Happy Weekend!

I regularly speak at Nerdnite, a hilarious series of talks that span everything from Road House (the movie) the road houses (the history of dive bars in America.) Last time I talked about AI but now I’m going to be talking about my new book on psychedelics. I’d love to see you there!

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Some more information:

Nerd Nite NYC returns to Caveat NYC with with three fun-yet-informative presentations about magic mushrooms, the Flintstones Christmas Carol, and secrets about money that economists never told us, especially ones about Beanie Babies. Shhhh! Don’t tell anyone. Wait, I mean tell everyone! Tickets here.

Nerd Nite NYC
Saturday December 14, 2024 at 7pm
Caveat NYC (Lower East Side) 21A Clinton Street, NYC, NY 10002
$21 by Dec 14, 2024 | $26 at the door
Tickets here: https://www.caveat.nyc/events/nerd-nite-12-14-2024

*Find here info and tickets for our January 10, 2025 show with trivia, Matt, and more: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nerd-nite-nyc-tickets-1097351540999?aff=oddtdtcreator

Back to the Lectures At-Hand
*Presentation #1
The Bizarre Multiverse Timeline of “A Flintstones Christmas Carol”
by Stephen Pitalo

Description: How can one reconcile the prehistoric & the anachronistic? How can one be out of time before time? In A Flintstones Christmas Carol, the iconic cartoon characters somehow manage to not just celebrate Christmas long before the existence of Christ, but also perform Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol onstage centuries before the written word. We go down the rabbit hole to explore how this modern Stone Age family defies the limits of their pre-history while further twisting their already warped continuity across a multiverse timeline that also includes the Jetsons, John Goodman, the Honeymooners, and breakfast cereal. Yabba Dabba Do not miss this as we unpack the impossibilities of a world where history and logic collide to create a phenomenon that could never be “a page right out of history.”

Bio: Stephen Pitalo has worked as an entertainment journalist for more than 35 years and he previously wrote the Golden Age of Music Video blog from 2010 to 2021. He is the managing editor of Music Video Time Machine magazine, which gives inside stories from artists and music video directors from the early days of MTV. Pitalo also currently gives presentations about the evolution of music video at conventions, colleges and festivals, and most recently moderated the MTV 40th Anniversary Panel at New York Comic Con. Stephen has previously spoken at Nerd Nite about music video history, as well as how Russian X-rays were used to illegally produce Rock & Roll records, as well as the unsung acting legacy of comedian Andrew Dice Clay.

*Presentation #2
Econ 101: Beanie Babies & Beyond
by Luke Strathmann

Description: Luke Strathmann lost everything in the great Beanie Babies market crash of 2000, and has since spent his life studying economics to figure out what the hell happened. Luke will unveil the secrets that economists have been holding from us since God created money. He will address some of the greatest economic questions of our time: Where does money come from? Why are movies so expensive? How on earth did someone sell a Beanie Baby for seven million dollars? Why was that person not him?

Bio: Luke is a comedian and writer and runs the communications team at Yale’s Department of Economics.

*Presentation #3
The History of Magic Mushrooms in America
by John Biggs

Description: Magic mushrooms aren’t technically magical, but how did we first come to know about their magical properties and how have consumption, sales, and politics evolved in-kind? Let’s take a trip through the history of shrooms in the good ol’ US of A.

Bio: John Biggs is a tech writer, former Editor-in-Chief of Gizmodo, and an overall smart, fun-guy. Get it?

Data pipelines may sound like something out of a tech engineer’s playbook, but their importance is hard to overstate in a data-driven world where companies need to gather, transform, and utilize data efficiently or risk falling behind. That’s where Rivery, a platform helping businesses streamline this process, is focusing its efforts.

In the latest episode of Grit Daily Startup Show, host John Biggs sat down with Rivery’s co-founder and CEO, Itamar Ben Hemo, to unpack what makes their approach to data movement unique and to delve into how AI is reshaping the game.

What Does Rivery Do?

