Woman Who Unboxes Disney Toys”.
Recode: “Apple Asks TV Programmers to Supply Their Own Streams for Apple’s TV Service”.
108: ‘Malaprops’ With Guest Ben Thompson
Topics include Apple’s pseudo “sabbaticals” (employees who leave the company but then return after a year or two); Google’s cultural similarities to Microsoft; the ways that Apple (and iOS users) might miss Scott Forstall; accessibility as a high priority for Apple; Instagram’s success (and how they effectively ate Hipstamatic’s lunch); a debate on just how “simple” Twitter is; Box’s successful IPO, and Dropbox’s support for Yosemite’s official Finder integration for such services; MIT economist Jonathan Gruber pissing in my Google juice; Chromebooks; Amazon’s overall strategy, and the colossal failure of their Fire Phone; and, lastly, a good chunk on Microsoft’s Windows 10/HoloLens event last week.
Sponsored by:
Fracture: Your pictures, printed directly on glass. Use code “daringfireball” and save 15 percent.
Need: A refined retailer and lifestyle magazine for men.
Igloo: The intranet you’ll actually like.
Links:
Ben Thompson’s Stratechery website and Exponent podcast.
Mark Bylok’s The Whiskey Cabinet, an excellent new book.
Duet Display — iPad app that turns your iPad into a second display for your Mac.
Box’s IPO.
Tim Cook’s tweet on Box’s IPO.
Hipstamatic
Jibe vs. Jive vs. Gibe
Michael Jackson’s death.
Austin Carr’s excellent story for Fast Company on the development of Amazon’s Fire Phone.
Amazon Echo — the standalone always-listening AI assistant, with a three-month backlog.
Joanna Stern on Windows 10
HoloLens.
96: ‘The Edition Edition’ With Ben ‘Bengate’ Thompson
Special guest Ben Thompson joins the show for an Apple Watch discussion: what it’ll cost, what it’ll do, how it will be sold, and more. Other topics include “Bend-gate”, Apple’s growing prowess in mobile chip design, and Derek Jeter.
Sponsored by:
uBar: A taskbar for the Mac. Save 50 percent with code “STANDARDGRUBER”.
Need: A refined retailer and lifestyle magazine for men.
Fracture: Your photos printed directly on glass. Save 20 percent with code “GRUBER”.
Links:
Apple Spotlight: A Brief History of iPhonegates
Derek Jeter’s 2001 “flip play”
AnandTech benchmarks show year-old iPhone 5S is still a top-five phone
87: ‘Free Alcoholic Beverages’ With Ben Thompson
Topics include Samsung getting pinched from Apple on the high end and Xiaomi (at least in China) on the low end, Android and the importance of software differentiation, wearable devices, and more.
Sponsored by:
Squarespace
Igloo
Backblaze
Links:
Xiaomi M3 phone
Ron Amadeo's review of Android Wear for Ars Technica
Khosla interview with Larry Page and Sergey Brin
Ben Thompson on Samsung's demise