EIEIO...Eat the Rich
Inequality Reality, You Say You Want a Revolution, and the Luigi Effect...
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EIEIO…Fast Facts
Entrepreneurship: $700k - Figma’s revenue in 2017. The company did $749 million in 2024. (Fast Company)
Innovation: $30 billion – The amount Microsoft will spend on Capex this quarter. (Reuters)
Education: 100,000 – The number of participants across what is now the largest EdTech community in the world after the merger between the GSV Summit and Bett. (PR Newswire)
Impact: 25% – Of Americans who have placed a bet in the past 6 months, 1/4 of them say they have been unable to pay a bill because of gambling. (US News & World Report)
Opportunity: $124,353 – The salary required in April 2025 to have the same buying power as a $100,000 salary in January 2020. (Unusual Whales)
“Let them eat cake.” – Marie Antoinette
“When the people have nothing more to eat, they will eat the rich.” – Jean Jacques Rousseau
“If there is hope, it lies in the proles.” – George Orwell 1984
“The thing worst than rebellion is the thing that causes rebellion.” – Fredrick Douglas
“Every Industrial Revolution brings a learning revolution.” – Alexander De Croo
I’ve been in the halls of 345 Park many times.
It’s a prestigious building on arguably Manhattan’s most famous street. The tenants include two of the most powerful organizations in the world, Blackstone and the NFL.
Shane Tumura, the mentally ill murderer who drove across the country to get revenge against what he saw as the cause of his CTE brain injury—the symbol of football itself, the National Football League.
As horrific as this Midtown killing was, what turned my stomach was the sick online reaction to the murders. Specifically, some of the Reddit posts about executed Blackstone executive Wesley Lepatner included things like “no reason to mourn”, “Blackstone is responsible for income inequality and corrupt politics” and maybe the most classless, “rest in piss”.
As one detached commentator posted, she had been “Luigi’d.”
This, of course, is a reference to Luigi Mangione who (“allegedly”??) assonated United Health Care CEO Brian Thompson in front of the Hilton on 6th Avenue in December. Luigi had become a folk hero of sorts to this who viewed his crime as symbolic retribution against the evils of the health care system. His GoFundMe account had raised over $1 million for his defense. Also, incredibly, he asked his “fans” to please limit the letters and photos sent to him jail because he was overwhelmed.
Comparatively, the rise of socialist Zohran Mamdani as the leading Mayoral candidate for the “Capital of Capitalism” is dust on the windowsill. However, to understand an undercurrent that could trigger something far more disruptive, it needs to be melded in the mix for analysis.
Trust in traditional institutions is at all time low, and even lower among young people. Government, media, church and academic institutions have less credibility than the tooth fairy.
What is clear is that anti establishment energy is rising, with digital platforms amplifying extremes. Throughout history, discontent by the masses fueled by economic inequality has led to vulnerability by the ruling elite. It becomes a full blown revolution when the people who feel they aren’t being treated fairly are ignored, or worse with contempt, and their voices are being shut down.
This was true with the French Revolution and is eerily prophesied in George Orwell’s dystopian classic “1984”.
Fundamental #1, inequality is growing at an is at all time extreme-rate. The top 1% of American’s have 30% of the wealth. Moreover, outrageous displays of wealth such as Jeff Bezos recent $50 million wedding in Venice adds to resentment by everyday people who are struggling paycheck to paycheck. Thomas Piketty’s formula—that when R > G (the rate of return on assets exceeds the growth of GDP per capita), inequality increases—has become a reality.
Recognizing if you are a duck, every puddle looks like a party, an answer to many of the urgent issues facing society is a higher quality and more democratized education system. It’s the key ingredient that drives success for an individual, a company and for a country.
I don’t typically champion the United Nations but their Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for the future of civilization is an awesome framework. The SDGs—especially #4, which focuses on “inclusive and equitable quality education”—are central to building a fairer and more equitable society. Education is explicitly recognized by the UN as a key mechanism to break cycles of poverty, empower marginalized communities, foster gender equality, reduce inequalities, and create the foundations for sustainable, peaceful societies.
Here’s how the SDGs, through their focus on education, play a vital role in promoting fairness and equity:
• Breaking the Cycle of Poverty: Access to quality education equips individuals with the knowledge and skills needed to improve their economic prospects, which helps entire families and communities move out of poverty.
• Gender Equality: The SDGs call for eliminating gender disparities at all education levels, ensuring girls and women have equal access to educational opportunities, which is crucial for empowering women and advancing gender equity.
