HyperChange

I sat down w/ Michael Saylor, CEO of MicroStrategy, to discuss Tesla's Bitcoin purchase, and the future of the cryptocurrency. He predicts, that in 5 years, more than 1 billion people will own Bitcoin. We cover who in big tech will move next, why inflation will continue, and the evolution of the monetary system as we leave the fiat standard. I had a blast, huge thanks to Michael for joining the show! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!!

Interview with Public Co-CEO Jannick Malling. Public is the social investing app, and one of the hottest companies in fintech. Public just completed a new $220M funding round at a $1B+ valuation, and now boasts 1M users on its platform. In this episode, I sit down with Public's Founder Jannick Malling to discuss his vision for Public, and the future of financial markets. I had a blast interviewing Jannick, huge thanks to him for taking the time to come on the show :) Full disclosure: I am an advisor to public and have some stock in the company.

Last week I was asked to present to the Tesla Society of Columbia University. Here is a recording of the club's meeting, where I answered questions on HyperChange, Tesla stock, meeting Elon, the Cybertruck and so much more. Thanks for having me!

Bitcoin's energy consumption has stayed flat since mid 2018 (almost 3 years), despite huge growth in users, and dollars moved on the network. Many skeptics point to the irony of Tesla buying Bitcoin (because of its focus on renewable energy), but fail to understand this. The monetary system requires energy. Yes, Bitcoin consumes a lot, but it's not more than we can handle, especially if the trend of rising average transaction values continues. What are your thoughts on this? Was it hypocritical for Tesla to buy Bitcoin? Are you happy they did?

We need our billionaires and investment idols to inspire us to live more sustainably, and invest in the future they believe in.   I'm ashamed as a Warren Buffett fan that he/his company Berkshire Hathaway bought Chevron. It shows they put profit over people and the planet. Lame. Going live to give my hot take on this. Nothing on the show is financial advice.

Drop-in audio chat app Clubhouse is booming. Despite being invite only. Clubhouse has accumulated 2M+ users, and a $1B+ valuation. The app allows you to listen and join various live conversations. It's a live audio-only social network. I'm obsessed with the creative potential this product has. I think this is the next big thing, and I'd buy stock hand over fist in Clubhouse at $1B if they let me. Huge thanks to everyone who participated in the call and joined the show!!

Moonshot confirmed! Tesla has purchased $1.5B worth of Bitcoin! Instead of hoarding the usual bonds and fiat as reserve assets, Tesla has decided to move ~7% of it's $19.4B in cash into Bitcoin. I think this is a genius move, and will set off a wave of rapid institutionalization of Bitcoin. Who will be the next big tech company to get in?? Are you worried about Bitcoin's energy consumption being counterproductive to Tesla's mission?

Tesmanian reports that Tesla is moving forward with a Phase 2 of its Shanghai factory, and is expanding to build the production line of a new vehicle (not the Model 3/Y). Filings with the Chinese government appear to indicate the Model 2 is on track to begin production and deliveries as soon as 2022 (next year!). This seems wayyy ahead of schedule and almost too good to be true. But the breadcrumbs keep coming. Do you think Tesla is getting ready to announce a $25,000 mass market car made in China?

Perceived Solvency = to continue to operate (and stay solvent) a company must maintain the perception of solvency among all of its stakeholders. Startups that burn cash are reliant on this notion of perceived solvency. Robinhood was asked to put up $3B in capital suddenly, and this appears to have caused a liquidity crisis at the firm. In the last week, Robinhood has raised $3.4B of new funding. Did Robinhood almost go bankrupt? What are your thoughts on perceived solvency?

In a shocking move Jeff Bezos has announced he will be stepping down as Amazon CEO in Q3 2021. He will become Executive Chairman of the board, and be replaced by Andy Jassy, a 24 year Amazon veteran, the Founder and CEO of AWS (Amazon Web Services). Jeff Bezos claims Amazon is at peak inventiveness right now, do you think the company will continue innovating without its founder at the helm!? Let me know in the comments!