The Diff
Byrne Hobart
The Diff is a newsletter exploring the technologies, companies, and trends that are making the future high-variance. Posts range from in-depth company profiles, applied financial theory, strategy breakdowns and macroeconomics.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Aug 26, 2020 • 21min
Palantir: On Business, Cults, and Politics
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - Palantir: On Business, Cults, and Politics
(16:36) - Wirecard's Scramble & Gamble
(17:53) - Global Yuan?
(18:32) - The Housing Boom
(18:56) - Financial Education for the Soon-to-be 1%
(19:29) - Alphabet Insurance
Aug 21, 2020 • 23min
Amazon: A New Kind of Antitrust Risk
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - Amazon: A New Kind of Antitrust Risk
(15:55) - PPE Nationalism, Vaccine Internationalism
(16:54) - A Macro Renaissance?
(19:37) - Tech Sees Like a State: Parties, Fires
(20:13) - Technology-Governance Fit
(22:16) - China’s (Internal) Immigration Reform
Aug 14, 2020 • 21min
Newsletters and New Media Economics
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - Newsletters and New Media Economics
(12:05) - A Word From Our Sponsors
(12:42) - Fortnite, Apple, and Platform Wars
(15:06) - Apple's Other App Problem
(15:43) - Theaters Restart the Two-Sided Network
(16:18) - Singapore, Reconsidered
(17:54) - Wealth Taxes and Peak California
(18:46) - A16Z Revisits AI Economics
(19:31) - Bullet Trains and China Stimulus
Aug 7, 2020 • 17min
Working in Public and the Economics of Free
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - Working in Public and the Economics of Free
(08:33) - A Word From Our Sponsors
(09:12) - Household Delevering
(09:35) - More Alternative Lending
(10:33) - It's Time to Build in Britain
(11:22) - Pinduoduo
(12:19) - Industrial Espionage in Taiwan
(13:13) - Executive Orders
(14:27) - Executive Orders, Con't.
(15:11) - Executive Orders, Pt. 3
Jul 31, 2020 • 21min
To Understand Jio, You Need To Understand Reliance
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - To Understand Jio, You Need To Understand Reliance
(11:15) - Earnings
(12:30) - Amazon Sees For the State
(12:51) - Gerontocracy
(13:56) - M&A in Kids YouTube
(15:07) - Monopolists Still Compete
(16:48) - China, Infrastructure, and Risk-On
(17:43) - Fintech is all about CAC, Part #1281241
(18:25) - Dollar Shortages, At Home And Abroad
(19:45) - Second Acts
Jul 24, 2020 • 14min
The Bullwhip Effect
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - The Bullwhip Effect
(09:11) - A Word From Our Sponsors
(09:48) - State Capacity Liquidationism
(11:24) - Hong Kong: Still a Financial Center
(11:48) - More of the Infrastructure Long Game
(12:42) - Big Tech Plays Hardball With Big Data
Jul 17, 2020 • 18min
SPACs as a Call Option on Hype
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - SPACs as a Call Option on Hype
(10:26) - A Word From Our Sponsors
(11:04) - More on the Twitter Hack
(11:30) - Corruption, Liquor, and the China Bubble
(12:25) - Q/Q^4 != Y/Y
(13:11) - Wolf Warrior Diplomats to Puppydog Plenipotentiaries
(15:48) - More Evidence That the Next Stimulus Round Will be Slow
(16:54) - Keeping the Big City Network Effect Alive
Jul 16, 2020 • 15min
The Hack: When Crime Pays Fractions of a Penny on the Dollar
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - The Hack: When Crime Pays Fractions of a Penny on the Dollar
(08:52) - Jio!
(09:21) - The Bans: Huawei Employees. Party Members? Dollars?
(11:25) - Slacktivism at the New York Times
(13:12) - Slackifying Gmail
(13:30) - Micro PE vs Value Capture
(14:44) - Airbnb: Somewhat Back
Jul 10, 2020 • 13min
The Depressing Bull Thesis for Rocket Mortgage
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - The Depressing Bull Thesis for Rocket Mortgage
(07:37) - China Equities: Not 2015 Yet
(09:30) - Twitter by Subscription
(10:02) - Oil as a Currency Area
(11:10) - Decoupling
(11:56) - Recoupling?
Jul 2, 2020 • 15min
In Defense of Hiring Based on Side Projects
This is an audio version of the free newsletter. Read the newsletter at thediff.co, and subscribe for an additional 3 posts (and podcasts!) per week.
(00:00) - In Defense of Hiring Based on Side Projects
(08:53) - Companies as Narrative Arcs
(09:21) - Live Data and Pandemic Stimulus
(10:52) - Trucking Bailout
(11:30) - "Did a Chinese Hack Kill Canada’s Greatest Tech Company?"
(12:01) - Facebook on Boycotts; Journalists on Facebook
(13:08) - Rebuilding Hong Kong
(14:01) - Pure-Plays and Reputational Risk
