Peter Larsen

Being a founder means being 100% in it, all the time, especially through the lows. It was fun to run down memory lane with Sequoia and discuss how DoorDash navigated moments of uncertainty to empower local commerce on a global scale. Check out the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gxmx2nhy

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https://lnkd.in/guKyDZsf "And then you’d say, why is it that so called lack of focus strategy seems to be working for Amazon? And I think the fundamental underlying principle that he’s guiding his whole discussion of strategy is, he’s changed the rules of strategy. So the old rules of strategy were, the way you gained competitive advantage is by being better or cheaper. So if I am selling you a car, my car is better of cheaper. But the inherent assumption in that strategy statement is, I’m selling one product to one customer. And what Amazon is basically arguing is, the digital economy is all about connection. We have got to connect products and connect customers." "So connecting products, here the idea is, I can sell you, this is a classic razor and blade strategy. I can sell you a razor cheap in order to make money on the blade. So I can sell you Kindle cheap in order to make money on the ebooks. Now, at some level you might say, hey, razor and blade have been around forever. What’s so unique today? I think unique today is razor could be in one industry and blades could be in completely different industrys. So for example, if you look at Amazon’s portfolio of businesses, you sort of say, not only Amazon is an e-commerce player, but also is making movies and TV shows, its own studio. Well, why does it make sense for an e-commerce player, an online retailer to compete with Hollywood. Well, Walmart doesn’t make movies. Macy’s doesn’t make movies? So why does it make sense for Amazon to make movies?" And I think once you dig into it, the answer becomes clear that the purpose of the movies is to keep and gain the Prime customers. Two day free shipping is fine, but if you ask me to pay $99 or $119 for two day free shipping, I might start doing the math in my head, and say, OK, how many packages do I expect to get next year? And is the Prime membership worth it or not? But once you throw in, in addition to the two-day free shipping, you throw in some TV shows and movies that are uniquely found only on Amazon, I can’t do this math. And why is Prime customers important to Amazon? Because Prime customers are more loyal. They buy three or four times more than the non-Prime customers, and they’re also less price sensitive. And in fact, Jeff Bezos has said publicly that every time we win a Golden Globe Award for one of our shows, we sell more shoes."

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The Stoke Space team in Seattle has built a rocket company faster than many people can build software. Morgan Beller breaks down how this is helping them capture a huge opportunity: https://lnkd.in/gc5jv2-c 

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Looking forward to discussing how changing demographics and culture norms are affecting investment opportunities in longevity, health and well-being at The Care Summit today Alongside Cake Ventures' Monique Woodard, Ziegler's Dan Hermann, Oak HC/FT's Billy Deitch and JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s Jennifer Edwards, we’ll dive into the trends shaping how we are investing in the space: - Last year marked one of the most significant social and economic moments in modern times: The number of older adults—those aged 50 and over- surpassed the number of children under the age of 15 for the first time. - In 2020 the 50 plus population contributed $45 trillion to global GDP, or 34% of the total. That equates to about 3x the revenue of the world’s 100 highest- earning companies in 2020. - The U.S. population grew by 24.5 million from 2010 to 2022, and Hispanics accounted for 53% of this increase – a greater share than any other racial or ethnic group. - Women around the world and across all ages drive 64% of consumer spending

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I shop all channels - marketplaces, brands' brick & mortar and digital, off-price, social, independent boutiques, and more.... This is the behavior of the modern consumer, particularly Millennials and GenZ. 💛 As an Amazon employee, I drink the Cool-Aid and am inspired by their pace of innovation & delivery speed! 🥊 Temu is becoming more & more of a formidable competitor. I've placed 3 orders MTD, it was driven by selection (items needed for customized Taylor Swift gift bags) & price (on the swag bags + holiday decor). The tradeoff was shipping speed (1+ week). Amazon Haul addresses price head on. 🔥 Competition makes the market dynamic and raises the bar on the customer experience. Learn More about Amazon Haul: https://lnkd.in/g6HScezb #futureofretail #futureofcustomerexperiences #retail #ecommerce #marketplaces #digital #technology #tech #innovation #businessnews #temu #amazon https://lnkd.in/gvPicCNU

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This Atlantic article on modern shoplifting is good read overall, but at the end there's a section talking about how convience stores are using AI to help battle it -- pretty interesting https://lnkd.in/gSBXJuqr

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As technologists, we bear the crucial task of steering technology towards ethical usage. I am encouraged by the proactive measures Thorn, along with Amazon and other AI leaders, is implementing to establish safeguards in generative AI. The Safety by Design principles set essential standards to counter risks such as CSAM and AIG-CSAM, ensuring the safety of children. Learn more about these principles here: https://lnkd.in/e6XvQAVz

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Very excited to share this news! This is an incredibly big deal for Zeta Global! At A’Maison: The House of Amazon @ Cannes Lions 2024, we announced our partnership with Amazon to advance generative AI by integrating AWS foundation models into the Zeta Marketing Platform. This powerful combination will bring easy access to omnichannel marketing capabilities for businesses. Check out this Forbes article to learn more about the impact of this product. 🌟 #CannesLions #GenAI #MarketingInnovation

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Interesting article on last mile delivery. This is one of those areas where the high level theory is super exciting, but low-level delivery network design and ruthless execution are *everything*. This led to a recent generation of failed attempts to build last mile delivery as startups. I don't hold out much hope that Shein and Temu will change that balance, only delay more failures. Is this an impossible area to build a startup in? No. But it's a problem where domain expertise has to meet capital, and a team has to be brilliant from a network design standpoint, combined with day-to-day operations chops. Those teams are super rare. https://lnkd.in/dgQjYZ_2

