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innovation
 

The iWatch - Apple's Next Innovation? Or an Overpriced Also-Ran?

TheKing's picture
O
 
Points)
 on 3/5/13 at 3:30pm
iWatch Mockup

While Google has been hard at work on its vision of mainstream Geordi La Forge eyewear, Apple is searching for its next disruptive innovation. And while fan boys and investors alike have spent years waiting for Apple to unveil a TV, it appears as though the next Apple product line might come in the form of a watch.

The iWatch.

There is some palpable excitement building among members of the tech community. But, is it warranted? Let's give it some thought.

B-Schools And Why Harvard Is The Cancer of Colleges

GMngmt's picture
O
 
Points)
 on 1/6/13 at 3:28pm
Harvard Shield

Harvard. The name conjures up notions of Ivy League prestige, elite education, and wealthy students but what’s in a name? Apparently a lot, it seems over the generation’s colleges and universities have been chasing the pipe dream of competing with them. But what is so bad about their attempts to try and emulate them, isn’t that a good thing? In my article, College Rankings, Do They Really Matter? bonks shared with us an e-book titled, Harvard Envy by Andrew Rosen, CEO of Kaplan, Inc. He has about 40 pages of why such envy is eroding the purpose of colleges and universities and misallocating resources in an attempt to edge up in the rankings. Read more to find out what he has to say…

Will electric-hydrogen-hybrid cars free the gas-guzzlers like the cars of yester yore freed horses?

skylinegtr94's picture
IB
 
Points)
 on 12/16/12 at 8:30pm
clarkson.jpg

What the hell is going on with automobile technology these days? As many people know, electric cars are nothing new (see documentary titled Who Killed the Electric Car). Any watcher of Top Gear (the BBC version, not the pathetic American, bastardized version) can testify, the episode featuring Jay Leno put forth the idea that Hydrogen cars, not electric, are the true cars of the future.

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    • Q&A with Matthew Christensen (Disruptive Innovation Part 1)

    sreedich's picture
     
    Points)
     on 11/7/12 at 8:30pm
    Disruptive Innovation

    Matthew Christensen Introduction

    Mr. Christensen is one of the leading practitioners of disruptive innovation. His father, Clayton Christensen, coined the phrase in his famed NYT bestseller, The Innovators Dilemma, which has developed a worldwide audience as the forward thought on business model strategy. Matt has used the term, disruptive innovation, to break the mold of traditional investment strategies. As a founder of Rose Park Advisors, a Boston based hedge fund; Matt uses his expertise in identifying and applying disruptive innovation frameworks to encompass the foundation of Rose Park's investment strategy. In summary, Rose Park Advisors has one simple criterion for investing: Is the company disruptive or not?

    Is it time to move past Facebook? If so, what's next?

    Impartial.Spectator's picture
     
    Points)
     on 4/20/12 at 10:16pm
    einstein.jpg

    No one is arguing that social networks like Facebook aren't useful, but according to Alexis Madrigal of "The Atlantic", it's time to start moving past the Facebook-Twitter-Linkedin paradigm, and create something truly innovative. We have the infrastructure, and we also have the talent, although unfortunately it is currently being diverted to the aforementioned social network paradigm, where the number of users is more important than creating truly innovative concepts:

    "The only metric that seems to matter with startups is the number of users it has been able to skim from the masses. . .technology used to feel like it was really going to change so many things about our lives. Now it has and we're all too stunned to figure out what's next."

    I greatly sympathize with Alexis and I think that his article is extremely perceptive, but I also think he fails to see things from the other side of the table, from that of the investor. Social is hot right now. Valuations of any stock, bond, or investment, and demand for it, depends to a large degree on human perception of what is hot, what is going to be hot, and what is going to rise in value because of its hotness. I'll refrain from digressing into the tired "tulip mania" anecdote, but it's worth mentioning.

    Is innovation inextricably tied to finance?

