[REPLAY] Alex Moazed – Building Modern Monopolies - [Invest Like the Best, EP.25]
Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy
Modern Monopolis
Monopolies have a negative connotation, meaning people are geting fleeced. Why, in the modern sense, are these not bad at all, but actually good for consumers? In many times, they are to hav, you know, bing versus gog ser and lift versus uber or i o s versus androyd.
[REPLAY]
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy, which explores the platform business model (Uber, Airbnb, Github). Alex is also the founder and CEO of Applico, a company that he started in his dorm room that is since grown into a huge enterprise that helps startups and Fortune 500 innovate with platforms. Alex and I talk about history and future of businesses and different types of business models. There’s a lot in here for investors, entrepreneurs, and historians. Please enjoy!
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Books Referenced
Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small
The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires
Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
Links Referenced
Show Notes
2:39 – (first question) – Exploring the history of business models from linear to platform.
5:46 – A look at the share of overall business platform companies have taken over
7:06 - Modern Monopolies: What It Takes to Dominate the 21st Century Economy
7:48 – The potential for platform businesses over the next 20 years
9:18 – Detailing the difference between a linear and a platform business
12:08 – Exploring transaction costs and core transactions across different business models
19:49 – Is the platform business model good for investors and VC’s since so many can get crushed when there’s a sole victor, or is it just for the founders and entrepreneurs.
24:35 – How the self-driving car is going to deliver more opportunity for consumer consumption
27:15 – Untapped supplies as the opportunity for new platforms and where we could see new openings
30:24 – How consolidated will things become across all platforms
33:16 – How do platform companies create a moat to keep others from replicating their business strategy
37:03 – Are there platform strategies that specifically don’t work
37:40 - Failed Color App
38:45 – Why complex systems typically don’t scale up and you should think small and easy to get started
38:47 – The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small
40:02 – How the origin of so many larger companies started out small and localized, and why it makes investors more comfortable
41:37 – How Alibaba had to tweak their business model to accommodate the Chinese market
44:07 – Why are the modern monopolies better for consumers
47:52 – Exploring platforms that are asset heavy
49:00 – What do you look for as a VC to determine
52:05 – Alex’s take on whether a platform based company like Uber should be more asset heavy
54:31 – Exploring some lesser known platform businesses that Alex finds interesting
56:18 – If there is a demand in the secondary markets for a product, why don’t the primary suppliers simply raise their prices
57:03 – What Alex’s portfolio of platform-based businesses would look like
58:48 – A couple of most influential books Alex has read
59:12 – The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires
59:38 – Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future and other Peter Thiel books
59:53 – Looking at Applico, how it started and how it become so focused on the platform business model
1:03:56 - Most memorable day for Alex
1:05:13 – Kindest person to Alex in his life
1:06:10 – What platform opportunities could exist in the financial world
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
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