StockStreak: A Fun Way to Play the Stock Market

Michael MacDougal from StockStreak talks to me about their application at the Dublin Web Summit this past week in Dublin Ireland.

Essentially, its a game that allows you to play the stock market. Predict the stock price of ONE of the listed stocks and whether it will go up or down, and whether the next trading day's closing price will be higher or lower than the prior day's closing price. Votes placed after Noon Eastern Time will be counted towards the next day's session. Listen to how it works.

Technology is Like a Farmers Market: Feel the Peaches & Make a Bet

Thanks to my industry pal David Frank for sharing this with me recently. The quote is spot on and brought a smile.

"Life is a farmers market when it comes to technology; you have to walk the aisles...feel the peaches and make a bet. BUT, but you have to walk the aisles.."

Levy's WIRED Piece: Larry Page wants to Return Google to its Startup Roots

Steve Levy's Wired piece that came out today is a must read. Entitled Larry Page Wants to Return Google to its Start-up Roots, it takes us back to 12 years ago when Google was first funded.

Two excerpts from his piece:

"Now, after a 10-year run in which Google’s revenues grew from less than $100 million to almost $30 billion, Page is finally CEO again, a role he always felt he could handle. The general public may not appreciate the magnitude of the change—to most, Page is just one of the seemingly interchangeable pair of wacky “Google guys.” But Page is sui generis and could potentially have the kind of impact Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have had. Nobody better encapsulates Google’s ambitions, its ethics, and its worldview. At the same time, Page can be eccentric, arrogant, and secretive. Under his leadership, the company will be even harder to predict."

And, on what Google 'could' look like with Page back in the CEO position: 

"If history is any guide, Page’s idealistic impulses could result in a vaster, more sprawling company. In 2008, Google participated in an FCC auction for radio spectrum to be used for mobile broadband. By the terms of the auction, if the spectrum was sold above a certain price, the winner would have to allow other companies to run devices on their networks—something Google strongly favored but that telecom companies dearly hoped to avoid. Google executives worried that the telecoms would conspire to keep bidding below that baseline price. So the company got involved in a high-stakes game of chicken. Google would bid on the spectrum, high enough to get it over the threshold, and then bow out. It left Google potentially vulnerable; if nobody else topped its bid, the company would be stuck with a multibillion-dollar piece of spectrum that it was unequipped to exploit. “Google definitely wanted to lose,” the company’s chief economist, Hal Varian, says. To Google’s great relief, Verizon did top its bid, and the company was off the hook."

Head over to WIRED to read the full article.

 

Floodgate Fund's Mike Maples Talks Money

Floodgate Fund's Mike Maples talks about money, investing and his philosophy on the Demo Conference stage last week in Palm Springs, CA.

Keith Cunningham: The Best in the World are Measuring Freaks

A few insights from business and finance author and coach Keith Cunningham who I had an opportunity to learn from recently.

He is known for Keys to the Vault, which focuses on investment strategies based on lessons he's learned along the way from his wins and his failures.

He says, "most business owners try to get rich from profits rather than thinking about how to sustain their business." Sustainability is the result of measuring the what and the how (skills and tools). He notes that the best in the world are "Measuring Freaks." 

What gets measured, gets done. What gets measured is what gets managed. He says, "if you want to improve your business, start measuring it and you will be stunned. Measure it and then report it." He asserts that there is no better way to grow and sustain your business.

Ask yourself these two questions:

1. How effective am I at converting assets into sales?

2. How effective am I at converting sales into expenses?

He also has a very direct but down to earth way of explaining balance sheets, income statements and cash flow.

What I like most about Keith is his authenticity, his bluntness and his humor. A  native Texan himself, he has no problem making fun of Texan so called culture with jokes and digs. And, audiences seem to love them.

A l'il humor and bluntness all rapped into one and he's right - 'if you're not willing to say what needs to be said to fix a problem or an issue in the business that's not working, then go get a job." In other words, you get what you tolerate, which applies to our personal lives as well, doesn't it?

A few other great insights and reminders that you can apply effectively in your business as well as your lives:

• If you put up with mediocrity, you will get mediocre results in your business. (and your life)
• Good is the enemy of great.
• Great is the enemy of mastery.
• Doing the best that you can is the path to good.
• Doing whatever it takes is the path to mastery.

