Amazon demolished this company

Lotso’ thought leadership

Hi there,

I’m fascinated with the idea of sounding smart.

Like recently, I heard this quote:

And then I thought “Dang. The person who coined this is a genius. Many conference keynotes to be had.”

But the interesting thing I’ve noticed is that you don’t always have to even make sense to sound smart. And so today, I’m going to share a couple random quotes that I’ve thought of in the hopes of sounding smart. 

Let me know what you think.

But first.

World bracket entertainment

Round 2 of our bracket to select the best company to invest in and hold for 10 years has concluded. Some results:

• Amazon crushed WeWork
• Uber beat Didi 
• Nvidia edged out Goldman

So what can we expect to see in Round 3? Check it out:

• Apple vs Microsoft
• Walmart vs SpaceX
• Salesforce vs Netflix

Polls close this Sunday, December 3rd. Vote here.

What do you think? Smart or not smart?

I’ve been trying this one out:

Smart, eh?

Disrupting auto

From car-sharing services and alternative financing options to dealership enablement software, startups in the auto commerce space are changing the way cars are sold, leased, and financed. Check them out.

Big biz for schools. And it’s not football.

What do Yale, Harvard, Northwestern, NYU, and Georgetown University all have in common?

Their online degree programs are powered by higher education disruptor 2U. Turns out it’s a pretty good business to be in.

In 2014, there were 59 tech, media, and telecom IPOs on the NASDAQ. Earlier this month, Goldman pointed out that 2U is the fifth-highest performing stock in that cohort, beating the likes of Alibaba, which also went public that year.

Chip Paucek, Co-founder and CEO of 2U (NASDAQ: TWOU, market cap: $3.5B) will join us at the A-ha! Conference December 12-13, 2017 in San Francisco. We’re looking forward to hearing about what’s next for 2U.

P.S. Thanks to GetSmarter, 2U’s most recent acquisition, you can take an Oxford University blockchain course online starting in January.

P.P.S. A-ha! Is only 2 weeks away. Time to get your group to register for our group rate of $2,990 for 3 tickets.

Here’s another attempt to sound smart

What do you think?

Set sail

Maersk and other maritime logistics players, which handle 90% of globally traded goods, are exploring blockchain to increase efficiency and transparency in global trade. In March 2017, Maersk partnered with IBM to integrate blockchain technology into its supply chain and shipping processes.

The Industry Standard

CB Insights data is the most trusted by those in the industry and the media. A few recent hits.

Deal Street Asia. Shiwen Yap (@shiwenyap) reports on top countries for ICOs and cites data found in the CB Insights blockchain explainer.

Bloomberg. Lionel Laurent (@lionelralaurent) on the deal between Uber and SoftBank with a reference to CB Insights unicorn data.

CBS News. A look at AI in retail with a mention of CB Insights research on job automation.

I love you.

Anand
@asanwal