E117: Did Stripe miss its window? Plus: VC market update, AI comes for SaaS, Trump's savvy move
- Feb 24, 2023
- 1:31:32
- Full Episode
(0:00) Bestie intro: Jason's Japan trip! (1:04) Stripe's precarious situation: Did it miss the window? Breaking down its $4B tax bill, slowing growth curve, enterprise vs SMB customers, scalability issues, and more (23:07) Lessons for founders: How ZIRP can skew CAC and LTV calculations, burn multiple (29:40) VC market update: ZIRP mistakes, VC as a "must-have" asset class for LPs, how the 2021 vintage can be saved (39:05) AI's outsized impact on SaaS and real-world businesses (55:16) Advice from Steve Jobs on customer-first product development, Section 230 update (1:00:29) Trump's savvy visit to East Palestine and 2024 strategy, Biden's visit to Ukraine, China's position (1:14:24) Tinfoil hat corner (1:23:25) Bestie wrap up!
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Referenced in the show: https://www.theinformation.com/articles/inside-stripes-55-billion-pitch-to-investors https://www.theinformation.com/articles/the-private-tech-company-that-let-employee-stock-grants-evaporate https://techcrunch.com/2013/09/11/zuckerberg-says-he-was-too-afraid-of-taking-facebook-public https://sacks.substack.com/p/enterprises-vs-smbs-whos-the-better-customer-for-b2b-saas-startups-9a0d4efe69e9 https://sacks.substack.com/p/the-burn-multiple-51a7e43cb200 https://twitter.com/tylertringas/status/1627449217294958592 https://chamathreads.substack.com/p/higher-rates-will-lead-to-the-next https://twitter.com/Jason/status/1628851245644644352 https://signalvnoise.com/posts/3497-you-know-one-of-the-things-that-really-hurt https://www.scotusblog.com/2023/02/not-like-the-nine-greatest-experts-on-the-internet-justices-seem-leery-of-broad-ruling-on-section-230 https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/02/20/on-the-record-press-call-by-senior-administration-officials-on-president-bidens-trip-to-ukraine https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/02/20/secrecy-security-biden-trip-to-kyiv https://www.yahoo.com/news/joe-biden-makes-surprise-visit-095627966.html https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1626984889449959430 https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/02/23/world/russia-ukraine-geopolitics.html https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26079957 https://openai.com/blog/how-should-ai-systems-behave
Brief Summary
The episode analyzes the challenges of RSUs and IPOs for Stripe and Foursquare, emphasizing market dynamics and profitability strategies for tech companies.
Key points
- Facebook's IPO Reflections. Zuckerberg reflects on the apprehension of going public and its impact on Facebook's growth.
- The SMB vs. Enterprise Debate. A discussion on whether startups should target SMBs or enterprises for growth.
- The Shift in Investment Focus. Investors are now prioritizing burn and margins over just growth in a downturn.
- The Importance of Customer Acquisition Cost. Understanding CAC is crucial for evaluating the efficiency of a business's growth strategy.
- AI's Real Value Proposition. AI is delivering tangible benefits in various applications, reshaping productivity.
- AI Revolution in SaaS. The AI Revolution is set to transform SaaS like mobile transformed web 1.0 companies.
Episode highlights
- Facebook's IPO ReflectionsZuckerberg reflects on the apprehension of going public and its impact on Facebook's growth.“I should have just gone public sooner!”4:48Feb 24, 2023
- The SMB vs. Enterprise DebateA discussion on whether startups should target SMBs or enterprises for growth.“It's not one or the other!”13:34Feb 24, 2023
- The Shift in Investment FocusInvestors are now prioritizing burn and margins over just growth in a downturn.“In a downturn, growth, burn, and margins matter.”23:41Feb 24, 2023
- The Importance of Customer Acquisition CostUnderstanding CAC is crucial for evaluating the efficiency of a business's growth strategy.“Keep your eye on the CAC folks!”24:52Feb 24, 2023
- AI's Real Value PropositionAI is delivering tangible benefits in various applications, reshaping productivity.“The ultimate Winner Is Us, incredibly productive and more leveraged!”41:20Feb 24, 2023
- AI Revolution in SaaSThe AI Revolution is set to transform SaaS like mobile transformed web 1.0 companies.“AI is going to be like that for SaaS.”43:39Feb 24, 2023
- Steve Jobs on Product DevelopmentSteve Jobs emphasized starting with customer experience, not just technology.“Start with the customer experience and work backwards to the technology.”55:27Feb 24, 2023
- Domestic Neglect Amid Foreign ConflictThe speaker criticizes political leaders for prioritizing foreign wars over pressing domestic issues.“They either don't know, don't show, or they don't care.”1:03:38Feb 24, 2023





