Last post in 2023. If you are a follower of this blog, thank you! Happy New Year to everyone!
Business
Substack Says It Will Not Ban Nazis or Extremist Speech. Different people will have different opinions on Substack’s move. I don’t think it’s right to condone Nazis and hate speech, but it’s not necessarily what Substack is doing. They weighted pros and cons of a BUSINESS MOVE and decided not to curate content. I can see where they are coming from. I respect the courage it took to make this kind of moves. Let’s see where it would lead the company.
The Man Preparing for a Berkshire Hathaway Without Warren Buffett. The CEO is an operational low-key guy whose mandate is to make sure everything runs smoothly and all businesses achieve efficiency. The investment piece will be run by two guys whose bond has not been tested by time like Charlie and Warren. And I don’t know why Warren’s son will be appointed non-executive chairman. Nonetheless, the Berkshire we see now will be every different in 10 years.
Apple executives Johny Srouji and John Ternus on its growing chip business. Apple employes thousands of engineers in its chip department, spends millions of dollars every year and is willing to plan and execute for years to come. Yet, some critics say that the company doesn’t innovate and doesn’t deserve all the good things that come its way. I mean, how is that fair? Sure, every big corporation uses its vast resources for advantages and very often employs bully-like tactics. For that, Apple is not innocent. But it’s dishonest to say that Apple just got lucky. You don’t become a $3 trillion company and have millions of loyal customers for years only because of luck.
Affirm’s stock quintupled this year, beating all tech peers, on buy now, pay later boom. 2023 is a spectacular year for Affirm, but it’s far from being proof that the company will have similar success in 2024 or in the next 5 years. First of all, even though Affirm has been around for a while and become quite popular in the US, it has not been profitable at all. I don’t recall the management team issuing any kind of guidance on when we can expect profitability. Second, there has been a push to regulate BNPL and require credit reporting which is a popular feature of this product. It’s anyone’s guess what that regulatory change would do to consumer demand. Third, can Affirm dismantle credit cards? I really don’t think so. Nonetheless, I don’t think Affirm executives and investors can hope for a better year than 2023. What’s the point of constantly looking ahead if you can’t take the time to celebrate the current wins?
Inside Apple’s Massive Push To Transform The Mac Into A Gaming Paradise. “Ask any gadget reviewer (including myself) and they will tell you Keppel isn’t just drinking the Kool-Aid because Apple pays him to. Macs with Apple silicon really are performant computers that can play some of the latest PC and console games. In three generations of desktop-class chip design, Apple has created a platform with “tens of millions of Apple silicon Macs,” according to Keppel. That’s tens of millions of Macs with monstrous CPU and GPU capabilities for running graphics-intensive games. Apple’s upgrades to the GPUs on its silicon are especially impressive. The latest Apple silicon, the M3 family of chips, supports hardware-accelerated ray-tracing and mesh shading, features that only a few years ago didn’t seem like they would ever be a priority, let alone ones that are built into the entire spectrum of MacBook Pros. Martin says Apple silicon started fresh with a unified hardware platform that not only makes it easier for developers to create Mac games for, but will allow for those games to run on other Apple devices.”
Other Stuff I Find Interesting
The Rise of the Forever Renters. It’s interesting to see that more medim and high-income Americans choose to rent, instead of owning a home. Two possible reasons as to why that happens. First, the perception that owning a home is the only acceptable way of life is not as robust as it used to. Second, HOA, opportunity costs and high mortgage rates make home ownership an inferior investment option, compared to others. I look forward to seeing how this trend pans out in the next few years. In my opinion, it will have significant cascading impact on our society and businesses.
Where Did Americans Put Their Money This Year? Everywhere. If the Feds lowers interest rates next year, there will be significant impacts on how people park their cash. The rise of bitcoin or crypto in general is surprising to me, given that there is still no practical use case for it.
Where Did All the Money Go? The Villain in Your Transaction History. I learned a neat little trick in personal finance and budgeting: when you plan to buy some discretionary items, make sure you set aside the same amount for investing. Like if you are looking to buy a new PS5, you must put the same amount in stocks or a high-yield savings account. Trust me, it helps a lot!
This is the Word I’m Trying to Live By This Year. SYSTEMS! “A system is a way to do more by doing less. By setting up processes—which can be work up front—you find efficiencies. By setting up clear and defined roles, you can effectively delegate. By setting up standards and expectations, you can not only hold people accountable, but you can measure and optimize those processes to be even more efficient. It’s a positive feedback loop“
Stats
Fintech startups in Vietnam raised $244 million in funding in 2022
Global advertising in 2023, excluding political advertising in the US, will exceed $870 billion
Minh Quang Duong 
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