Writing
A selection of recent writings, and research contributions
MARKET INSIGHTS FOR SEED STAGE FOUNDERS
This short briefing note is prepared for founders who are considering, or are in the process of raising seed capital. The last few weeks have seen a significant shift in terms of the fundraising atmosphere, and investors’ appetite for risk. In my position at an accelerator program in London, one of the world’s financial hubs, we have access to a wide range of sources across the early stage investing spectrum; seed funds, later stage investors, angels. Read on >>>
EVERYTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE BEFORE SOMEONE DOES IT
During the 1930s, there was a frenzy for mountain climbing in Europe, driven by some advances in technology, and a modernist zeal. Pre-eminent among these grand challenges, was the lust to climb the North Face of the Eiger, a mile-high sheer face of rock, the largest in the Alps, perpetually in shadow, and shrouded near the top by the dreaded “White Spider” ice field. Read on >>>
PARADIGM SHIFT: AUGMENteD REALIty
They say that fish cannot see the water. It's the same with us. In every area of our lives, there is a dominant model of thinking, a means by which we interact and interpret the world, a lens so thoughtlessly worn, so ubiquitously, that it's almost impossible to see the assumptions we share. Read on >>>
EVIDENCE SUBMISSION: TREASURY ENQUIRY INTO DIGITAL CURRENCIES
The aim of this submission is to address why we, as a prominent UK based venture capital firm and advisor to the global blockchain industry, believe it is critical to developing a responsible, balanced and proactive approach to innovations in ‘crypto-assets’, in order to unlock their potential to serve the UK economy and its overall long-term competitiveness. Read on (PDF) >>>
EXPLORING THE ROLE OF AI IN ADVERTISING
Many people were surprised last week to hear that Publicis are pulling out of Cannes in 2018. A lot of the focus has been on the impact on the festival, and what that means for our fixation on awards, and whether that is positive for brands, business or indeed agencies. This is about none of that, it’s about something else: the why behind the decision. Read on >>>
THE RISE OF PRODUCT AS A SERVICE
We are seeing the beginning of a move towards our relationships with brands and businesses from via a retailer to direct, from purchase to relationship, and from where the experience is mediated to one where there is a new appreciation of the whole experience of purchase and ownership. Read on >>>