Coburn Ventures Podcast #239: Data Masquerading as Information - “Information Ain’t What It Used to be!”
Sep 11, 2025
Investors need a strong framework to sift through the overwhelming noise of data. The conversation delves into transforming misleading data into meaningful information. A fascinating exercise highlights the blend of facts and opinions in articles, complicating insight generation. The hosts discuss the dangers of echo chambers and the importance of cognitive diversity, especially with AI's help. They emphasize that today's value lies in deriving uncommon insights from existing information rather than just accumulating more data.
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Data Often Masquerades As Information
- Much data today arrives already framed with a bias and pretends to be information.
- Pip Coburn warns we must actively convert biased data into true information by recontextualizing it.
Portfolio Realized Many Holdings Were Data Firms
- In 2006 Pip found 22 of 36 portfolio longs were data companies after rethinking what 'data' meant.
- That insight shifted his view that most companies today operate as data companies.
Use The Data Chain To Locate Gaps
- The data chain maps progress: question → data → information → uncommon understanding → decision → action → result.
- Use the chain to locate gaps and decide whether to gather more data or refine your question.