Dispatch #11 | Disappearing doctors, blind coders and Brazilian villagers

Welcome to this Dispatch from the Outpost of Possibility.

Starter for ten

Members of Congress can’t possibly regulate Facebook. They don’t understand it.

When technology outpaces the understanding of those with the authority to regulate it, where does that leave us? With companies pushing boundaries not yet comprehended by 99% of people and reactive regulation

‘Twas ever thus. Welcome to another happy fun time Thursday briefing.

Startup Notes

For pivot’s sake

Lessons abound here – CB Insights briefing on The Top 20 Reasons Startups Fail

Pitch and pitchability

Fred Wilson has three ideas for alternatives to clogging up investor inboxes with Pitch Decks.

Disrupt or be Disrupted

Prognosis: disruption

Retailers and technology companies are teaming up to offer new waves of competition in providing care. The Disappearing Doctor from the New York Times.

Wheat’s going on?

Agriculture is shifting from being labour intensive to capital intensive. This is a transition many industries will be making due to similar disruptions.

Technology

Tech enabled

Michael Forzano is a blind software engineer at Amazon. Lowering the barriers for jobs in companies of any size is enabled by technology – and this must become the norm.

Chips off the old block

Interesting piece on how open source designs are rapidly specialisation of chip architecture. More readable than it sounds…

Impact Notes

Cheer-o-carbon

John Elkington looks at the opportunity of building a new carbon economy.

Waste not and what not

The Guardian reports on the Brazilian villagers turning plastic pollution into profit. Communities organising to change where they live and mitigate the impact of a harmful model of consumerism.

Oldie-but-Goodie

I’m reading Hit Makers from Derek Thompson and I’m enjoying the lessons and stories – even though I now realise my music tastes have now ossified.

Dispatches from Outpost Readers

Phil Nadel of Forefront Venture Partners shares contrarian advice for venture capital investors in Stop Swinging for the Fences”

Timewasters

Some of the best tweets from Zuckerberg’s testimony to Congress.

Hubble finds a light-bending ‘Einstein Ring’ in space

Onwards / Forward

Next Dispatch will be the same time next week. If you think someone you know would like to receive Dispatch #12 then head on over to Outpost of Possibility.

Here’s to what’s possible.

All the best,

Dom