E162: Live from Davos! Milei goes viral, Adam Neumann's headwinds, streaming's broken model & more

A high Alpine resort town and municipality in the Landwasser region of the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland, where the World Economic Forum is held annually. It's now seen as a symbol of elite detachment.

Mentioned as a case study for the failures of collectivism, once a prosperous nation in the early 20th century before a series of military coups and socialist policies led to economic decline.

A country that has implemented regulations banning plastic packaging for fruits and vegetables.

A casino in Los Angeles where one of the hosts played and won a Big O poker tournament.

The President of Argentina and a former economics teacher, whose speech at Davos denouncing collectivism and promoting free markets went viral for contradicting the forum's established consensus.

CEO of JPMorgan Chase, who gave an interview on CNBC agreeing with some of Donald Trump's past policies and questioning the prevailing economic narrative, which also went viral from Davos.

A financial journalist for CNBC who posted on Twitter about the perceived embarrassment of attending Davos.

The founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, who introduced Javier Milei before his critical speech.

Founder of WeWork and now Flo, whose new real estate startup is facing financial headwinds due to floating rate debt and top-of-market acquisitions.

Former US President whose policies on NATO, immigration, and tax reform were discussed by Jamie Dimon as being largely correct.

CEO of Palantir, who reportedly gave a thoughtful speech about anti-Semitism at Davos, which was countercultural to the established anti-Israel narrative.

The venture investor who seeded and started Manscaped, leading Jason to sign up for its subscription service.

Mentioned as an example of an investor who prioritizes returning money to LPs rather than optimizing for fees, having already achieved success.

A famous professional poker player mentioned as someone who could be recruited for an 'All-in' poker tournament.

An aerospace manufacturer whose 737 Max aircraft have faced significant safety issues, including door plugs blowing off and catastrophic software failures, highlighting concerns about regulatory capture and lack of competition.

An aerospace parts manufacturer with extremely high profit margins (53% EBITDA) that has been audited for earning excess profits on sole-source contracts with the U.S. government due to regulatory barriers to entry.

Adam Neumann's new startup, a residential real estate company aiming to create community-focused apartments with a potential rent-to-own equity model, but facing financial difficulties due to interest rate hikes and over-leveraged acquisitions.

Used as an example of a traditional business with a well-developed app, illustrating that not every business with a good app is a 'tech company'.

Adam Neumann's previous company, which failed due to poor financial decisions and leasing offices at peak market prices, despite having a good product.

Adam Neumann's precursor to WeWork, which succeeded by finding cheap, undesirable buildings and transforming them into hip, affordable co-working spaces.

A marketplace business referenced in contrast to tech-enabled restaurants, highlighting the asset-light nature of true marketplaces.

Along with Facebook, identified as a winner in the streaming wars due to increased advertising spending by streaming services to combat churn.

A men's grooming product company that Jason subscribed to to support a friend, but has found it impossible to cancel, leading to unwanted product deliveries.

Used as an example of a traditional restaurant business that has successfully integrated technology (app ordering, big screens) but remains a restaurant, not a 'tech-enabled business' in the high-margin software sense.

Paid $100 million for exclusive streaming rights to one NFL playoff game on its Peacock service, generating high viewership but raising questions about the sustainability of such spending.

A leading streaming service with 247 million subscribers and growing revenue, but also high content spending and subscriber churn, though its 'recapture engine' is noted as effective.

A streaming service mentioned as an entrant that did not initially focus on profitability, primarily used to support other Apple hardware or services. It is bundled as part of the Apple One program.

A communication platform as a service (CPaaS) company, whose metered telephony services are cited as an example of a virtual cost of goods sold for software businesses.

Used as an example of a 'super app' that can expand into adjacencies like alcohol and grocery delivery with minimal additional cost due to existing demand-side network effects.

Along with Google, identified as a winner in the streaming wars as services overspend on content and then use these platforms for advertising to reacquire churned subscribers.

A language learning app that Jason was unknowingly paying for multiple subscriptions to, highlighting subscription overload.

Its purchase of the portable vacuum cleaner Roomba is being investigated by the FTC, contrasting with the lack of attention to broader industry monopolies.

