

#4460
Mentioned in 6 episodes
Always Day One
Book • 2020
In 'Always Day One,' Alex Kantrowitz explores the concept of 'Day One' as coined by Amazon's Jeff Bezos, which means continuously inventing and acting like a startup, even for large companies.
The book is based on 130 interviews with insiders, from top executives like Mark Zuckerberg to hourly workers, and delves into the cultures, technologies, and processes that enable these tech giants to maintain their dominance.
Kantrowitz emphasizes the importance of a 'Day One' mindset, where companies prioritize reinvention over tradition and collaboration over ownership, and how this approach helps them stay ahead of competitors and avoid the pitfalls of 'Day Two,' which Bezos describes as 'stasis, followed by irrelevance, followed by excruciating, painful decline, followed by death.
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The book is based on 130 interviews with insiders, from top executives like Mark Zuckerberg to hourly workers, and delves into the cultures, technologies, and processes that enable these tech giants to maintain their dominance.
Kantrowitz emphasizes the importance of a 'Day One' mindset, where companies prioritize reinvention over tradition and collaboration over ownership, and how this approach helps them stay ahead of competitors and avoid the pitfalls of 'Day Two,' which Bezos describes as 'stasis, followed by irrelevance, followed by excruciating, painful decline, followed by death.
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Mentioned by




















Mentioned in 6 episodes
Mentioned by 

as a book he wrote.


Alex Kantrowitz

23 snips
Spotify's Plan For AI Generated Music, Podcasts, and Recommendations — With Gustav Söderström
Mentioned by 

as the book he was writing while interviewing 

.


Alex Kantrowitz


Nick Bostrom

AI's Doomsday Philosopher Says Maybe It'll All Be Totally Fine — With Nick Bostrum
Mentioned by 

when discussing the challenges faced by tech giants in reinventing themselves.


Alex Kantrowitz

ServiceNow CEO On Entrepreneurship, AI, and Automation — With Bill McDermott
Mentioned by 

as his book about Amazon's reinvention.


Alex Kantrowitz

A Dozen Grueling Years At Amazon — With Kristi Coulter
Mentioned by 

as a book about how tech giants excel at corporate reinvention.


Alex Kantrowitz

Responsibility Theater
Mentioned by 

as the basis for his first chapter on robotic process automation.


Alex Kantrowitz

Sam Altman’s $7 Trillion Fundraise, Google Gemini Catches OpenAI, The Return To Office Ploy
Mentioned by 

when discussing the culture inside of Amazon.


Brian McCullough

Wed. 02/03 – Bezos Drops Mic
Mentioned by 

as a book he wrote about Amazon.


Alex Kantrowitz

Will Amazon Be Kinder After Jeff Bezos? A Conversation With Recode's Jason Del Rey
Mentioned by 

in the podcast introduction as the book where he wrote about 

's experience at Microsoft.


Alex Kantrowitz


Maria Klawe

She Advocated For Women, Then Microsoft Pushed Her Off Its Board — With Maria Klawe
Mentioned by 

in the context of his book.


Don Graham

Doing Business With Zuckerberg and Bezos — With Donald Graham
Mentioned by 

in the closing segment of the podcast.


Alex Kantrowitz

Do We Need The Metaverse? — With Nick Clegg
Mentioned by 

, referring to 

's book about Amazon.


Leo Laporte


Alex Kantrowitz

TWiT 1025: Weak Perfection - Signalgate, Miyazaki's Nightmare
Mentioned by 

when discussing the impact of Apple's tracking changes on Meta's revenue.


Alex Kantrowitz

Meta's Awkward Pivot, Crypto's Future, Amazon's Challenge — Crossover With Techmeme Ride Home
Mentioned by 

as a book he worked on edits with 

.


Alex Kantrowitz


Carmel DeAmicis

How Figma Caught Adobe By Surprise — With Carmel DeAmicis
Mentioned by 

as a book about tech giants, focusing on Amazon.


Alex Kantrowitz

Amazon's Identity Crisis — With Todd Bishop
Mentioned by 

as the topic of the podcast episode, exploring the success of major tech companies.


Chris Williamson

#174 - Alex Kantrowitz - Why Are The Biggest Tech Companies So Dominant?
Mentioned by 

in the context of discussing AI's impact on work.


Erik Brynjolfsson

Wait, The Robots Didn't Take Our Jobs? — With Erik Brynjolfsson
Mentioned by 

as an amazing breakdown of the cultural DNA of tech giants and a useful playbook to their success.


Brian McCullough

(Bonus) Tech Giant Psychoanalysis With Alex Kantrowitz
Mentioned by 

as a weekend bonus episode, discussing the five big tech companies.


Brian McCullough

Fri. 04/10 – HUGE: Apple and Google Join Forces For Coronavirus Contact Tracing
Mentioned by 

as the author of the book, discussing how tech titans stay on top.


Kara Swisher

Recode Decode: Alex Kantrowitz