    AndyLouis's picture
     
    Points)
     on 3/5/12 at 3:33pm

    from ted conversations, thought this was an interesting question worth discussing more:

    Whether it is maglev rails or high speed internet for all, we are constantly told by leaders that there is no money left to fund innovation. I could probably list 100 other projects that can't exist due to financial limitations or restrictions.

    Are we bound by our own devices, or is TED, Google, MIT and others about to set up a universal platform for human trade that moves beyond money?

    one response:

    Social Media Finance / P2P Lending etc...

    another monkey's picture
    IB
    (Monkey, 58
     
    Points)
     on 1/3/12 at 5:53pm

    Hi all,

    I am starting to get interested in all things relating to innovative financial companies, such as e.g. the p2p lending portal prosper.com . I am based in continental europe, where this market is just coming up atm with a huge amount of social lending and financial comparison platforms. I'm especially interested in valuation metrics for these new sorts of businesses, if they even exist, and in general estimations about this new industry.

    In my country, VC's invest in these companies, but these investments are usually so small (Seed or early start-up stage) that the valuations remain secret - you don't even hear rumours about them.

    Treacy % Company, anybody?

    macacomonitor's picture
    CO
    (Chimp, 10
     
    Points)
     on 10/31/11 at 12:14pm

    Is anybody familiar with Treacy & Company? Apparently they are a small growth and innovation consulting firm in MA. Has anybody interviewed there or know people that has worked there?

    Anyone Read any Books on Corporate Innovation?

    Olympus123's picture
    (Monkey, 60
     
    Points)
     on 6/23/11 at 12:46pm

    I just read a case study on 3M (on how they encourage their employees to follow through on their ideas) and thought it was interesting. If you're interested, then look up "boot-legging" to start. Anyway, I'd like to read more case studies on specific companies and how they get their employees to innovate new products.

    Does anyone have any recommendations on books that talk about a company's innovation process? I prefer case-studies-type books over theory-based and any industry is fine.

    Financial Innovations in Commodity Markets

    claas's picture
    ST
    (Baboon, 108
     
    Points)
     on 6/8/11 at 11:05am

    Hi all,

    I am wondering whether recent price movements in commodity markets have lead to the introduction of new financial products? What are the latest financial innovations in commodity markets?

    President Obama - State of the Union Speech

    Ryu Banker's picture
    IB
     
    Points)
     on 1/26/11 at 12:11pm
    obama speech.JPG

    In case you guys missed it, here's a link to President Obama's State of the Union speech from WSJ. As always, I really enjoy listening to the President speak. Regardless of policy, I think it's important for us monkeys to listen to this speech. Some of the topics discussed include: the economy, jobs, taxes, innovation/technology, education, immigration, infrastructure, and healthcare. I think it's one of the better speeches in the last couple years. The only thing left is to see how he follows through on his promises.

    WSJ: Pres. Obama's Speech

    Pros & Cons of Careers of Small Consulting Firms

    POV's picture
    CO
    (Chimp, 4
     
    Points)
     on 1/14/11 at 2:46pm

    I AM biased (see link below) but my experience leads me to recommend considering smaller consulting firms and their relative advantages, especially if you are making a transition from IB to Consulting.

    At small firms the career path is more entrepreneurial, and a little riskier than working for a larger brand, but the potential is there for extremely fast-tracked career growth. Small shops are specialized, and some of these specialties (e.g. financial analytics) make better use of existing skills you you gained as an investment banker.

    -Jaime @ Fitzgerald Analytics: Ranked by Consulting Magazine in 2010 as one of the Best Small Consulting Firms to Work For.

    Are there any private equity firms that specialize in technology?

    MrJetSet's picture
    CO
    (Orangutan, 252
     
    Points)
     on 9/17/10 at 11:22pm

    I was wondering if there are any big private equity firms that invest in any technology companies besides bio-tech companies.

    Does financial innovation help economic growth?

    Beef's picture
    IB
    (Gorilla, 718
     
    Points)
     on 2/23/10 at 10:57pm

    The Economist debate series is taking on financial innovation and economic growth. (http://www.economist.com/debate/overview/166&sa_ca...)