Nam & Sean are on a break, crafting new content for a more well-rounded and informative podcast on global technology and business trends! Stay tuned!
In this episode, Sean and Nam discuss the rideshare boom, specifically as it relates to Uber and Lyft, the two rideshare behemoths! They discuss the early beginnings of these companies, their market success and why they have both struggled to achieve profits even though they are both household names.
In the second part of this two-part series, Nam and Sean discuss the “soft tech side” of the future of fitness, such as how it will relate to the metaverse, social networking, etc.
In the first part of this two-part series, Nam and Sean discuss the future of fitness as it relates to hardware, such as home gyms and exercise bikes.
In this episode, Nam and Sean talk about FIN7, a hacking organization that has been responsible for billions of dollars stolen since its inception. Sean discusses how FIN7 is run like a tech company, with a proper business model and recruiting process. Moreover, Nam discusses how cyber security will become one of the most important professions in the future because of all the information that we keep online. What will be the future of hacking and cyber security? Tune in for more.
12-21-21 In the News briefing! Theranos trial Crypto hearing, executive from coinbase speaks to congress : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux6CmsrOFeo https://cointelegraph.com/news/defi-is-the-most-dangerous-part-of-the-crypto-world-says-senator-elizabeth-warren Nike acquired RTFKT: https://news.nike.com/news/nike-acquires-rtfkt Adidas collar with BAYC and Comic punk: Sold more than 22 million NFTs https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-16/melania-trump-joins-crypto-frenzy-with-nfts-release https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/17/tiktok-is-launching-delivery-only-restaurants-across-the-u-s-in-march/
In this episode of TBT, Nam and Sean discuss different successful NFT projects on the Ethereal blockchain. Some of the projects are worth billions of dollars in total value. What will the future of the NFT world look like? Is it just a JPEG on the blockchain that anyone can screenshot or will the NFT communities offer much more? Resources: Curios Card: https://curio.cards/ Crupto Punk: https://www.larvalabs.com/cryptopunks Punk Comics: https://punkscomic.com Bored Ape Catch Club: https://boredapeyachtclub.com/#/home Axie infinity: https://axieinfinity.com/
In this episode, Sean and Nam discuss Alibaba, the e-commerce giant that has been referred to by many as the Amazon of China. Alibaba was, at one point, valued as high as $1T. It's not doing Alibaba justice when people try to compare it with Amazon. This is an entirely different business in terms of origin and source of revenue. Nam and Sean go discuss the core businesses of Alibaba. They also talk about the early days of Jack Ma, and how he came up with the idea for his company. What truly is Alibaba, how do they make money, and what challenges does it face in the future? Tune in for more!
In this episode of TBT, Nam and Sean discuss The Facebook Company’s big-time transition to Meta, the newly rebranded parent company of Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp and other important business entities. Why did Facebook choose to make this transition? What does this mean for Facebook’s core mission? Tune in for more! Episode References: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq1e5_q9Q4g https://youtu.be/Uvufun6xer8?t=243 https://youtu.be/Uvufun6xer8?t=864
Nam and Sean decided to discuss one of the most "taboo" industries that has ever existed: The Adult Industry, aka the Porn Industry. Most people have heard or even experienced it, but not many people have discussed the business side of porn. In this episode, instead of debating the effects of the industry on society, they mainly dive deep into the industries array of business models and discuss how some companies like PornHub and OnlyFans are making money. Tune in for more!
Join Nam and Sean as they discuss Theranos, a one-time Silicon Valley unicorn focused on changing the world of medical diagnostic testing. The duo will raise questions about how Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos’s now infamous ex-CEO, was able to convince so many people to follow her whimsical promises. Furthermore, Nam and Sean will talk about how the Theranos story and the ongoing trial into Elizabeth Holme’s fraud is an important lesson that faking it until making it doesn’t always work.
Join Nam and Sean in this episode to discuss Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, better known as LVMH, as well as Bernard Arnault, the founder, chairman and chief executive of LVMH. Many people do not know who Bernard Arnault is with his staggering net worth of approximately $180 billion, but he is unequivocally the face of luxury goods at the highest echelon. From Louis Vuitton handbags to yachts, LVMH is a conglomerate that runs the world of luxury. Tune in to learn more about this incredible corporation and inspirational businessman.
In this episode, Nam and Sean talk about Robinhood, the most popular trading app for Millenials. They discuss how Robinhood brings trading to everyday people from all walks of life. Now, everyone with a phone, an internet connection, and a few dollars can essentially start investing via Robinhood. On the other hand, easy access to investing without having any knowledge can be dangerous. Without researching the stocks, it can be a simple gamble where one chooses a random ticker symbol and hopes to win the lottery. Does Robinhood do more harm than good? Tune in for more!
