Every week, we put together a list of our top 5 articles of the past week. Happy reading!
Modern Suppliers Blake Robbins (reading time: 8 minutes)
Most people are familiar with the context and role of suppliers in the physical world, but we are still in the early innings of suppliers in a software world. In the future, similar to automotive companies, software companies will be made up of hundreds, if not thousands, of suppliers.
I really enjoyed this article because it simplified many ideas floating around in my head. Blake Robbins explains this concept of a modern supplier in technology terms. He uses a few examples to show how technology suppliers are just like suppliers in the physical world. Over time, we’ll see a bifurcation between supplier companies and marketing companies.
Internet Scale Businesses, Ram Parameswaran Colossus (reading time: 84 minutes)
I loved this podcast with Patrick O’Shaughnessy and Ram Parameswaran. Ram is an early stage investor and he brilliantly describes the state of the digital economy. The bottom line is that we’re just getting started and trillions of dollars remain to be unlocked. Here is a written summary in case you don’t want to listen to it.
Why the Canadian Tech Scene Doesn’t Work Alex Danco (reading time: 23 minutes)
This was a controversial post but one I mostly agree with. Alex Danco breaks down everything that is wrong with the Canadian tech ecosystem. He raises a few excellent points notably around tax credits and angel investors. The big point is the fixed vs. growth mindset among many investors.
The Evolution of Cloud, Jerry Chen GreyLock (reading time: 12 minutes)
In a cloud only world, your competition is not only just a click away but an API call away.
We are moving to a cloud-only world and the transition is already underway. This interesting post by GreyLock predicts where startups are going to compete in a cloud only world.
How Apple Is Organized for Innovation Harvard Business Review (reading time: 34 minutes)
There is old adage that states that a company ships its organizational structure. In the case the largest technology company in the world, its structure holds the key for its continued innovation. Apple employs a functional organization. This HBR post dissects the benefits of this type of structure. It’s a great read on how org structure influences an entire company.
Bonus:
Creating Images from Text OpenAI (reading time: 16 minutes)
If you want another glimpse of where AI technologies are headed, OpenAI announced another breakthrough this past week that want unnoticed. It’s the ability to create images through text. The examples are pretty remarkable.
