Reading Ambitiously 12-6-24
Why are tech’s biggest founders back in the arena? Generative AI usage in the enterprise, the rise of vertical agents, and the art of capturing someone's attention in six seconds.
The Wall Street Journal once used ‘Read Ambitiously’ as a slogan, but it became a challenge I took to heart. If that old slogan still speaks to you, this weekly curated newsletter is for you. Every week, I will summarize the most important and impactful headlines across technology, finance, AI and enterprise SaaS. Together, we can read with an intent to grow, always be learning, and refine our lens to spot the best opportunities. As Jamie Dimon says, “Great leaders are readers.”
Thanks to GenerativeAI and our friends at GoogleNotebookLM, you can enjoy this week’s Reading Ambitiously as a podcast entirely generated by AI. If you haven’t experienced this technology yet, definitely give this a try!
In the news:
Jeff Bezos says he's 'putting a lot of time' in at Amazon to help it become an AI winner (Yahoo! Finance)
→ Why does it matter? Jeff Bezos, who officially retired, is “back.”
Bezos said he's "putting a lot of time" into Amazon despite stepping down as CEO in 2021. (Watch Jeff Bezos with Andrew Ross Sorkin ~2 min)
Bezos said Wednesday at the NYT DealBook Summit that he's spending 95% of his time at Amazon on AI.
Who else is “back”?
While arguably Marc Benioff never officially retired from SalesForce.com, he certainly did try with two failed attempts to select a CO-CEO (Keith Block & Brett Taylor), who are no longer with SFDC. Today, Marc’s “back” in a big way, in the arena, with AgentForce and AI.
Sergey Brin (Co-Founder, Google) says he's “back” working on AI at Google 'pretty much every day' (TechCrunch)
Why now? It’s a time to build.
A paradigm shift is underway (mainframe → client/server → cloud → AI).
The last 10-15 years have been spent managing the machines, globalizing them, and making them more efficient.
Today’s leading technology companies have some phenomenal operators at the helm, including Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, and Andy Jassy.
When there’s a paradigm shift, there aren’t machines yet to manage — you’ve got to build them. What do all these founders who are “back” have in common? They are some of the best builders the world has ever seen!
Best of the rest:
📈 AI Eats the World - Benedict Evans’ annual presentation is one I never miss. This year he explores macro and strategic trends in the tech industry, focusing on the transformative impact of… you guessed it, AI - Benedict Evans Blog
💻 AI-Native Applications: A Framework for Evaluating the Future of Enterprise Software - A detailed framework to understand how AI-native applications will reshape enterprise software. - Sapphire Ventures
🏢 Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger Retires - Pat Gelsinger steps down as CEO of Intel after a 40-year career, with David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus named interim co-CEOs. - TechCrunch
🚗 Uber Is Building a Fleet of Gig Workers to Label Data for AI Models - Uber’s new division, Scaled Solutions, employs gig workers to annotate and label data for AI models. - TechCrunch
Charts that caught my eye:
“AI Inside” Opens New Markets for Vertical SaaS (a16z Enterprise)
→ Why does it matter? a16z’s Enterprise team highlights how AI is unlocking new markets for Vertical SaaS. Historically, building software for niche industries was too costly. Traditional SaaS sells tools customers must operate, but AI shifts this with “Service as Software.” AI agents now deliver outcomes directly, expanding market size by incorporating labor spend.
Five proven prompt engineering techniques and a few more-advanced tactics (LennysNewsletter.com)
→ Why does it matter? A favorite ChatGPT hack: prompt it with “Act as if you were [Insert Expert] and perform the following task.” GPT-4 taps into its vast knowledge to mimic how that expert would solve problems or complete tasks.
2024: The State of Generative AI in the Enterprise (Menlo Ventures)
→ Why does it matter? Menlo Ventures’ latest on Generative AI in the Enterprise helps paint the picture of where dollars are spent on AI. Their research shows ~41% of AI spend goes to IT, Product, and Engineering tools.
Tweets that stopped my scroll:
→ Why does it matter? Foundation Capital has written a great series of blogs on “Service as Software” and AI Agents. Part 3 released this week explores how this opportunity impacts the enterprise software industry.
→ Why does it matter? Focus on “butter passing jobs”. I like that one!
Worth a watch or listen at 1x:
→ Why does it matter? Databricks is Snowflake’s ($SNOW) biggest competitor. Their CEO, Ali Ghodsi, is in the arena daily, talking to enterprises about AI & Data. While a private company, last week, it was reported they are closing in on new funding at a $55B valuation (CNBC). Databricks is also rumored to be considering an IPO as early as 2025.
→ Why does it matter? Andreessen, Netscape founder and a16z leader, calls himself a “techno-optimist.” On Joe Rogan’s podcast, he dives into AI regulation, government roles, “de-banking” practices, and Silicon Valley’s future.
→ Why does it matter? An oldie but a goodie. A sense of urgency drives success. Frank Slootman (ex-CEO, Snowflake) nails it in under 5 minutes—starting at 11:46. I love Dr. Julie Gurner’s (famed executive coach) sharp insight on the power of speed amongst her clients.
“If there is any consistent trait I’ve seen in the .01%, it is speed. They move on things. They have a bias to action and are frustrated when others who surround them don’t.”
Quotes & eyewash:
You have just six seconds to capture someone’s attention — but if you interest them, you earn another twenty to thirty seconds.
Practically, this means you have about thirteen words to hook them and another thirty to forty to deliver your most compelling information.
If your email exceeds 100 words, allocate your editing time wisely: dedicate 40% to perfecting the first sentence, 40% to refining the next 2-3 sentences, and just 20% to polishing the remainder. - Shane Parish at fs.blog
Ego Is The Enemy. You’re not as good as you think. You don’t have it all figured out. Stay focused. Do better. - Ryan Holiday
“When the great innovation appears, it will almost certainly be in a muddled, incomplete and confusing form. To the discoverer himself it will be only half understood; to everybody else it will be a mystery. For any speculation which does not at first glance look crazy, there is no hope.” — Freeman Dyson
“Some years you win, some years you build character.” — Steve Jobs
“I never feared about my skills because I put in the work. Work ethic eliminates fear. So you if you do the work, what are you fearing? You know what you’re capable of and what you’re not.” - Michael Jordan