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Dec. 08, 2024 06:05PM EST
Aug. 31, 2021 02:15PM EST
Why the startup world needs to ditch "unicorns" for "dragons"
When Aileen Lee originally coined the term "unicorn" in late 2013, she was describing the 39 "U.S.-based software companies started since 2003 and valued at over $1 billion by public or private market investors."
Flashback: It got redefined in early 2015 by yours truly and Erin Griffith, in a cover story for Fortune, as any privately-held startup valued at $1 billion or more. At the time, we counted 80 of them.
- Ours was the definition that stuck. And, last week, the number of such companies topped 800, per CB Insights, with a cumulative valuation of around $2.6 trillion.
Why it matters: With apologies to Justin Timberlake Parker, $1 billion just isn't that cool anymore. It's not rare if there are over 800 of them, and certainly not mythical.
- Plus, there's been a flurry of startups whose valuations have been inflated by investment dollars. Isn't it more impressive to be worth $500 million on $50 million of venture capital than $1 billion on $500 million of venture capital?
We need a new word: Dragons.
- Dragons are much bigger, stronger and more awe-inspiring than unicorns. They destroy whatever's in their path, and their own destruction is viewed as catastrophic (at least if "GOT" is any guide).
- To qualify, a company must be valued at $12 billion or more, net of venture funding. Yes, it's a somewhat arbitrary figure. But it reflects the >10x "unicorn" growth since the Fortune piece, and the rapidly ascending private funding trajectory.
By the numbers: Currently, there would be 19 dragons. Of those, nine are based in the U.S.
- That's an even more exclusive club than Lee's original framing, although this is the sort of thing where less means more.
- The U.S. dragons are: Stripe, SpaceX, Instacart, Epic Games, Databricks, Rivian, Chime, Fanatics and Plaid.
The bottom line: Welcome to the age of dragons.
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Aug. 31, 2021 09:30AM EST
Florida oxygen shortage hits more than hospitals
A shortage of medical-grade oxygen in COVID hotspots like Florida is rippling through the economy, crimping manufacturing and intensifying a shortage of truck drivers.
Why it matters: It's the latest example of the supply chain chaos that's developed in the pandemic economy. Oxygen suppliers like Airgas have diverted all their supply to hospitals, leaving industrial customers in a lurch — and potentially putting themselves in legal jeopardy for breaching contracts, sources tell Axios.
The backstory: Liquid oxygen, also known as compressed oxygen, is one of the primary treatments for patients hospitalized with COVID-19. This grade of oxygen is the same as what's used to purify water, as well as to produce high-quality metals that are in turn sold to manufacturers in fields like aerospace and medical implants.
- Globally, the dearth of oxygen is nothing new in the battle against the pandemic. From India this summer to Los Angeles last winter, the scarcity has cost lives.
What's happening now: Areas of the U.S. south, especially Florida, are the latest to experience the shortage.
- Cities like Orlandohave asked residents to cut back on water usage so they don't sap the precious oxygen supply, as the Orlando Sentinel recently reported.
In the business world, medical-grade oxygen suppliers that have failed to make good on contracts with industrial customers are effectively "willing to take the legal risk, and putting themselves in jeopardy that their industrial customers come back and say 'hey, we had a contract here, you're breaking that contract,'" says Rich Gottwald of the Compressed Gas Association, a trade group.
- "But, they've got to do it, because saving lives is more important," he says.
The intrigue: Invoking a "force majeure" — a legal term for unforeseen external circumstances, or an "act of God" — is one way that suppliers can try to justify their decision under the law.
Reality check: Liquid oxygen is difficult to transport long distances. It's cryogenic, meaning it needs to be kept really, really cold — and it requires specially designed trucks for transport.
- The northern U.S. isn't experiencing a shortage at the moment, but because of those limitations, it's hard to spread the wealth, Gottwald says.
And then there's the truck driver shortage, which Axios has chronicled this year.
- “Finding drivers is really difficult," Gottwald says. "Some companies, like Airgas, are rotating in drivers from [nearby regions] of the country, to be able to service hospitals in the areas that need medical oxygen," he adds.
The bottom line: The economic upheaval caused by the pandemic is far from over.
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Aug. 23, 2021 02:23PM EST
YouTube says content policing is good for business
While critics allege YouTube puts profits over public safety, product head Neal Mohan insists that the Google-owned video site is working to be a better content moderator, in part because it is good for business.
Why it matters: Users spend billions of hours watching videos on YouTube, and the site's content recommendations shape how that time is spent. Facebook and Twitter tend to get more attention on content moderation, but YouTube remains an equally important information battleground.
Driving the news: YouTube is announcing Monday that it now has two million people in its programs that enable creators to get paid. Mohan said a huge part of his focus is trying to find ways to make sure those who play by the rules are rewarded.
- "99.9% of creators are looking to do the right thing," Mohan told Axios, noting that YouTube has paid out $30 billion over the last three years.
- In addition to the 14-year-old program that shares ad money for popular videos, YouTube has also added ways for creators to sell merchandise or be directly compensated by users.
Between the lines: YouTube still faces challenges in making sure it is the creators "doing the right thing" who are benefiting the most, rather than spreaders of viral misinformation.
- It's not just those getting paid by Google who can benefit from gaming the system. Creators with a large enough following can make money indirectly even if they've been "demonetized" — removed from YouTube's own payment programs.
- In the "vast, vast majority of cases that's a good thing," Mohan said, though he acknowledges that it does create opportunities for some creators to profit from borderline content that doesn't meet YouTube's bar.
The big picture: On one of the biggest topics at the moment, COVID-19 misinformation, Mohan pointed to both the work that the company has done to enforce its policies and collaborations between creators and health authorities, as well as the dedicated spots YouTube has set aside for authoritative information.
- "I hope that we are perceived as ultimately a positive voice here," Mohan said.
- Critics, though, point to a vast array of videos that have promoted hesitancy around masks and vaccines. Some were eventually taken down, others have been allowed to remain on the site.
- Mohan noted that the landscape is ever-changing and the company's work around COVID-19 misinformation is ongoing.
- "The work is never done," Mohan said. "I have learned that there is always a new vector of misinformation that will pop up."
By the numbers: YouTube has recently started sharing the rate of policy-violating content that is being shown to visitors. Tech companies and critics agree that this is a more important metric than the total amount of content being removed.
- As of the fourth quarter, YouTube said that rate was 0.16–0.18%, meaning that out of every 10,000 views on YouTube, only 16–18 come from rule-violating content.
Meanwhile: Mohan said he continues to put a lot of effort into YouTube Shorts, which he says is more than just a TikTok competitor.
- Mohan notes that he is trying to add features that take advantage of YouTube's existing strengths, including making it easy for creators to create short remixes of existing YouTube videos.
- "You should look for more of those," Mohan said.
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