H.E.R.O.’s Journey in Tech (5 February 2019) – The world’s biggest spice company is using AI to find new flavors + Compounding Knowledge

H.E.R.O.’s Journey in Tech (5 February 2019) – The world’s biggest spice company is using AI to find new flavors + Compounding Knowledge

Companies

• Chat app Line injects $182M into its mobile payment business (TC)
• Nintendo’s solid performance fails to console investors; Investors debate whether the boom-and-bust video games model has changed (FT)
• Chipmaker TSMC offers ‘long runway of growth’ (AFR)
• Uber trip data to flow directly into Xero thanks to new partnership (AFR)
• Praemium has announced the launch of a major technology upgrade and a rebrand for its global investment platform which is expected to expand its addressable market in Australia from $62 billion in managed accounts to an $860 billion overall platform (MM)

BATTSS – Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, TSMC, Samsung, Softbank

• Baidu’s chairman Robin Li shares new year objectives rooted in AI (KRA)
• Alibaba struggles to follow Amazon beyond e-commerce; New CEO under pressure to cultivate cloud and physical retail businesses (Nikkei); Alibaba’s Aussie cloud push struggles against extra China tech scrutiny (AFR)
• Tencent spurs Hong Kong’s fintech ecosystem; The Chinese conglomerate is forming strategic partnerships in the city. (KRA)

FAANNMG – Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, Netflix, Microsoft, Google

• Facebook turns 15: How the social-networking giant has changed America (Economist)
• Apple Should Buy Netflix or These 2 Other Companies, JPMorgan Says (Barron’s)
• Microsoft acquires DataSense management from BrightBytes to step up its education play in Azure (TC)
• After 5 years, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has transformed more than the stock price (TC)
• Alphabet spending spree spooks investors; Investment binge of $25bn in 2018 overshadows revenue gains (FT)
• Netflix is juicing its viewership numbers, FX chief says (MW)

Asia Tech & Innovation Trends

• 2018 in review: China incubates 25 new unicorns worth $58 billion (Technode)
• New wave of Chinese tech start-ups focus on overseas markets; Domestic business dominated by handful of established groups (FT)
• Sequoia to make earlier and bigger bets in China; Venture capitalists increase firepower in competition for best tech start-ups; Sequoia China’s success has rested on a number of huge consumer internet companies, notably JD.com (FT)
• Japan’s Aeon offers video interpreters for foreign shoppers; Smartphone-based service handles 10 languages at 550 domestic stores (Nikkei)
• Swiggy acquires Bengaluru-based AI startup Kint.io (ET)
• India takes aim at popular Chinese social media apps; Bid to make platforms take responsibility for all content posted to their sites; TikTok, a Chinese social video app, has 39 per cent of its users in India (FT)

Global Tech & Innovation Trends

• Workplace messaging start-up Slack to go public (JT)
• The world’s biggest spice company is using AI to find new flavors (CNN)
• This Startup Is Creating A Real-Time Data Map Of The Global Economy. BlackRock And PayPal Are Buying It (Forbes)
• Investors urge tech start-ups to hoard cash; VC groups say the slowing economy will make fundraising more difficult (FT)
• John Malone and Barry Diller Try to Untangle Expedia (Barron’s)
• Match Group, Shutterfly stocks fall after Goldman starts coverage at sell (MW)
• Semiconductor shipments surpassed 1 trillion in 2018 for the first time, when record sales hit almost $469 billion, industry group says (MW)
• Here’s Why Roku Stock Jumped Monday – Then Gave Much of It Back (Barron’s)
• Ten trends shaping the Internet of Things business landscape (McKinsey)
• Behind Tech’s Shine, Some Warnings Signs Appear (NYT)

Life

• Compounding Knowledge (FS)
• This Is The Most Powerful Way To Make Your Life Fantastic (Barker)
• Why It’s So Hard to Predict the Size of New Markets (HBR)