And, I love this one for those not living out their purpose. "Hell on earth would be to meet the man or woman you could have become." Powerful my friends.......powerful.

Venture Capitalists & Angels Battle It Out On VatorSplash Stage

Listen to an amusing and authentic discussion between angels and venture capitalists on a panel at VatorSplash last week in San Francisco. On the panel included: moderator Duncan Davidson from Bullpen, Shasta's Tod Francis, John O'Farrell from Andreessen Horowitz, David Hornik from August Capital and Rob Hayes from First Round Capital.

Irish Prime Minister Chief Economic Advisor Peter Clinch

Below, the Irish Prime Minister's Chief Economic Advisor Peter Clinch addresses a group of technology movers and shakers at a private dinner in Dublin earlier this month - the dinner gathered Irish entrepreneurs, European start-ups and illuminaries (folks like Michael Birch), venture capitalists, media, bloggers and American superstars, such as Chad Hurley and Jack Dorsey. The talk was given at the historical Iveagh House in Dublin.

World Economic Forum, MENA at Marrakech, 2010

The World Economic Forum of the Middle East and North Africa was held this year in Marrakech, Morocco.

The main themes centered around Key Drivers for Development, Energy, and building up the middle classes - though the perennial problems of lack of education, lack of skilled labor, the gender gap,

lack of ability to implement innovation, and so on.

I spoke on the "Low Carbon or Low Cost" Panel at the WEF Forum and joined the 800 delegates attending from all the MENA countries and many other countries from around the world at this globally famous Forum. The event has expanded way beyond its original Davos routes.

Apparently, most Arab states seem to have emerged from the recent economic crisis in relatively good stead.  Yet for all the talk of opportunities in the MENA region, the Arab world is still grappling with a slew of age-old now, challenges - not least a huge increase in their young population coming into the work force ill-prepared for the work of 21st century workers. And more than 60% of the population of the MENA region, is below the age of 25.

There was general consensus that this conference was less well attended at top level than last year's in Jordan, because there were no high level Moroccan leaders present which caused a 'domino' effect in the region with no one sending their top leaders either , in consequence...

 

CarWoo! Closes Series A Funding

CarWoo!, a new service which launched today and will transform the way consumers buy cars, also just announced the closure of its Series A financing. Total funding received to date exceeds $6M.

The round was led by Interwest Partners with participation by Comcast Interactive Capital, Blumberg Capital, Accelerator Ventures, Raymond Tonsing and Dillon McDonald.  Previously the company had obtained seed financing upon completion of the Y Combinator program in late 2009. 

The seed financing was led by Comcast Interactive Capital with participation from Blumberg Capital, Accelerator Ventures and a number of angels and prominent individuals, including: Paul Buchheit - Early Google employee, created Gmail, founded Friendfeed; Joshua Schachter - Founder of Del.icio.us; Aydin Senkut - Felicis Ventures; Founders Fund Angel - Dave McClure.

While other internet services and properties have served to make large markets such as travel more efficient, the very large automotive industry has been a laggard in this area.  CarWoo! was created to bring internet efficiencies to the car buying and selling process. I wrote about the site launch earlier this morning and you can find out more at www.carwoo.com and on Twitter @carwoo.

Social Capital Markets Ahoy!

The Third Annual Social Capital Markets Conference (SOCAP10) will convene the social enterprise community after a milestone year that has included evidence of “an additional $120 billion in untapped resources for socially-minded companies, a proliferation of investment funds of $100 million each and a new index to help investors better target their financing”.

SOCAP10 starts tomorrow, Monday October 4-6, 2010 at San Francisco's Fort Mason Center and follows upon two highly successful SOCAP conferences in 2008 and 2009. 

    In the last two years, the world’s leading social innovators came to SOCAP and successfully defined the social enterprise landscape and validated the space.

There will be many different tracks and panels, including one on Social Enterprise in conflict zones such as the Middle East. 

This year, Kevin Jones and the 1000 investors, entrepreneurs, business leaders and foundations will help define “What’s next”!