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It's uncommon to see innovation in a product that has been chugging along at the same level for decades. But Mark Adams, Keeri Tramm, Holden Page, and Bo Frize are building something special with our RealTrends Verified business. For those that don't know about RealTrends Verified, it's the one real estate rankings program that uses double-verified data (from the agent and their brokerage). Steve Murray and Tracey Velt had been operating the rankings for decades before we acquired the business. Ever since we acquired the business, we've noticed that our ranking pages have pretty impressive SEO juice. Try searching for "best real estate agents" or "best real estate agents in Texas", and you'll see a RealTrends page pretty high your results. This year, we're going to start leveraging this SEO juice with an expansion of RealTrends Verified into city pages. Now people will be able to search for "best real estate agents in Dallas", and find top agents in their city. We'll drill down even further into neighborhoods and zip codes in the coming years. If you're a brokerage or team leader, or a top agent in your city, please check out our new city pages! https://lnkd.in/eTGVHsaN

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From cleaning your floors to monitoring your health: iRobot's founder is making his BOLDEST move yet. Colin Angle, who revolutionized home robotics as iRobot's CEO for three decades, isn't done innovating. His new venture? Familiar Machines & Magic. The mission: TRANSFORMING personal health and wellness through robotics. Key details that make this FASCINATING: • Bringing along iRobot's former CTO Chris Jones • Recruited Ira Renfrew from Amazon's robotics division • Already secured $15M from 8 investors • Actively pursuing another $15M Why this matters: The timing couldn't be more perfect. With generative AI advancing rapidly, robots are becoming more engaging and USEFUL than ever before. This isn't just another startup... It's a strategic pivot from practical robotics to deeply personal applications. Think about it: The man who understood how to make robots part of our homes is now focusing on our wellbeing. What breakthroughs might emerge when proven robotics expertise meets wellness innovation? Follow me for updates on this transformative journey in robotics and AI. #RoboticsFuture #HealthTech #Innovation

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What led Han Shen to invest in Weee!? In Episode 464 of The Full Ratchet, Han Shen of iFly.vc shares how he identified the massive, underserved market of immigrant consumers in the U.S. and why vertical integration made Weee! a standout opportunity. His insights reveal how understanding nuanced consumer needs and leveraging efficient models can drive billion-dollar outcomes. In the full episode, Han dives deeper into his contrarian investment strategy, why Gen Z’s behaviors are reshaping markets, and how concentrated portfolios create long-term success. Link to the full episode is in the comment section below!

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The Wall Street Journal has a breathtaking and breaking news story on Amazon and what could potentially be anti-competitive behavior for research into other companies third party seller efforts including Walmart, eBay and others. With the U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division looking for wins going into the election year this could be too tempting to pass up. What do you think? #management #ecommerce #venturecapital #privateequity #capitalmarkets

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Uber ride data provides valuable insights into consumer behavior, urban economic health, emerging trends, and much more. Utilizing AnthologyAI's Transportation dataset, we unpack the substantial impact of location, seasonality, and economic factors on Uber fares. Have a guess which US city has the highest fares? https://lnkd.in/ertYXe_E AnthologyAI

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In a new #IntheSpotlight, Jordan Weiss of Umojo, dives into the transformative role of data in parking operations, the power of strategic partnerships, and the trends shaping the future of mobility. It’s incredible to see how innovation and collaboration are driving smarter, more customer-focused parking solutions. 🚘 🎥 Would love to hear your thoughts—what do you think the next big thing in parking will be? Check out the full interview: #ParkingData #Interview #ParkingProfessional #SmartCity #Partnerships

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The current landscape feels alot like 2007-10ish. Facebook was getting into advertising at scale and the Apple iphone had just emerged. Now with #AI booming and the world changing at a rapid pace......the next evolution of platform and business building has arrived. Who will thew winners be? What new companies and verticals will emerge? #innovation #future #digital #media #marketing #technology

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Waymo's market share is now equal to Lyft within SF. Incredible. Network effects is one of the best sources of defensibility. But it's proven to be not that important in ridesharing. When Waymo launched in August 2023, Uber and Lyft were at 66% and 34% share in SF. 15 months later in November 2024, Waymo is at 22% - the same as Lyft - with Uber at 55%. Note: stats from a partner at a16z. #ridesharing #Waymo #Lyft #Uber #a16z

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Implement super-fast RAG using LlamaIndex Workflows and Groq 🚀 Learn how to build a powerful Retrieval-Augmented Generation system with our Workflows feature, including a comparison to alternatives like LangGraph: ➡️ Create an event-driven architecture for complex AI applications ➡️ Integrate Groq's high-performance LLMs for reranking and response synthesis ➡️ Visualize your workflow for better understanding and debugging Step-by-step guide covers: • Data indexing and retrieval • LLM-based reranking • Response synthesis using CompactAndRefine Read the full tutorial: https://lnkd.in/gRwy4eZ9

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AI luminary Dr. Andrew Ng is Amazon’s newest Board of Director member https://buff.ly/4adRBAe if you want to know where Amazon is headed with AI, you should brush up on Dr. Ng's POV around Agentic AI https://buff.ly/4axHqqS

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