Five Links for October 2023
Every month, I share the most mind-expanding links to read/watch/listen. If you find these interesting, please do share with your friends.
Special shout-out to Alex Duff for forwarding Five Links to a bunch of new subscribers. Thank you Alex!
Here are five links worth reading…
Amazon's $43B ad business, explained by Trung Phan
Inside the biggest of all big tech side hustles: Amazon’s $43 billion ad business. (For context, Amazon’s ad business is roughly the same size as Nike or Volvo)
The Man Who Trapped Us In Databases by McKenzie Funk
Hank Asher, a play-hard / work-hard founder, was one of the most influential people in the world of data … although he’s largely unknown.
Bonus (Listen) Peter Thiel: Science, Society, Stagnation
This is probably my favorite World of DaaS episode ever. Peter has been a friend, boss, and mentor for over 20 years. In this conversation we go deep on investing, scientific stagnation, AI, culture, tech start-ups, and more. I promise you won’t learn more in an hour anywhere else.
Claims about food allergies by Tyler Cowen
A very interesting theory on why food allergies are on the rise (and how it is correlated to the decline in hookworms)
The Founder's Paradox: Walking Fast, Earning Less, Dreaming of Founderland
Eight thoughts about what it is like to found a company.
Bonus (Listen) The Tim Ferriss Show: Sam Corcos, Co-Founder of Levels
The most comprehensive guide to task delegation, which is an extremely undervalued skill that doesn’t get talked about enough.
Bonus (Fascinating): They Don’t Teach You This About Bees in Schools by TheWarKitchen
24 legitimately fascinating facts about honey. I promise you don’t know all (or any) of these.
Bonus (Stranger Than Fiction ): 2 Baseball Players Named Brady Feigl Take DNA Tests To See If They're Related by David Moye
The two Brady Feigls could easily pass for twins. They took a DNA test to see if they’re actually related.
More reading links at https://twitter.com/AurenReads
“better data will beat better analysis any day of the week.” – Bram Cohen
Fancy tools (and expensive hires) won’t get you good insights without good inputs
Books I read last month:
The Hawk and the Dove by Nicholas Thompson
Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War
HT: Nicholas Thompson
(highly recommend)
The Fourth Turning is Here by Neil Howe
HT: Jorge Elorza, Linda Stone, Doug Kilponen, Erik Torenberg
(highly recommend)
The Emotional Lives of Teenagers: Raising Connected, Capable, and Compassionate Adolescents by Lisa Damour
HT: Hallie Hoffman
Status and Culture by W. David Marx
Auren Hoffman is CEO of SafeGraph (geospatial data on physical places) and GP at Flex Capital ($200M Series A and B VC firm). Engage on Twitter: @auren
and please share Five Links with your friends.
Auren! Thank you for the shoutout re: Amazon. I will prob have to run an update based on what happens with the FTC case (the lawsuit says the high ads / listing are abuse of market power).