An AI company that immediately translated Javier Milei's speech from Spanish into English using his own words and published it, highlighting AI's potential for content accessibility.

Cited as an example of a marketplace that can add new inventory in new cities effectively, demonstrating network effects.

One of the two major OEM equipment vendors in the US airline industry, forming a duopoly with Boeing.

A streaming service, with content like The Sopranos and House of the Dragon, considered by some to have the best content, encouraging subscription retention.

A country that has implemented regulations banning plastic packaging for fruits and vegetables.

A US government agency that could address anti-competition issues but is seemingly focused on less critical matters.

Successfully implemented a bundling strategy with news, Wordle, crosswords, The Athletic, and Wirecutter, demonstrating effective subscription retention.

An international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, Geneva Canton, Switzerland. It brings together business, political, academic, and other leaders to shape global agendas. The event is now being mocked for its elitism and hypocrisy.

A sports journalism platform included in The New York Times' subscription bundle.

Mentioned in the context of pushing an 'everything is hunky dory' narrative about the economy that Jamie Dimon questioned.

Mentioned as an example of a government agency that has a loan program to create diverse energy infrastructure, suggesting a similar model could be applied to other sectors to foster competition.

A product review website integrated into The New York Times' subscription bundle.

A US government agency that took quick action to ground Boeing 737 Max 9 planes but is criticized for not understanding the broader systemic problem of lack of competition.

Its playoff games were exclusively streamed on Peacock, drawing millions of viewers but at a high cost for streaming rights.

A US government agency mentioned for investigating Amazon's purchase of Roomba, while larger systemic issues like concentration in the airline industry go unaddressed.

A venture capital firm that invested $300 million in Flo at a billion-dollar valuation, despite the signs of a market downturn, seen as a move to deploy capital for fee generation rather than optimal returns.

A wearable fitness tracker that Jason had a subscription for, despite not owning the device, another example of wasteful subscriptions.

A streaming service that is rebundling cable channels over the internet, showing significant subscriber growth and offering flexibility across devices, emerging as a strong competitor.

A brand of reusable water bottles, mentioned as an alternative to single-use plastic bottles for environmental reasons.

A brand of reusable drinkware and coolers, mentioned as an alternative to single-use plastic bottles for environmental reasons.

A series of Boeing aircraft models that have experienced severe safety issues, including door plug separation and software malfunctions (MCAS) leading to two fatal crashes.

A portable vacuum cleaner whose acquisition by Amazon is under FTC investigation.

A subscription bundling program from Apple, similar to Amazon Prime, that includes Apple TV+ and other services to enhance stickiness and LTV.

A news program that ran a piece on the commercial real estate market, echoing discussions from the podcast about the ongoing crisis.

A Disney Plus show that cost $225-250 million for nine episodes and was criticized for bad CGI, highlighting overspending and lack of discipline in content creation.

A show on HBO Max serving as a 'tent pole' content that justifies subscription for many users.

A highly rewatchable show on HBO Max, praised for its quality content that makes viewers retain their subscription.

A documentary mentioned that details the problems with the Boeing 737 Max aircraft.

A language learning app that Jason was paying for without seeing improvement in his Italian.

A streaming service bundled with Amazon Prime, providing a strong long-term value (LTV) argument and minimizing churn due to its integration with a broader ecosystem of services.

Discussed as a place where users can easily review and cancel unwanted subscriptions to save money.

NBCUniversal's streaming service, which hosted an exclusive NFL playoff game that garnered 23 million viewers, making it the most streamed live event in US history.

A streaming service that bundles channels over the internet, noted for its good app functionality on various devices.

A language learning app Jason was subscribed to, along with others, without tangible learning outcomes.

Mentioned as a typical hosting cost provider for software businesses to sustain their virtual infrastructure, contributing to the cost of goods sold.

A popular word game incorporated into The New York Times' bundling strategy to attract and retain subscribers.

A streaming service that experienced rapid growth to 164 million subscribers, peaked in Q4 2022, but has since seen a decrease in subscribers and high churn rates, despite its large content library.

A supermarket chain where pre-packaged salads in large plastic boxes are observed, highlighting excessive plastic packaging.

A real estate publication that reported on Adam Neumann's $60 million variable rate mortgage issues with Flo properties.