There’s a lot of focus on new “Instagram disrupters” that are essentially photo-sharing apps with a twist. The last few years have brought many: Poparazzi, Dispo, BeReal, now Retro. Many are delightful product experiences, but I don’t see the next Instagram being built around photos. Typically, new social networks and content platforms are built around a new atomic unit of content. UGGC could be behind that atomic unit, ushering in a new wave of creativity and exploration.

The Business Financing Playbook

Everything you need to know about how to get your business funded 👇

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I just finished reading Eric Helleiner's newest book. It's not necessarily for everyone, but for those interested in the history of "neo-mercantilist" thinking, it is a must-read.

#1 question I got asked:

“How to start doing marketing?”

Good news — it’s easier than you think. Here’s my roadmap.

1) Pre-launch 💡

Got a new product idea? Start completing these tasks.

- Define one specific audience segment you target (e.g., startup founders without a…

Cabin community members' dream neighborhoods:

• Nature out the front door
• Dense community
• High tech

"Margin of Safety" by Seth Klarman is an incredible investing book.

But a used copy costs $1,200!

Here are 26 short investing lessons from this classic book (for free):

I can’t get over these images from the James Webb Space Telescope! They’re igniting curiosity and wonder in a whole new generation.

1. Financial Intelligence
2. Measure What Matters
3. Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits!
4. Profit First
5. Accounting Made Simple

Profits at the biggest entertainment companies fell almost 90% over the last decade (from $23.4B to $2.6B).

Revised numbers from the last newsletter (cc @DKThomp)



I revisit this lesson on writing structure every 3-4 months.

Gold:

A <n>Greco-futurism</n> illustration by <n>Pablo Peniche</n>, inspired by the style of artist <n>Syd Mead</n>.

Futuristic Ancient-Greek City, in the style of Syd Mead

Top  10 Finance Certifications

Did I miss any?

Great new quote from Slootman on pushing the pace and intensity:

With $50,000, you have several business opportunities that you can venture into.

I've compiled a list of the top 45 ideas to get your creative juices flowing:

1.  Food truck: Start a mobile restaurant with a unique menu.

Every growth investor should study this chart thoroughly:

new VC funds at / below $200M in size by Shai Goldman @shaig - Google Drive

Today is the beginning of a new era for Web3.

We’re happy to announce that Pudgy Toys and Pudgy World are now available.

8 Books everyone should read:

• The Joys of Compounding
• Snowball
• Expectations Investing
• The Education of a Value Investor
• The Little Book that Beats the Market
• The Psychology of Monet
• One Up on Wall Street
• Richer, Wiser, Happier

Here's why:

With many 🧩 dropping recently, a more complete picture is emerging of LLMs not as a chatbot, but the kernel process of a new Operating System. E.g. today it orchestrates:

- Input & Output across modalities (text, audio, vision)
- Code interpreter, ability to write & run…

Our industry’s returns are based on the power law: the reality that a small handful of massive companies and winning investments end up contributing to the vast majority of gains.

My Energy Industry Reading Stack:

• Oil
• Energy
• The Frackers
• The Big Rich
• Fisher Invest on Energy
• Crude Volatility 
• Oil Man
• Fossil Future
• The World For Sale
• The Prize
• Price Wars

What would you add to this list?

<n>The Generative AI Landscape</n> infographic by <n>DataCamp</n> categorizes tools like <n>ChatGPT</n> and <n>Midjourney</n>.

Want to invest in payments businesses like $V, $MA, $ADYEY, or $PYPL?

You must understand the payment flow and how it all interconnects.

This fantastic graphic from @Quartr_App will help you better understand how it all works.

Happy Fourth of July! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

TikTok may be building a Spotify killer.

I got an early look at the new streaming app they just launched in five countries.

Here’s why it could be the first real challenger to Spotify’s global dominance ⬇️

Really digging this new mass timber development in Brooklyn

Family Office asset allocation  

2021 vs 2023  

How the wealthiest families protect and grow their wealth

&gt; Fixed income is back 
&gt; Outsized allocation to alternatives remains 
&gt; Cash holdings down  

Top three fears in the next 1-2 years:  

&gt; recession 
&gt; geopolitics 
&gt;…

Here is my cheat sheet for building an MVP that has PMF.

1. Talk to 30 customers, figure out a problem they would pay for.
2. build it in < 3 months.
3. Sell it for 3 months.  

If after that you are growing 30% MoM, you have PMF.  

if not, pivot.

The Decline of #CriticalThinking Skills — Here's how to get back this important life skill:

IP and NFTs:
I fully agree with @RoyPrice that no NFT project attempting to become valuable IPs has succeeded in any meaningful way (yet). It might be a lack of real IP growth experience, but I'm more inclined to blame the premature path dependency on financial outcome of NFTs
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If you are a web3 project, start with a realistic IP roadmap, get long-term capital (less but better), NFT comes later  

If you are an existing IP, flip upside down the entire value creation and distribution model - easier if you sandbox an IP you are willing to go all-in slowly

Marketplaces are simply businesses that don’t sell goods or services, but instead sell the reduction of transaction costs.