The Social Analyst

Why Google Glass is the next frontier for developers

When Google co-founder Sergey Brin demoed Google Glass, the search giant's attempt to build a next-generation wearable computer, with skydivers live streaming their descent, it became very clear that Glass wasn't some side project -- it was Google's future.

Glass won't be available to consumers until 2014, but a select group of developers will have the chance to purchase the "Explorer" edition of Glass in early 2013.

Why is Google giving Glass to developers more than a year before its consumer debut? Simple: Google wants to turn Glass into the next major developer platform.… Read more

Entrepreneurs: Please do your homework on the competition

Choosing the right market opportunity will make or break a startup. Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs choose to tackle markets that are over-saturated, not realizing their mistake until it's too late.

I've listened to thousands of pitches from thousands of startup founders. Most of the time, these pitches don't stand up to my scrutiny for one reason or another. Some don't have differentiating features while others simply don't tackle big enough market opportunities.

One of the biggest stumbling blocks that trips up most entrepreneurs though is their lack of market and competitive research. They come up with … Read more

What Nintendo needs to do to make a comeback

Nintendo is one of the most iconic companies in gaming, but it faces the real possibility of oblivion if it doesn't find a way to turn its fortunes around.

In October 2007, less than a year after the release of its blockbuster Wii console, Nintendo was worth $78.50 per share. That equated to a market cap of $85 billion -- double the value of Sony at the time.

However, Nintendo's fortunes have only gone south since then. With Wii sales cooling and mobile apps the hot trend in gaming, Nintendo's stock collapsed this month to $14.… Read more

Facebook's stock is bouncing back -- for now

Don't look now, but Facebook shares have been on the rise for the last three trading days. Last Wednesday, the social network's stock stood at $27.24. It closed today at $31.41, a 15 percent rise in less than a week.

So far, Facebook has recovered more than $10 billion of the $35 billion in market capitalization it blew off following its disastrous IPO. Facebook's painful low of $25.52 -- just 12 days ago! -- is now starting to fade a bit.

There are many possible reasons for Facebook's recent rise. The company has … Read more

Dear Apple: Please spend your billions on radical battery tech

Dear Apple,

You have more than $100 billion sitting in your coffers. I know you're returning some of that money to shareholders, but you will still have tens of billions of dollars leftover for R&D.

I have a proposal for how you should spend some of that money: please invest it into new and radical battery technology. Let me explain why.

My friends and I decided to visit Disneyland, the happiest place on Earth, last Sunday. We fought Emperor Zerg and chilled with Mickey Mouse, all the while taking hundreds of photos and recording dozens of videos … Read more

Apple's plan to dominate all the screens in your home

Apple wants every screen in your home to be an Apple screen. The company will be taking a giant leap toward accomplishing its goal at this year's WWDC.

In just a decade, Apple has become a dominant force in computers, tablets, and mobile. It has yet to make major inroads into the biggest screen of them all: the television.

Sure, there's Apple TV, but it has been a "hobby" for the company. Last year, 2.8 million units of the device were sold, and 2.7 million units have been sold so far this year. Though … Read more

Dear startups: Don't treat money like toilet paper

Having lots of money isn't a reason to spend it, especially if you're a startup that has yet to prove itself as a viable, sustainable business.

There have been a lot of early-stage startups raising monster rounds in recent months. Ark ($4.2 million seed), Viddy ($30 million), and Gumroad ($7 million) are just a few prominent examples.

The funding party may be over though, at least according to Paul Graham, a prominent investor and founder of Y Combinator.

"Jessica and I had dinner recently with a prominent investor," Graham said in a letter to Y … Read more

How to cope with the emotional stress of a startup

Imagine experiencing the pain, sorrow, and misery of a breakup. Now imagine winning the lottery the next week. That's the kind of emotional roller coaster a new startup founder can expect.

"The emotional ups and downs were the biggest surprise for me," a founder of a Y Combinator-funded startup says in one of Paul Graham's essays. (Graham is a co-founder of Y Combinator.) "One day, we'd think of ourselves as the next Google and dream of buying islands; the next, we'd be pondering how to let our loved ones know of our utter … Read more

Facebook's aggressive approach to solving its mobile problem

Facebook knows mobile is its Achilles' heel, but I didn't expect the company to take such aggressive actions to solve its mobile problem.

The social network admitted to the weakness earlier this month when it amended its IPO filing. "If users increasingly access Facebook mobile products as a substitute for access through personal computers, and if we are unable to successfully implement monetization strategies for our mobile users, or if we incur excessive expenses in this effort, our financial performance and ability to grow revenue would be negatively affected," the company explained in its amended S1.

Facebook … Read more