In this episode, Nam and Sean discussed Netflix, one of the most popular streaming services ever exists. They went back to 1997 where Netflix started its journey to become one of the most influential companies of the generation. They talked about the challenge and obstacles that almost led Netflix to bankruptcy after failed to be acquired by their famous rival Blockbuster. Thanks to the leadership of Reed Hastings, the company did not only survived but also thrived and adapted to the fast-changing streaming market. Tune in for more Netflix and chill! Note: Netflix was first founded in August of 1997 by two serial entrepreneurs, Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings At first people order the DvD and Netflix send it to your home and after you done you send it back Dot com bubble almost kill Netflix and force the founders to offer to sell the company for Blockbuster for 50 millions Change from rental to subscription model Culture: https://www.slideshare.net/reed2001/culture-1798664 There are 7 Aspects of our culture Some nuggets: Pro sport team, not family Wants star in every position Netflix only hire the best talent Never hire new grad 3+ years experience 300k/year cash 6+ year 450-500k/year cash Redbox and Roku sprung out from Netflix Blockbuster failed but could have won Debate between DVD vs DVIX for too long Investor (Carl eichen) bought out huge percent of blockbuster and replaced ceo with new ceo, someone who didn’t believe in online business. He thought everything would go back to brick and mortar. Netflix was losing sales to blockbuster after bb released total access. DotCom bubble: In 2001, Netflix layoff 40% of its employee after failing to sell the company to Blockbuster Reed Hastings book: https://www.amazon.com/No-Rules-Netflix-Culture-Reinvention/dp/B0845Z14DX/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=no+rules+rules&qid=1626216457&sr=8-1 Give employees freedom because true freedom comes from careful planning Candor/Honesty Freedom promote accountability
In this episode, Nam and Sean talk UI and UX! What makes Uber’s mobile app so nice to use! How about Netflix’s interface? Why is it so seamless to interact with and does this efficient and beautiful design really help to keep us coming back to watch more content and keep our monthly subscriptions active? UI and UX are critical fields as we move deeper and deeper into the digital future. Join Nam and Sean as they discuss this interesting topic!
Adam Neumann, the eccentric, party-loving, long-haired bro behind WeWork and the We Universe most-likely never expected his Softbank backed real-estate company, glorified by a fake vail of technology buzz words, to fall from $47 billion in valuation to $10 billion in a matter of days. What sort of company culture caused this to happen? How did Adam Neumann build a we-cult that spread globally in an attempt to revolutionize the way we work? Join Nam and Sean in this episode to discuss the man and the company behind the We-Universe!
In this episode, Nam and Sean discuss Amazon, Whole Foods, AWS, Alexa, Ring and other Amazon owned products/services and brands. They also discuss Bezos himself - the man, the myth, the legend - along with Bezos Expeditions and Nash Holdings LLC, which houses Blue Origins and The Washington Post. The rise and reign of Bezos is legendary and Amazon is easily his most recognizable creation. Tune in for this wild ride as Nam and Sean talk technology and business surrounding the world’s richest human. Episode resources: relentless.com => it leads to amazon.com Amazon Net income: https://www.investopedia.com/how-amazon-makes-money-4587523 Revenue: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/amazon-revenue-model-2020/ Amazon makes little to no money until 2017: https://www.macrotrends.nt/stocks/charts/AMZN/amazon/net-income Big acquisitions MGM: $8.5 Billion Whole Foods: 13.7 Billion Zappos: 1.2 Billion Ring: $970 Million Twitch 2014
In this episode, Nam and Sean discuss Esports, also known as video games. They are not hardcore gamers, however, both of them grew up playing video games and saw the progression from it being a stigma to now becoming a legit competitive world of players that is often very lucrative. Nam emphasizes the differences between how players make money from Esports compared to traditional sports. He also believes that because of the more open and organic distribution via social media, Esports will eventually have more viewership than regular sports. On the other hand, Sean has huge respect for sports that require tremendous physical talent and does not think that Esports will ever fully take over the attention of traditional sports. What do you think about the future of Esports? Tune in for more. Podcase Note: Twitch, owned by Amazon World leader in live-streaming esports Acquired by Amazon in 2014 for 970million Dominates the industry of esports streaming: Twitch commanded 61 percent of hours watched in 2019 Twitch doesn’t only do esports. It’s all about live streaming. Cooking, music, Q&A sessions, etc. YouTube gaming Commanded 28 percent of hours watched in 2019 Facebook gaming Streamers Dota 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_International_(Dota_2) The top 10 highest-earning players are Dota 2 players (https://www.esportsearnings.com/players) - not including YouTube - streaming - anything outside of gaming earning. https://openai.com/projects/five/ : AI that has a 99% win rate and beat OG - the 2 time back to back champion https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sportscasting.com/our-predictions-for-the-future-of-esports/%3famp https://esports-news.co.uk/2021/02/17/esports-5-years-on-where-is-the-industry-headed/