Every business wants to be a platform, because that is where the big money is to be made. But what are platforms? The literature contains a confusing variety of examples. Search engines, social networks, online marketplaces, operating systems, browsers, the statistical package R, real estate brokers, shopping malls, nightclubs, color TV’s, auto body frames, credit […]
How Gitlab Messed up its Governance
On the 23rd of October, Gitlab users received a message explaining that the Terms of Service were updated so that the enterprise edition of Gitlab would contain telemetry. In plain English, this means that Gitlab Inc. would collect unspecified data from how companies use their enterprise edition of Gitlab and might send it to third […]
Ruled by Mathematics
Some technology gurus believe ecosystems can be ruled by mathematics. Ecosystem governance decisions can be translated into consensus rules that have been proven correct by mathematical game theory. There is no need to trust government, lawyers or other people, investor Ben Horowitz said in an interview. You can use a blockchain to manage assets and […]
Design thinking (3): Prototyping Busines...
In my previous blog, I explained how prototyping and process management are two ways to manage uncertainty in design. In this blog, I elaborate on levels of certainty in prototyping business ideas and integrate the different strands of my argument in one picture. The basic problem of design is that we want to know something […]
What is Design Thinking (2): Managing U...
In my previous blog , I explained that the logical core of design thinking is the design cycle: investigate the problem context, design possible solutions, validate them. In all stages of the design cycle, the designer faces uncertainty that must be managed. Investigate the problem context. There will never be total certainty about what is […]
What is Design Thinking (1): The Design...
Proponents of design thinking want us to believe that design is a playful process that involves yellow post-its with ideas written on them, and kindergarten tools to make prototypes. This is a gross simplification of design. The design process may be tedious, may involve wicked trade-offs, and may involve math and software simulations to validate […]
The Libra Ecosystem (5): Strategic moves
In part 1 and part 2 of this blog we saw that the members of the Libra Association all keep a copy of the database of Libra accounts and execute Libra transactions world-wide. The Association manages a Reserve of stable and liquid assets to support the value of the Libra. Part 3 explained the central […]
The Libra ecosystem (4): Business model
In the first three parts of this blog I discussed how the Libra appear to its users, how the Association governs the Libra, and what the role of Facebook and its subsidiary Calibra is. In this part I will present a business model for the Libra ecosystem, which summarizes what we know so far about […]
The Libra Ecosystem (3): Facebook and Ca...
In part 1 and part 2 of this blog we saw that the members of the Libra Association all keep a copy of the global database of Libra accounts and transactions and execute all Libra transactions on this database. They manage a Reserve of stable and liquid assets to support the value of a libra. […]
The Libra Ecosystem (2): The Libra Assoc...
In part 1 of this blog we saw that the Libra Association is a collection of organizations that all maintain a copy of the Libra database. This database contains the Libra accounts of all Libra users world-wide, and a trace of all Libra transactions. If a user sends libras to another user, all Association members […]