Monthly Archives: Jan 2016

Technology Hazards

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pow

We usually think about technologic developments making us more vulnerable to threats because of blind spots they may create.  As a new ATM user, you had to make sure your PIN number does not get compromised.  If you are a Tesla driver, you need to think about securing your car so that it does not get hacked by an intruder.  This is well understood.

There is another type of hazard that is caused by technology that now allows you to access areas that you previously were not able to venture into.  One needs to be cautious about these, because they may be less visible.

The reason I am thinking of this is that I am going skiing this weekend and just received the news of two large avalanches in the area.  The number of avalanche-related skiing accidents is rising and this is generally attributed to improvements in ski technology that makes it easier for inexperienced skiers to venture into backcountry terrain that previously required a higher level of skiing ability and experience.

To end on a positive note, it’s been dumping in the French Alps and there will be excellent powder.  Enjoy it carefully please.

Microchunking of Apps

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apps.jpg

I find myself thinking these days about how the app universe will evolve.  There are quite a few ideas and analyses on some trends that hint at what’s ahead of us:

The common thread through these is the reduction of applications to their smallest viable (and functional) form, while remaining accessible through multiple platforms, including devices and social media, and maintaining their ability for transactions.  In essence, we are going through “microchunking” of applications, to borrow Fred Wilson’s term referring to the content revolution we saw with the Web 2.0 wave last decade.

I see two areas to watch as this trend develops.  One is the need for flexible SW development frameworks.  I suspect these will be open source. But there will be support and services opportunities around them that should allow for creation of sizeable businesses.

The second is a similar opportunity on the operations side. Think of it as a set of standards providing context and interoperability for microchunked apps.  As applied to the need around human transport, an example may be standards for my mobile device to signal that :

  1. I am at point A.
  2. I need to get to point B.
  3. I am willing to pay X for this service.

This signal can then get acquired and processed by an open marketplace, and matched with the supply side signals from providers, whether they are taxis, Uber drivers, etc.

I am keenly waiting for Open Bazaar to see how it fares in the wild.

VC Platforms

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Platform

Mark Suster has a good post on VC platforms and their approach at Upfront Ventures.  It reminded me that this was a topic I’d had in mind for this blog.

Earlybird is a European VC firm with broad coverage.  We have separate teams of Partners managing our ICT investments in Western Europe and Eastern Europe, as well as a team focused on pan-European health-tech investments.  I am a Partner on our Turkey & CEE team, based in Istanbul, where we have four Partners and two Associates in our investment team, and a Finance Manager and Assistant on the administrative side. Each of our teams are structured similarly.

As you can see, we have not taken the platform approach.  The reason for this is the breadth of our investment strategy. In our portfolio, we have:

In other words, we have a very diverse set of companies we help grow, with very different needs.  If we were to bring on a recruiting Partner, she would be hard-pressed to be an expert in both iOS developer talent and health-tech marketing.  We feel we would fall short in supporting our companies with in-house teams.

Instead, we look to establish privileged relationships with the most competent service providers in each of our focus areas and geographies, and connect them with our portfolio, as needed.  And, we feel that it’s the Partners’ job to procure and facilitate these referrals and guide our Founders through the process.