Silicon Valley's Shifting VC Landscape: Lochhead on Different

2023-08-25 16:00:00

Each month, “Lochhead on Different” episodes explore the need to differentiate people, products, and services in a world that encourages a lot of imitation. Christopher Lochhead is a best-selling author, top podcaster, and former tech-industry CMO. Today, Christopher and Bob discuss justice issues on the West Coast in light of Elizabeth Holmes’ sentence reduction and Leslie van Heuten’s release, then move on to the topic of Silicon Valley and how, even with all the hype, some may be in danger of missing out on the opportunity of generative artificial intelligence (AI).

Episode 29 | Don’t Miss the Parade

Note: this episode contains explicit language.

The Big Themes:

Carrots and sticks: Maintaining a balance between rewards and consequences is important for society. The absence of effective deterrents, such as appropriate punishment, can lead to a decline in individual responsibility and social cohesion.
Shift in venture capital (VC) investment behavior: There’s a strong trend toward investing in AI-related companies. Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) has gripped the VC community, driving many to invest in AI startups to avoid being left behind. This AI frenzy can lead to both promising innovations and potential investment bubbles.
Opportunity and awareness gap: While many acknowledge the potential of AI, a substantial number of individuals, including smart and established players, remain passive or ignorant about the ongoing technological revolution.

The Big Quote: “We’re at the very front end of AI, and it reminds me of [an] old expression . . . there’s three kinds of people. There’s the people in the parade, and there’s the people who watch the parade, and there’s the people who said, ‘Oh, is there a parade?’ And there’s a stunning number of people who don’t even know there’s a parade right now . . . that’s where the opportunity is.”