If the term “data pipelines” sounds complex, don’t worry — you’re not alone. “What we are doing is basically data movement,” Ben Hemo explained, “helping customers to get the maximum value of basically democratized data.”

In plain terms, Rivery enables companies to pull data from a dizzying array of sources — databases, APIs, applications — and consolidate it into data warehouses like Google BigQuery or Snowflake. From there, businesses can transform this data for their needs using tools like Python or SQL.

Why is this important? Imagine trying to sift through mountains of marketing data from hundreds of sources, or replicating databases as your enterprise moves to the cloud. For many companies, this is a barrier to growth. Rivery simplifies the process, making once laborious tasks seamless.

The AI Revolution in Data Connectivity

One of the most exciting shifts in Rivery’s strategy is its embrace of AI. Traditionally, creating new data connectors required significant manual effort. Engineers had to decode documentation, map out APIs, and build connectors line by line. Ben Hemo admitted that this model created bottlenecks: “I told to my team, listen, we cannot wait one month to develop connector because we have a list of 100 for next month.”

Can failure be a foundation for success? Want to hear a few hard truths from the CEO of a huge media company?

Meet Medium CEO Tony Stubblebine.

Tony shares his journey through entrepreneurship, detailing the challenges and failures he faced before finding success. He discusses the importance of leadership, team dynamics, and the strategies he implemented to turn around Medium's fortunes. Stubblebine emphasizes the need for entrepreneurs to focus on distribution and finding unique opportunities in a crowded market, as well as the transition from programmer to CEO.

Tony Stubblebine’s career is a testament to persistence, adaptability, and the lessons learned through trial and error. Starting as a programmer in the 1990s, Tony initially pursued a traditional career path, earning a computer science degree and working on projects he describes as “meaningless code.” While he appreciated the stability of a salaried position, he eventually sought a greater purpose and transitioned into leadership roles, ultimately leading him into the world of startups.

His first significant foray into entrepreneurship was with the podcasting startup Odeo, which famously spun off into Twitter. Though he worked on the podcasting side of the business—only to see much of his work discarded—it was a pivotal moment that sparked his desire to control the direction of his work. This led to the launch of his first company, a social networking platform. Despite lacking a clear revenue model or funding, Tony’s determination helped the company achieve break-even status, albeit without significant success. He used this experience as a foundation to grow, learning what worked and, more importantly, what didn’t.

Tony’s next venture, Lyft (not the rideshare company but a habit-tracking app), was far more aligned with his personal interests in self-improvement and productivity. This focus on passion helped him sustain the company through challenges, including a shift into what he calls "aggressively zombie mode" when funding dried up. Even during this period of survival, the app had a lasting impact, influencing the design of modern habit trackers.

Today, Tony is the CEO of Medium, where he’s applied the hard-won lessons from his entrepreneurial journey to revitalize the platform. When he took the helm, Medium was in financial trouble, losing both money and subscribers. By cutting inefficiencies, focusing on growth, and being upfront about the company’s challenges, Tony led Medium to profitability for the first time, achieving over a million paying subscribers. His career illustrates not only the importance of perseverance but also the value of learning from failures to achieve meaningful success.

Key Takeaways:

1. Failure as a Foundation: Tony reflects on his 15 years as a CEO, marked by trial, error, and persistence. From building a social network to creating a habit-tracking app, his journey taught him resilience and focus.

2. Medium’s Revival: Tony took over Medium when it was burning millions and losing subscribers. Through clear priorities—cutting inefficiencies, focusing on growth, and direct communication—Medium turned a corner to profitability with over a million paying subscribers.

3. Counter-Narratives in Business: Tony advocates exploring overlooked opportunities. Medium’s success is built on avoiding ad-driven models and embracing subscription-based growth—an approach that aligns with its audience’s values.

4. Entrepreneurial Insight: From programming roots to CEO, Tony emphasizes the importance of distribution over product perfection and finding allies when fixing broken systems.

Why Listen? Tony doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges of leadership or entrepreneurship. If you’re looking to understand the reality behind building and reviving businesses—or you want a glimpse into Medium’s evolution—this episode is a must-listen.