A Look Back for Recommended Reading: Why the Clean Tech Boom Went Bust | Wired Magazine

Now a year old, the Wired article linked here and below is a sobering summary and reminder of how Clean Tech investing requires a focus on a truly LONG horizon, and a look behind the curtain.

​2012 wired.com / Dan Forbes

I've tried to discipline myself to look over this article every time I feel excited​ about the possibility and promise of a Clean / Green investment.  It's a dose of reality that brings a fresh perspective to combat the high likelihood that you are confirming your own bias in your initial review of a company's plan, numbers, reviews, etc... and seeing what you wanted to see and hearing what you wanted to hear.  As progressive minded people, we want these businesses to succeed, and often see that path lit too brightly.

Emotion and excitement have their role in investing, no doubt, but in the end you have to follow your metric guideposts and internal rules, rather than your wants and hunches.  

We're clarifying these internal guides at High Mountain Ventures.   We'll share our thoughts and final product.  Because if you are investing your money based upon hopes and wishes, no matter how good intentioned, your just gambling...and ultimately harming the cause of Clean / Green Tech and Sustainable Capitalism. 

Jeffrey Ruppert

More from Al Gore's "The Future" re: The Reality of China

I've already written a bit about some amazing insights that can be gleaned from Al Gore's new book, The Future, about the impact that robo-sourcing and outsourcing - much of it to China - ​has on the ever-increasing problem of income disparity.

There can be no doubt that China has, and will continue to have, a large impact on the American economy.  Indeed, while this impact is often viewed through a negative lens, China's huge, expanding market could indeed be a positive for the American economy if some trends play out and specialized manufacturing comes back to our shores due to advances in 3-D printing / manufacturing coupled with increased Chinese skilled labor costs.  

Of course, this somewhat rosy scenario depends in large part on two very important factors: (1) the ability of American industry to maintain its technological edge and protect its intellectual property; and (2) the good will of the Chinese and their ability to play by the rules.

Can we depend on that?  

​Confidence is certainly undermined by Information like this from The Future: ​

​US intelligence agencies have long been assumed to conduct surveillance of foreign governments, including through cybertools to take information from computers if they have reason to believe that US security is threatened,  What is different about the apparent Chinese effort is that it seems to be driven not only by military and national intelligence concerns, but also by a mercantilist effort to confer advantage on Chinese businesses. "There's a big difference." says Richard Clarke, the former counterterrorism czar.  "We don't hack our way into a Chinese computer company like Huawei and provide the secrets of Huawei technology to the American competitor Cisco.  We don't do that."

There is no doubt that US companies are being regularly and persistently attacked. Recent research by the Aspen Institute indicates that the US economy is losing more than 373,000 jobs each year - and $16 billion in lost earnings - from the theft of intellectual property.  Shawn Henry, formerly a top official in the FBI's cybercrime unit, reported that one US company lost a decade's worth of research and development - worth $1 billion - in a single night.

I see the utility and short-term value of China. I even see some long-term promise. But isn't it time that we, as investors, corporations, and a nation, start thinking beyond next quarter and a little more strategically about China?

As we move forward and try to manage the growth and changes to our increasingly intertwined economies, technologies and business organizations...​perhaps we should take a step back and examine the most basic relationship of all...who can we trust?

Jeffrey Ruppert

Are Angels Living Next Door? | The rise of the angel investor (infographic) | VentureBeat

Very interesting infographic.

Engagement with policy makers is needed to support the angel investing class and to keep this money flowing into our economy and growing the disruptive technology of tomorrow.

Recommended Quick Read: Why developers should start choosing conscience over profit | VentureBeat

Thoughtful Venture Beat article exploring the difference between "takers" and "makers."

Certainly is an interesting argument that recent graduates and entrepreneurs should follow their instinct to see "jobs with social impact."  

Could be a path that leads to greater quality of life.  It is a choice that should be considered.

Could this line of thinking could also have a positive long-term impact on the economy as entrepreneurial focus shifts from "meteoric wealth creation" and "praying and looking for quick wins" to solutions that have "real-world impact...and fundamentally new technologies?"

Jeffrey Ruppert

Understanding Apple's Quandary: Clay Christenson and "The Innovator's Dilemma"

The recent gyrations in Apple's stock price -- particularly precipitous drops in the wake of favorable quarterly reports and an underlying low P/E valuation -- lead one to question the rationality of the market.  Undoubtedly the stock had a long run and was oversold as the stock de jeur for many investors hoping to ride the hype all the way to $1000+ per share and untold riches.

