Author: Ben Thompson

Ben and James discuss the importance of the user experience in not only avoiding disruption but also in building dominant companies. It’s a key component of Aggregation Theory This episode is sponsored by Wealthfront. See recommended portfolios and get up to $15,000 managed for free by visiting Wealthfront.com/Exponent. Links James Allworth: Measure What Matters — Exponent Ben Thompson: Airbnb and the Internet Revolution — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Why Uber Fights — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Stop Doubting the iPhone — Stratechery Hosts Ben Thompson, @benthompson, Stratechery James Allworth, @jamesallworth, Harvard Business Review Podcast Information Feed iTunes SoundCloud Twitter Feedback Sponsorship Inquiry … Continue reading Episode 057 — The User Experience

Ben and James try to make sense of YouTube Red. Plus, why is Amazon responding to The New York Times now? This episode is sponsored by Wealthfront. See recommended portfolios and get up to $15,000 managed for free by visiting Wealthfront.com/Exponent. Links Ben Thompson: YouTube Red — Stratechery Daily Update Ben Thompson: In Defense of The New York Times — Stratechery Jay Carney: What The New York Times Didn’t Tell You — Medium Hosts Ben Thompson, @benthompson, Stratechery James Allworth, @jamesallworth, Harvard Business Review Podcast Information Feed iTunes SoundCloud Twitter Feedback Sponsorship Inquiry https://media.blubrry.com/exponent/content.blubrry.com/exponent/exponent56.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: … Continue reading Episode 056 — YouTube Red

Ben and James discuss how cloud services have set the stage for fundamental changes in venture capital, just as they have in the enterprise. This episode is sponsored by Wealthfront. See recommended portfolios and get up to $15,000 managed for free by visiting Wealthfront.com/Exponent. Links Ben Thompson: Venture Capital and the Internet’s Impact — Stratechery Ben Thompson: Unicorns — Stratechery In Aggregate — Exponent Episode 049 Chris Dixon: The Babe Ruth Effect in Venture Capital — CDixon Blog Ben Thompson: Dell to Buy EMC, Enterprise Disruption, Dell’s Logic — Stratechery Daily Update Hosts Ben Thompson, @benthompson, Stratechery James Allworth, @jamesallworth, … Continue reading Episode 055 — AWS and Venture Capital

NOTE: James’ mic developed a bad connection half-way through the podcast. We apologize for the audio fuzz. Ben and James make clear that they know pollution causes death, then discuss the future of brand advertising. Then, a rather strident debate as to whether radical ideas will have a home in the future. This episode is sponsored by Zendesk. Make your customer service seem like magic by building it directly into your apps, websites and products with Zendesk Embeddables. Links Margo Sanger-Katz and John Schwartz: How Many Deaths Did Volkswagen’s Deception Cause in the U.S.? — The New York Times Ben … Continue reading Episode 054 — Check Facebook Time

We start with Volkswagen, then mortgages, then Ben’s time in Taiwan, and finally end with a critique of the Apple Watch. It all makes sense in the end. Hopefully. This episode is sponsored by Zendesk. Make your customer service seem like magic by building it directly into your apps, websites and products with Zendesk Embeddables. Links Adam Lashinsky: How Apple Words — Fortune Lauren Martin: If You Have Savings in Your 20s, You’re Doing Something Wrong — Elite Daily Steve Jobs: Stanford Commencement Speech — Stanford News Rita McGrath: The End of Competitive Advantage — Amazon Ben Thompson: Apple Watch: … Continue reading Episode 053 — Connect the Dots

Ben and James briefly discuss ad-blockers, then admit it’s an academic debate and move on to the business of advertising and the far more profound shifts that are caused on the Internet and by new places on the Internet. Note: This podcast references Marco Arment’s Peace application, but was recorded before Marco pulled the app. Please see the relevant links below. This episode is sponsored by Zendesk. Make your customer service seem like magic by building it directly into your apps, websites and products with Zendesk Embeddables. Links James Allworth and Ben Thompson: Everything Has a Price — Exponent Marco … Continue reading Episode 052 — All About Ads

Ben and James discuss James’ sophomore experience at Burning Man, and then turn to the iPad Pro and its paucity of quality of applications. Just how much is Apple responsible? This episode is sponsored by Zendesk. Make your customer service seem like magic by building it directly into your apps, websites and products with Zendesk Embeddables. Links Exponent Episode 016 — Naked People Ben Thompson: From Products to Platforms — Stratechery Emanuel Sa: We Need Sketch for the iPad Pro — Designer News Ben Thompson: App Store Policy Follow-up, The iPad Pro, The iPad Pro Accessories — Stratechery Ben Thompson: … Continue reading Episode 051 — Segue

Ben and James discuss the New York Times exposé on Amazon’s work practices at its Seattle headquarters. What exactly was the story about, what questions are raised by it, and more importantly, what are the right answers for not just Amazon but society as a whole? This episode is sponsored by Zendesk. Make your customer service seem like magic by building it directly into your apps, websites and products with Zendesk Embeddables. Links Exponent Episode 016 — Naked People Jodi Kantor and David Streitfeld: Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace — The New York Times Julia Cheiffetz: … Continue reading Episode 050 — The Amazon of Podcasts

Ben and James discuss the decision by the California Labor Commission that at least one Uber driver is an employee: will this affect the company’s valuation? More broadly, is this a good or a bad thing for society, and why is it that people blame Uber for societal shortcomings? Then, more on the alleged bubble, unicorn valuation, and how the next couple of years might play out. In addition, Exponent will be on hiatus for the next two months. We may have an episode or two (and will likely repost some “greatest hits”), and will be back to a weekly … Continue reading Episode 049 — In Aggregate

In this week’s episode, Ben and James discuss Dick Costolo stepping down as CEO of Twitter, Apple’s seeming war on Google, and the concerning launch of Apple Music. Links Ben Thompson: Dick Costolo Out as Twitter CEO, Costolo’s Key Shortcoming, Twitter’s Next CEO — Stratechery Daily Update (members-only) Ben Thompson: Twitter Needs New Leadership — Stratechery Chris Sacca: What Twitter Can Ben — Lowercase Capital Mary Meeker: Internet Trends 2015 (Slide 47) — KPCB Ben Thompson: Apple Enables Ad-Blockers — Stratechery Daily Update (members-only) Ben Thompson: Apple Music and Apple’s Focus — Stratechery Charlie Warzel: Apple’s Junk Drawer Problem — … Continue reading Episode 048 — An Exhausting Week