Note: This is the introduction to my book The World’s Biggest Problems. The Bad Future, described in shows like Black Mirror, is the realistic to cynical take on where the world is going. The Good Future, presented in shows like Star Trek, is the realistic to optimistic take on where the world is going. It’sContinue reading “The Good Future”
Author Archives: Neil Thanedar
43North for Detroit
Create a $5M+ per year fund sponsored by the City, State, and/or nonprofits. 43North invests $5M per year in startups that move to Buffalo. This accelerator is funded by the State of New York as part of its Buffalo Billion program. 43North’s Grand Prize winner gets a $1 million investment. Create thousands of jobs inContinue reading “43North for Detroit”
Arsenal of Progress
We don’t have enough food. We don’t have enough medicine. We don’t have enough masks. We don’t have enough semiconductor chips. We must have enough before we can dream of more. Literal factories. Hundreds of them. These factories of abundance are our new Arsenal of Progress. Movement: Detroit vs. Shenzhen Accelerator: YC for Manufacturing Fund:Continue reading “Arsenal of Progress”
Detroit vs. Shenzhen
From the Arsenal of Democracy to the COVID-19 Vaccine, America’s critical products are made in Michigan. Let’s honor and build on this legacy by making Detroit the home of America’s new manufacturing revolution! Idea: Make Detroit an American mass manufacturing hub to compete with China’s Shenzhen. Why? Create an Arsenal of Progress in Detroit, the original Arsenal of Democracy. Key: Leverage Michigan’sContinue reading “Detroit vs. Shenzhen”
Utopic Flywheel
Edison’s Lab, Disney’s Studio, and Warhol’s Factory are all proof it’s possible. Utopic is my contribution to this field. Utopic Studio is my indie startup studio. Pro Benches is our first product. Utopic Ventures will be my fund to invest in other founders. Utopic News is my newsletter exploring solutions to the World’s Biggest Problems. Utopic Live willContinue reading “Utopic Flywheel”
Y Combinator for Manufacturing
Invest in a new American hub for rapid R&D and manufacturing of critical products. See: Detroit vs. Shenzhen Newark secured a $50M partnership last year to relocate HAX’s US headquarters. Funding: $25M from New Jersey (NJEDA) + $25M from VC firm SOSV. Detroit: Raise $50M+ to build a manufacturing and technology accelerator in the City.Continue reading “Y Combinator for Manufacturing”
Studios vs. Startups
Startup = Growth. No company can grow forever with just one product. The best startups launch, buy, and grow many products. Xerox → PARC Google → X Amazon → Grand Challenge Google → Alphabet Facebook → Meta Keeping their startups in perpetual studio mode is key to staying relevant for another generation. Running an indieContinue reading “Studios vs. Startups”
Founders vs. VCs
If you’re really ambitious in startups, there’s only ever been two paths: founder vs. VC. Founders go deep on one company. VCs get to build a broad portfolio. So they’re incentivized to keep founders locked up in their original startups. They don’t want founders to diversify. VCs want a portfolio for themselves but not forContinue reading “Founders vs. VCs”
Disraeli Drawer
Do you have enemies? You know, those people, who when they cross your mind, set off hours of revenge fantasies? Here’s how I learned a powerful, non-violent way to deal with enemies, thanks to Charlie Munger and Benjamin Disraeli: Everyone has enemies: They say success is the best revenge, but it doesn’t feel that way.Continue reading “Disraeli Drawer”
Decentralized Failsafes
When someone steals your crypto, it’s gone forever. How can we build this feature into decentralized finance (DeFi)? We need a decentralized consensus mechanism to track and reverse theft of digital assets. One Coin = One Vote rules exposes blockchain protocols to the risk of 51% attacks. Example: The Beanstalk protocol was robbed of $182MContinue reading “Decentralized Failsafes”