But are the recents drops to +/- $450 solely the result of "me too" poor press, bad mojo and timid, irrational consumer investors?

Maybe not.

Several articles about Clay Christenson and the principles detailed in The Innovator's Dilemma has provided much insight into the quandary facing Apple and what it must do to continue its run as the world's most innovative and valuable company.

Here is Christenson's summary of his theory of how even "[s]mart companies fail because they do everything right":

They cater to high-profit-margin customers and ignore the low end of the market, where disruptive innovations emerge from.

Christenson goes on to provide visualization by explaining how mini steel mills "killed off big steel companies":

They started by making rebar cheaper than the big mills did, and the big mills were happy to be rid of such a low-margin, low quality product.  The mini mills then slowly worked their way upward until there was nothing left to disrupt.

As noted by the March 2013 Harvard Business Review, The Big Disruption, the pace of  disruption is ever-increasing (similar to Moore's Law) as "technologies become cheaper to manufature and deploy, innovators can experiment with new applications at little risk to investors, abandoning prototypes that do not quickly prove popular."

Sound a little like Samsung's initial cheap smartphones coupled with open-sourced Android from Google?

So what is Apple to do to survive this "Big-Bang Disruption" in its most profitable segment - the iPhone?  

Christenson and the Harvard Business Review map out a path:

1. See It Coming. Recognize the warning signs -- usually the picking-off of low-end customers.
2. Slow the Disruptive Innovation Long Enough to Better It.  Lower prices, lock-in customers with long-term contracts and form strategic alliances to ensure that the disrupters can't make money from their inventions until you're ready to acquire them.
3. Get Closer to the Exits. Have leadership that is prepared and willing to evacuate current markets and sell-off once valuable practices and assets.
4. Try a New Kind of Diversification. Having a diverse set of businesses and income streams is vital.

Is Apple following this formula?

Apple has been buying up or partnering with other strong players in mobile (witness integration of Facebook and Twitter in iOS).  They have built up a cash reserve that ensures they can swallow competitors and/or buy needed technology and advances.  We hear talk of the "cheap iPhone" as a way to tap the lower-end and emerging smartphone market; if this doesn't work, older models of phone are continually re-introduced at lower prices.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Apple appears to be charging ahead with the development of new markets (iWatch or iTV), while slowly growing market share in existing profitable segments (still feature leading laptops and the expansion of the iPad line at lower prices).  

Finally, they continue to produce high-end to keep the brand visible.

Take-away?

No fears of Apple's death by sudden disruption at HMV.  HMV remains long Apple and will increase it's holdings at good valuations.

Jeffrey Ruppert

Recommended Reading: The Future by Al Gore

I just started to dive into Al Gore's new book, The Future.

I have a natural affinity for VP Gore as I used to work for his campaign.  But regardless of my personal regard for him, his book has reinforced many aspects of my my evolving views and ideas about what I call the "disruptive economy."  

Below is a brief excerpt that I believe encapsulates my views, and also summarizes why I have begun to blog and advocate about such issues here, as well as with LAUNCH^asp (http://launchasp.tumblr.com):

"[N]ational policies, regional strategies, and long accepted economic theories are now irrelevant to the new realities of our new hyper-connected, tightly integrated, highly interactive, and technologically revolutionized economy."

The need to think and act LONG is greater than ever before.  

If we don't, as noted by VP Gore, we will see "much greater inequalities of incomes and net worth...[t]hose who will lose their jobs have less income, while those who benefit from the increasing relative value of technological capital have increased income."

Thinking LONG is necessary - not just to experience the benefits of the disruptive economy, but also to preserve many of the treasured values of the American middle-class dream.

Jeffrey Ruppert

Recommended Reading: Could the ROBS Project be your startup’s funding solution? | VentureBeat

Interesting, if risky, way to finance a venture: http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/11/could-the-robs-project-be-your-startups-funding-solution/

However, it does represent a common sense, easily-implemented policy that is supportive of entrepreneurs and startups.

We need more of these...at the federal and state level.

Jeffrey Ruppert

Recommended Viewing: Moonshot Thinking

"Our ambitions are a glass ceiling to what we can accomplish..." 

Never underestimate the power of thinking (and acting) BIG.

It's the script to achieving true impact & disruption.

Jeffrey Ruppert

Weekend Read: Debunking the Myth of the Startup Hub - The Accelerators - WSJ

Report: 162 new startups in Columbus in 210.

The Scioto Valley is competing with that Silicone one.

More than ever, it is time to foster this growth and advocate for policies strengthening the startup culture and addressing the financial, social and familial stresses uniquely impacting entrepreneurs.