• Inclusivity for Vulnerable Groups: The UN agenda emphasizes education for traditionally marginalized populations—including persons with disabilities, indigenous people, and children in vulnerable situations—ensuring that “no one is left behind”.
• Promotion of Critical Social Skills: SDG 4 also calls for education that fosters a culture of peace, non-violence, appreciation of diversity, and global citizenship. This supports societal transformation towards shared understanding and cooperation.
• Building Pathways for Decent Work: Inclusive education, vocational training, and lifelong learning equip all people—especially youth and adults in underserved areas—with relevant skills for employment, which is crucial to reduce inequality.
• Tackling Discrimination and Social Inequality: By advocating for accessible, quality education for everyone, the SDGs directly fight systemic discrimination and give all individuals a fairer shot at succeeding in society.
• Advancing Social and Economic Mobility: The SDGs recognize that achieving progress in education spurs positive outcomes across all other goals, from poverty and health to climate action, as education empowers people to make informed decisions for themselves and their communities.
Accordingly, education is not just one goal among many for the UN—it is described as the “key” to achieving all other Sustainable Development Goals. By ensuring access to quality learning at all stages of life, the SDGs aim to deliver the tools needed for individuals and societies to create fairer, more just, and sustainable systems. In doing so, they address the root causes of inequality and foster collective action toward a more equitable future for everyone.
Problems create opportunities. Finding ways to help people learn faster, cheaper and better is at the core of a better world for all.
Calling all ed tech entrepreneurs!
Market Performance
Market Commentary
Stocks took a needed breather last week with the NASDAQ falling 2.2%, the S&P off by 2.4%, and the Dow dropping 2.9%. Even with the step backwards last week, NASDAQ has raced upwards over 35% since its April bottom.
Reasons for the pause included once again tariff threats and softer employment numbers than expected. While non-Farm payrolls increased just 78K, the real concern was a downward revision of 278K jobs in May in June.
Unemployment ticked up to 4.2% which didn’t include the Head of Bureau of Labor statistics who was fired by President Trump in conjunction with the report.
In an unusual break from unanimity, the Fed voted 9 to 2 last Wednesday to keep rates where they are for now. With Friday’s new information, the Futures Market now gives it a 81% probability rates will be lowered at the September 17th FOMC meeting.
The Big 5 tech companies had stellar 2nd Quarter performance with Amazon, Microsoft, META, Alphabet and Apple collectively beating EPS estimates by 14% and revenue estimates by 4%. META was the standout performer clocking 38% EPS growth and 22% revenue growth. Microsoft crushed estimates with its cloud business AZURE reporting nearly 40% growth. META shares were up 11% and Microsoft topped a $4 trillion market cap for the first time ever.
The big news was the IPO of Figma which did its public debut on Thursday rising 250% and reaching a Market Value of $70 billion. That represents over a 3X of what Adobe had tried to purchase Figma a few years earlier but was blocked for Anti-trust reasons.
As we’ve been forecasting, the IPO Market has reopened after being closed for three plus years with strong performance by Circle Internet, CoreWeave, Chime and AIRO to name a few. Despite August being where conventional wisdom says investors are on the beach, highly anticipated Firefly Aerospace is scheduled to go public this week and animal spirits are alive and well on Wall Street.
Additionally, mergers and acquisitions are expected to pick up with companies like Lyft, C3.ai, Zoom Communications, Docusign, Ring Central and Dropbox all named as potential targets.
I continue to be very optimistic for equities and especially growth stocks. A broadening of participation in the upward momentum for the market complimented by fresh oxygen provided by IPO’s are core to our view. Accordingly, we remain BULLISH. 🐂
Need to Know
READ: Clouded Judgement 8.1.25 - The AI Operating Model | Clouded Judgement
WATCH: Introducing ChatGPT Study Mode | OpenAI
LISTEN: Balaji on How Tech Truly Wins Media | a16z Podcast
GSV’s Four I’s of Investor Sentiment
GSV tracks four primary indicators of investor sentiment: inflows and outflows of mutual funds and ETFs, IPO activity, interest rates, and inflation.
#1: Inflows and Outflows for Mutual Funds & ETFs
#2: IPO Market
#3: Interest Rates
#4: Inflation
Charts of the Week
Maggie Moe’s GSV Weekly Rap
Chuckles of the Week
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Connecting the Dots & EIEIO…
Old MacDonald had a farm, EIEIO. New MacDonald has a Startup…EIEIO: Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Education, Impact and Opportunity. Accordingly, we focus on these key areas of the future.
One of the core goals of GSV is to connect the dots around EIEIO and provide perspective on where things are going and why. If you like this, please forward to your friends. Onward!
Make Your Dash Count!
-MM