Azure had a real competitive advantage thanks to being the only hyperscaler able to offer OpenAI models, but this also hindered OpenAI, particularly once it became clear that many enterprises cared first and foremost about accessing models on their current cloud of choice; I've been noting for a while that this was a real competitive advantage for Anthropic.

Ben Thompson

@underscored

competitive-advantagestrategydistribution

I was just appalled at how absurd the entire ecosystem is. And not just the technology, which is a big part of it. There are also just terrible incentives that make every broker push plans that pay them more.

Alex Konrad

@underscored

investingincentivesfinancial-advice

Abrams believed draftees undermined discipline and unit cohesion, so he redesigned the Army around high-quality volunteers, proving the draft was neither necessary nor desirable long-term and establishing a model that the other services ultimately adopted.

Daniel Gauss

@underscored

leadershiporganizational-designincentives