As noted in the article:

Differentiating potentially high-growth startups from other new businesses is important for public policy too. Ronnie Chatterji, a Duke University business school professor and former Obama White House adviser, points out that potentially high-growth firms like those in the high-tech sector command an entirely different set of policy priorities. According to Engine Advocacy, a non-profit that connects startups with policymakers, reform is required in areas like education, immigration, intellectual property, and financial regulation. State policymakers can create investment-friendly environments through tax incentives and regulatory reform.

Now is the time to take up these issues with the Ohio legislature and executive and advocate for progress and change.

We cannot let this momentum fade in Columbus (or beyond) and allow the creative energy in this community to be discouraged or exhausted.

J. Ruppert

LAUNCHING SOON: A New Project & Recommended Reading / Viewing | Techonomy: Why Robots Might Boost Industry While Killing Jobs

I founded High Mountain Ventures, LLC not only because I hope to encourage and profit from the recent explosion of new technology and innovative processes, but also because I am fascinated by the currents of disruption that flow through our economy and society from tech and entrepreneurial ventures.

But I remain a progressive at heart and recognize that what I call THE DISRUPTIVE ECONOMY will not bestow its benefits equally, and will challenge a government and social system that isn't equipped for this transformation in the way we work and live.

In the coming days, you will see linked to my various social sites many articles like this piece from TECHONOMY.com that highlight the challenge posed by our advancing technology against our aging social and economic system and infrastructure -- all tied to a project I am launching soon to advocate and strategize for policies that better harmonize the promise of THE DISRUPTIVE ECONOMY with our cherished values of the American middle class dream.

Jeffrey Ruppert

Inspiration for Life & Investments at HMV | Video: 3D-Printed "Magic Arms" - YouTube

Amazing video - both for its inspirational human story and for its insight into the promise of this technology and the re-birth of the American economy.

3-D printing will drive innovation and economic growth (as well as improvement to quality of life) for the next quarter century.  

Just one more reason that I am moving +High Mountain Ventures into long positions in this category (DDD, SSYS or PLRB) with the next favorable entry point. 

Jeffrey Ruppert

Sometimes it's not about the $$$ | Recommended Article: Meet the World’s Cheapest Venture Capitalist | Wired.com

The story here in the Wired Article linked below is not the mere $37 offered by the Co-Prosperity Cloud venture fund, but rather the fact that for most startups, the critical stepping stone to success is not outsider investment capital, but rather:

1. The ever-lowering costs of entry, software, technology and distribution;
2. The availability of mentoring and guidance - often from the larger startup community; and 
3. The power of the social network for exposure and validation.

It's a great time to be an entrepreneur, and this lower-cost reality is what guides the investment decisions and hands-on services provided to our partners by High Mountain Ventures, as well with our affiliated entity, The Ruppert Co., LLC.

J A Ruppert

LOYAL3 - buy what you know...buy what you own

I am very intrigued by the new investment model started by LOYAL3.  In sum, you can buy certain stocks - currently only Fifth&Pacific (FNT) - directly from the public company using a Customer Stock Ownership Plan.  

No minimum investments.  Full share purchases are not required.

No brokerage fees.  All fees are covered by the offering company.  

With their emphasis on featuring companies most people know ("buy what you know"), lowering the entry costs to investing and ease of user interface, it's an attractive model if other public companies sign up.

It will certainly be interesting to see if companies view this model as a way to further promote customer loyalty ("buy what you own").

I opened an account, linked a checking account and put in a small order for FNT (who doesn't  like Kate Spade's simple designs). The purchase is pending the bank linkage, so we will see how it goes.  So far it have been simple, easy and fun.

This isn't on pace to replace brokerage accounts anytime soon, but it is worth a look and a follow.

Jeffrey Ruppert

HMV and RCo's Little Helper - HelloSign

I may have missed the opportunity to add this to my list of things for which I am thankful at Thanksgiving, but it is never too late to praise those who make our lives a little simpler and easier...and HelloSign does that for me here at HMV and RCo.

It's just so damn easy. Upload your doc. Drag and drop where you want signatures, dates, etc... Send to your recipient's email address. The party(s) can sign by stored electronic signature, typing their name, drawing with their mouse (computer) or with their finger (tablet or phone). The doc comes back by email or delivery to a synced dropbox or gdrive account.

So nice. And as HelloSign says on the site..."It's Free. That's It."

One of those tools that EVERY small business should check out.

I wish HMV could have been on the ground floor of this one.

J A Ruppert