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Copyright © 2023 Pepijn van der Laan.
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If you want to learn how to build good products or start yur own company, Tony Fadell recommends listening to Tony Fadell

If you want to learn how to build good products or start yur own company, Tony Fadell recommends listening to Tony Fadell

Tony Fadell – Build

Shamelessly self-aggrandizing autobiography dressed-up as self-help book for entrepreneurs.

To learn how to make an open source software project a commercial success, study business models in the media industry

To learn how to make an open source software project a commercial success, study business models in the media industry

Nadia Eghbal – Working in Public

From an economical perspective, open source software is no different from other content that is published online.

To benefit the most from network effects: build local scale, fiercely fight for each new value pocket, and remember that every hockey stick will become an S-curve

To benefit the most from network effects: build local scale, fiercely fight for each new value pocket, and remember that every hockey stick will become an S-curve

The book proves that those A16Z folks are very good at marketing sauce on not-so-ground-breaking ideas (as described by Sebastian Mallaby)

Venture Capital has been of major importance in the making of the tech industry in general, and Silicon Valley in particular.

Venture Capital has been of major importance in the making of the tech industry in general, and Silicon Valley in particular.

Sebastian Mallaby – The Power Law

Nice as a description of the historical evolution of the VC phenomenon, but rather condoning in its evaluation.

PayPal has been successful first and foremost because of ruthless competitiveness and a maniacal work ethic

PayPal has been successful first and foremost because of ruthless competitiveness and a maniacal work ethic

Jimmy Soni – The Founders

In hindsight, the early internet was shockingly primitive.

The secret to closing a deal is convincing content, delivered convincingly

The secret to closing a deal is convincing content, delivered convincingly

Oren Klaff – Flip the script

The gripping storytelling makes the shameless bragging accceptable and entertaining.

From the start, WeWork’s business model was eerily similar to that of Regus while Adam Neumann’s main skill was conning investors

From the start, WeWork’s business model was eerily similar to that of Regus while Adam Neumann’s main skill was conning investors

Eloit Brown and Maureen Farrell – The cult of We

The book is too overtly written with the benefit of hindsight, which makes the cautionary tale less compelling.

A start-up in retail should resolve significant friction in the value chain and/or the consumers’ lives

A start-up in retail should resolve significant friction in the value chain and/or the consumers’ lives

Christiane Lemieux and Duff McDonald – Frictionless

Story on repeat: X had a frustration, X is so privileged that she can raise at least a couple of $100k from friends and family, and X starts an amazing company to solve the problem – at least in theory – for herself and the rest of the world.

Apparently, the success factors that made Jack Ma are his command of the English language, his showmanship

Apparently, the success factors that made Jack Ma are his command of the English language, his showmanship

Duncan Clark – Alibaba

After a reasonably insightful chapter describing Alibaba’s strategy, the book slides into an enumeration of facts that illustrate the way in which China’s government steers private enterprise.

Never trust data scientists, in particular when they do not have data

Never trust data scientists, in particular when they do not have data

Jill Lepore – If then

The writer never really succeeds in making the Simulmatics story seem important, partly because due to endless digressions about the bad marriages of the men who founded the company and partly because she avoids any substantial assessment of the actual models they used.

The philosophy of the Silicon Valley elite is just a bunch of ill understood one-liners from preferably obscure thinkers

The philosophy of the Silicon Valley elite is just a bunch of ill understood one-liners from preferably obscure thinkers

Adrian Daub – What tech calls thinking

Entertaining and polemic book, although many of the author’s points hardly need to be argued.

To become successful as a startup founder: copy everything you can and only invent what you must

To become successful as a startup founder: copy everything you can and only invent what you must

JimMcKelvey – The innovation stack

The book is exactly what it tries to avoid: being just another entertaining founder story (in this case about Square).

Make sure you create value, and maintain power over transactions on your platform

Make sure you create value, and maintain power over transactions on your platform

Geoffrey Parker, Marshall Van Olstyne, Sangeet Choudary – Platform revolution

Remember: there are many ways in which platforms can fail!

Attract the right team, set a market-driven strategy, prioritize wisely in execution and… don’t run out of cash

Attract the right team, set a market-driven strategy, prioritize wisely in execution and… don’t run out of cash

Verne Harnish – Scaling up

Densely written ‘how-to guide’ for executives who want to build a sustainable growth company.

Overcome predictible growth crises through insurgence, sense of ownership, and front-line obsession

Overcome predictible growth crises through insurgence, sense of ownership, and front-line obsession

Chris Zook – The founder’s mentality

Compared to the Chinese tech scene, Silicon Valley is slow and complacent

Compared to the Chinese tech scene, Silicon Valley is slow and complacent

Kai-Fu Lee – AI Superpowers

Former Google China Chief explains why China will win the AI race when it comes to applications of deep learning in the physical world.

Use ‘validated learning’ to launch your ‘MVP’, and ‘pivot’ when your ‘value and growth hypotheses’ are falsified

Use ‘validated learning’ to launch your ‘MVP’, and ‘pivot’ when your ‘value and growth hypotheses’ are falsified

Eric Ries – The lean startup

A staple of startup literature, advocating a deceivingly simple concept which is hard to get right (as is proven by the examples of startups that have failed since publication).

Every visonary entrepreneur needs an integrator to assure his/her ideas materialize

Every visonary entrepreneur needs an integrator to assure his/her ideas materialize

Gino Wickman – Rocket fuel

By far the more readable book on org structure that I have come across.

Geoffrey Moore – Crossing the chasm

Geoffrey Moore – Crossing the chasm

A cutting-edge tech company marketing to early adopters has to completely reinvent itself to appeal to the mainstream market.

Written in an entertaining laid-back style that more business books could use and – above all – surprisingly relevant over 25 years after first publication in 1991.

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Copyright © 2023 Pepijn van der Laan.
All rights reserved.