The past, present, and future of design in Silicon Valley

 The following is an excerpt from The Way to Design, a guide to becoming a designer founder and to building design-centric businesses. Adapted and reprinted with the author’s permission. Until very recently, success in Silicon Valley required focusing almost single-mindedly on an organization’s technical prowess. It meant having an unimpeachable technical founder, 10X engineers,… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/30/the-past-present-and-future-of-design-in-silicon-valley/?ncid=rss

The unfairness (and wisdom) of paint

Repainting your house the same color it already was feels like a waste. It's a lot of effort merely to keep things as they are.

But if you don't do it, time and entropy kick in and the house starts to fade.

The same can be said for 1,000 elements of your organization, including your relationships with customers, staff, suppliers and technology. The way you approach your market, the skill you bring to your craft, the culture in your organization—it constantly needs another coat of paint.

Rust never sleeps.

[PS... delighted that I'll be speaking at the upcoming Convertkit event in June in Boise... Hope to see you there.]

       

from Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/304133229/0/sethsblog~The-unfairness-and-wisdom-of-paint.html

How Echo Look could feed Amazon’s big data fueled fashion ambitions

 This week Amazon took the wraps off a new incarnation of its Alexa voice assistant, giving the AI an eye so it can see as well as speak and hear. The Echo Look also contains a depth sensor that’s being used, in the first instance, to create a bokeh effect for a hands-free style selfies feature that Amazon is hoping will sell the device to fashion lovers, by making their outfits pop… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/29/how-echo-look-could-feed-amazons-big-data-fueled-fashion-ambitions/?ncid=rss

Empathy is the hard part

The rest is mechanics. We're not wired to walk in someone else's shoes, it's not our first instinct.

Showing up with empathy is difficult, hard to outsource and will wear you out.

But it's precisely what we need from you.

       

from Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/302892875/0/sethsblog~Empathy-is-the-hard-part.html

Amazon is shutting down its “Underground Actually Free” program that gives away free Android apps

 Late on Friday, Amazon announced it will be shutting down its “Underground Actually Free” program which offers customers free versions of Android apps that would typically cost money, including those that relied on in-app purchases but were otherwise free downloads. Though it promised long-term support when it debuted back in August 2015, Amazon today says the “Actually… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/28/amazon-is-shutting-down-its-underground-actually-free-program-that-gives-away-free-android-apps/?ncid=rss

Microsoft hires former FTC figure for new privacy role

 On Friday, Microsoft announced that it will create a new role for former Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill. Brill will take the lead on privacy, data protection and regulatory issues at Microsoft as the corporate vice president and deputy general counsel for its Privacy and Regulatory Affairs group. An Obama nominee, Brill joined the FTC as a commissioner in 2010 and served there for… Read More

from Microsoft – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/28/microsoft-julie-brill/?ncid=rss

Alexa learns to talk like a human with whispers, pauses & emotion

 Amazon’s Alexa is going to sound more human. The company announced this week the addition of a new set of speaking skills for the virtual assistant, which will allow her to do things like whisper, take a breath to pause for emphasis, adjust the rate, pitch and volume of her speech, and more. She’ll even be able to “bleep” out words – which may not be all that… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/28/alexa-learns-to-talk-like-a-human-with-whispers-pauses-emotion/?ncid=rss

Taking it for granite

Look around for a second.

Those bedrock institutions, the foundational supports you take for granted--they rarely last forever.

Nurturing and investing in the things we need and count on needs to be higher on the agenda.

Things that appear to be made of granite rarely are.

       

from Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/301706469/0/sethsblog~Taking-it-for-granite.html

Microsoft meets expectations with $23.6B in revenue, Azure revenue up 93%

 Like every quarter, Microsoft just reported earnings for the last quarter. The company reported non-GAAP revenue of $23.6 billion and non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.73. Wall Street’s cadre of crack analysts expected the company’s earnings per share to come in at around $0.70, with revenue hitting about $23.6 billion. In the year-ago quarter, Microsoft reported earnings per share… Read More

from Microsoft – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/27/microsoft-meets-expectations-with-23-6b-in-revenue-azure-revenue-up-93/?ncid=rss

Amazon blows past earnings expectations

 Amazon reported first quarter earnings after the bell on Thursday. The company shattered earning expectations, reporting $1.48 per share, when Wall Street was expecting $1.12. Net income stood at $724 million. Revenue came in at $35.71 billion, above the $35.30 billion that analysts were forecasting and up 23% from last year. Shares quickly soared 4% in initial after-hours trading. However… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/27/amazon-blows-past-earnings-expectations/?ncid=rss

As Chromebook sales soar in schools, Apple and Microsoft fight back

 Few saw the Chromebook coming. When it launched half a decade ago, the category was broadly maligned for its limited feature set, middling hardware specs and operation that required an always-on internet connection to work properly. But things change in five years. Read More

from Microsoft – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/27/as-chromebook-sales-soar-in-schools-apple-and-microsoft-fight-back/?ncid=rss

You go first

That's the key insight of the peer-to-peer connection economy.

Anyone can reach out, anyone can lead, anyone can pick someone else.

But if you wait for anyone, it's unlikely to happen.

It begins with you.

       

from Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/300793456/0/sethsblog~You-go-first.html

Crunch Report | Instagram Grows To 700M Users

 Today’s Stories  Instagram’s growth speeds up as it hits 700 million users Twitter desperately needed a hit first-quarter and somehow managed to deliver Amazon’s new Echo Look has a built-in camera for style selfies Uber is making it easier to see your rider rating Investor Chris Sacca is retiring from venture capital Credits Written and Hosted by: Anthony Ha Filmed… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/26/crunch-report-instagram-grows-to-700m-users/?ncid=rss

Amazon’s camera-equipped Echo Look raises new questions about smart home privacy

 Given all of the security concerns raised by the rise of the Echo and other smart home hubs, Amazon surely knew that adding a camera to one of its devices was going to reinvigorate the privacy debate. After all, an always-listening microphone is one thing — the Echo Look, with a camera designed to sit in its owner’s bedroom, is another question entirely. Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/26/amazons-camera-equipped-echo-look-raises-new-questions-about-smart-home-privacy/?ncid=rss

Amazon’s new Echo Look has a built-in camera for style selfies

 With the addition of a camera, Amazon’s new Echo Look device can now see and hear all. The device is a sort of standalone selfie machine so users can take full-length photos and videos of themselves specifically for the sake of checking their fashion choices in the morning. The new home assistant answers to commands like “Alexa, take a picture” and “Alexa, take a… Read More

from Amazon – TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2017/04/26/amazons-new-echo-look-has-a-built-in-camera-for-style-selfies/?ncid=rss

Save as draft

Is that a habit?

If your instinct is to publish, to share, to instruct, to give away, to engage and to put it into the world, then 'save as draft' is a rare thing.

On the other hand, if you find yourself noodling then putting aside, waiting for perfect, you're on track to be waiting for a very long time.

Ship.

[Tomorrow, Thursday April 27 is the first priority deadline for the next session of the altMBA. This is an intensive 30-day workshop that creates the habit of shipping. We help people learn to see, to take action, to make decisions and to cause change to happen. It might just be for you.]

       

from Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/299523413/0/sethsblog~Save-as-draft.html