Iterate Weekly - Issue 65
This week we're talking about a new Crypto Phone, The Obamas move to Audible, New rice crops could reduce carbon emissions, Airbnb wants you to say OMG when you book a home, and more "Free Time"!
Welcome to issue 65 of Iterate Weekly!
Just a reminder that you can always reply to this email or leave a comment on the web version. I read all of them, and I appreciate the feedback, questions, and insights from all of you.
Let’s jump into this week’s stories.
🤖 Tech
Are you ready for a Crypto Phone?
I get really excited when I hear about the release of a new phone.
When that phone is made by a company that isn’t Apple, Samsung, or Google, I get even more excited. Competition in the smartphone world is a good thing! Sadly, (at least in the United States) only a few companies are even attempting to serve this market.
Well, soon there will be a new “crypto” phone available for those folks like me who are yearning for something new in the smart phone market.
They probably should have just branded this thing the CRYPTO-5000 or something but the device’s actual name is the “Solana Saga” and it comes from a partnership between blockchain company Solana and new smartphone creator Osom. If anyone remembers the Essential Phone, some of the team at Osom worked on that a few years back. Yes, I was a huge fan of the Essential Phone. I went to the launch party at the company’s headquarters and even owned the domain theessentialphone.com for a bit.
Needless to say, that device was not a commercial success. We all have much higher hopes for the Saga.
The device will have all of the specs you’d want in a modern Android phone. (6.67-inch 120Hz OLED display, 512GB of storage, and 12GB of RAM. It’ll be powered by Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chip and is outfitted with a 50-megapixel primary camera, plus a 12-megapixel ultra-wide shooter.)
But what makes it unique is its support for:
“decentralized apps that rely on the Solana blockchain, which has at least briefly rivaled Ethereum when it comes to NFT sales volume. NFT marketplace Magic Eden, Solana wallet maker Phantom, and cryptocurrency exchange Orca have signed on to back the Saga and Solana’s new software efforts.”
There is a lot of marketing jargon around the launch of this phone. Honestly, it may just mean that it comes pre-loaded with an app for buying NFTs. The pricing on the phone also seems a bit high considering this is coming from companies with very little experience.
I won’t lie, the phone looks really solid. I’m not sure I’m entrenched in the crypto world enough to justify the $1,000 price tag an uncertainty about things like software updates and availability. They say it’ll be available in early 2023, but I wouldn’t hold your breath.
Anyone interested in making this their next phone?
🎓 Education/Productivity
The Obamas look to reach fans on Audible
Ah, The Obamas! They used to be America’s first family, now they’ve become one of the biggest names in media.
Barack and Michelle are partnering with audio book purveyor Audible for their latest endeavor.
Their podcast “Higher Ground” (formerly on Spotify) will now have an exclusive home on Audible’s platform.
This is big obviously because of the name recognition and subject matter being tackled by the Obama’s team. But it’s also a huge deal for Audible.
In the influencer marketing space, I’ve worked with folks at Audible for over a decade. They’ve obviously cornered the market for audio books, but they do say that they are a force in the world of “spoken entertainment”. That obviously includes podcasts, but most of those exclusive deals were going to Apple and Spotify instead.
Could this signal a sea change in content exclusivity? Maybe, but it’s important to note that the Audible deal is on a “first-look” basis. That means that Audible has the first right to showcase any new audio material from the Higher Ground team. But the Obamas also have the ability to shop around any properties that Audible doesn’t agree to carry exclusively.
Honestly, it seems like a great deal for both the Obamas and Audible. I’m eager to see what types of new projects come out of this arrangement.
Anyone already listening to podcasts on Audible?
♻️ Health & Environment
Could eating rice reduce carbon emissions?
Here’s an interesting story about the environment.
What if we could use CRISPR gene-editing technology to make our crops better at fighting climate change?
A fund from the Chan Zuckerburg Initiative is look to do just that with rice crops.
The hope would be to enhance the ability for crops (starting with rice) to trap carbon dioxide emissions. It’s an ambitious project and I’m not going to pretend to understand all of the intricacies involved here.
The bottom line is that carbon emissions are not decreasing at a rate that gives much hope for the longterm survival of our planet. Since humans haven’t been able to stop this wave of self-imposed destruction, we need to use science to come up with clever solutions like this as a stop-gap resort.
If we can make plants like rice more efficient at trapping carbon dioxide, let’s give it a shot!
🛍 Grab Bag
Airbnb wants you to book OMG! homes
Airbnb wants you to stay in quirkier and quirkier homes don’t they?
Recently, they announced they’ll be giving away $10 Million to encourage designers to create OMG homes…whatever that means.
Well, these OMG homes will need to be extra unique. Creative hosts are encouraged to come up with their wildest ideas and apply for a chance to get $100K to bring their design to life.
I can see this as a smart marketing effort for Airbnb, but it could also end up being pretty profitable for the right type of Airbnb host. Even with an initial upfront investment to create a tourist destination listing, the opportunity for recurring revenue is huge.
Who wouldn’t want to travel off the beaten path to stay in a UFO or giant potato?
If you have a crazy idea, you should enter for yourself!
💬 Quote of the Week
“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.”
- Thich Nhat Hanh
📕Content Recommendation
Free Time
We could all use more free time right?
Well this week, I’m recommending Jenny Blake’s excellent book “Free Time”
Jenny was recently featured in a Deep Dive Conversation on Caveday and I was really impressed with some of her insights on becoming more efficient with your work time.
I highly recommend you check it out for yourself, but I was impressed with her ideas about doing less work. It may sound obvious, but not every business needs to grow. Teams can be “delightfully tiny” (in Jenny’s words) and still achieve great things.
More is not better when it comes to hours worked. If your work/life balance is out of whack, you’ll learn a ton from Jenny.
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
P.S. - Are you looking for a coach? I’m looking to work with some potential new clients and would love to help you out. Click here for more info!