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Seattle-based Amazon is doubling down on AWS and its AI assistant, Alexa. It's seeking to become the central provider for AI-as-a-service. 
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All of these companies are "enterprise" startups, meaning they specialize in making tech for work and business use, which is a $3.4 trillion worldwide market.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Always useful to look at startups to see a glimpse of the future: what is hot, what is up-coming, what is challenging, and also what can be done.
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This transformation echoes the impact of Facebook on the media: there is a dramatic leveling of the playing field. The advantages of scale that guaranteed success in the post-war era just don’t matter very much when advertising is cheap, shelf space is infinite, and shipping is free. And, just as Facebook’s breakdown of the media broke down the political parties, Amazon’s break-down of physical retail will have its own knock-on effects: carrying household supplies is a major reason to own a car, for example, which means Amazon is a laying the foundation for a service like Uber to shift from being a car supplement to a full-on substitution.
Farid Mheir's insight:
A discussion on the impact that technology innovation has had on the election of Trump and more disruption to come from Amazon.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT The author presents compelling arguments about reasons why technology innovation has had such an impact and forces us to rethink most business models. Moreover the analysis of Trump's election as evidence that the power has shifted from editors and political parties to voters and end users is just brilliant and I will certainly use it in the future!
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How I Burned 10 Million Dollars So You Don’t Have To. In February, my startup (Twenty20) employed 35 people. We had a board-approved plan to scale to 85 by the end of the year. As of July, we were at 55, and well on our way. Now, four months later, our team size is 12.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT I love those stories because they are real-life, pragmatic, and reflect the reality of startups. Should be true not only for startups but intrapreneurs and small groups that burst into life in larger organizations. Lesson to learn: don't grow until you know your business model. Also: self-service is good. Must read to give you confidence, hope and also scare you a little.
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Some tough news: Buffer has made 10 layoffs, 11% of the team. We want to share openly how we got here, the financial details and how we’re moving forward.
Farid Mheir's insight:
A great read on how digital economy startups are doing things differently by sharing everything from revenues to salaries to how they are hiring and firing people. A great source of inspiration for anyone that ever had a startup and needed to take tough decisions.
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From
qz
The problem Warby Parker faced was not unusual nor particularly complicated: How could the trendy eyewear company make better use of its computer programmers’ time? To solve that mundane quandary, the company could have hired an outside consultant, or reorganized its engineering department. Instead, Warby Parker did something radical: It let its employees decide.
Farid Mheir's insight:
The article describes the process and its benefits to the company and its employees.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT Digital transformation let's companies change the way they have been doing things for years. This Warby Parker experiment is one example and there are many others in the startup and small business areas. However, large organizations have remained more traditional: why not consider your department or business unit as a small business or startup and start experimenting with ideas like this one or others?
Get inspiration in the following posts: - Buffer's transparency dashboard: Public salaries, equity and more: http://sco.lt/7sEunJ - How Google Sets Goals: Inside Buffer's Experiment with OKRs: http://sco.lt/85GzCr
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From
qz
Quartz obsessions cover the future of finance, sea, batteries, space, china's transition, business of sport, fashion, energy shocks, internet of everything.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Must read for any leader, especially startups. In a nutshell: your employees need a goal and a purpose to pace themselves for the long run, not a bunch of sprints.
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The Western caricature of Chinese internet firms needs a reboot. GOOGLE left. Facebook is blocked. Amazon is struggling to make headway. And if further proof were needed that China’s tech market is a world apart, this week seemed to provide conclusive evidence. Uber, a ride-hailing service that is the world’s most valuable startup, decided to sell its local unit to Didi Chuxing, a Chinese rival (see article). Its China dream, like those of so many before, is dead. For many, the lessons of this latest capitulation are clear. China is a sort of technological Galapagos island, a distinct and isolated environment in which local firms flourish. Chinese firms are protected from external competition by government regulation and the Great Firewall. And that protection means that they need not innovate but can thrive by copying business models developed in the West. In short, China is closed, its firms are cosseted and their talent is for mimicry.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Provides context on the recent merger between UBER and DIDI for ride sharing in China.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT China has graduated to a real technology startup hotspot that competes quite well with Silicon Valley/Alley and others in the USA. When creating digital strategies for global companies and markets, you may be wise to prioritize China over the US as the new economic world order takes shape.
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Curated by Farid Mheir
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WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Amazon is a beacon in the digital transformation space - part of the famous GAFA acronym - Google Apple Facebook Amazon. This teardown from CBinsights shows that Amazon is way more than the eCommerce retailer we have come to love and rely on so much. The report reviews where Amazon invests and provides unique view into where it may be going. Retailers beware!