>> FROM THE HEART OF WHERE INNOVATION, MONEY, AND POWER COLLIDE, IN SILICON VALLEY AND BEYOND, THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY," WITH CAROLINE HIDE AND ED LUDLOW. -- HYDE AND ED LUDLOW. ED: THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY."
CAROLINE: FULL EARNINGS COVERAGE AHEAD. AND WE’RE GOING TO BE KICKING OFF THE SHOW WITH THE REDDIT C.E.O. STEVE HUFFMAN. ED: AND WE’LL TURN TO RIDESHARING AND SIT DOWN WITH THE C.E.O. OF LYFT. CAROLINE: AND WE’LL HEAR FROM ALPHABET C.E.O. WE’LL BREAK THAT DOWN AND
DISCUSS SO MUCH MORE THROUGHOUT THIS HOUR. BUT FIRST, WE TURN OUR ATTENTION TO WHAT IS HAPPENING MORE BROADLY ON THE MARKETS. MAYBE WE LOOK AT THIS. BITCOIN ON THE DOWNSIDE VERSUS THE U.S. DOLLAR. A STRONGER DOLLAR AND WE’VE SEEN KIND OF LACKLUSTER MOVES ON THE BENCHMARK MORE BROADLY. A LOOK AT THE NASDAQ TRADING FLAT. YIELDS, AS WE’VE BEEN SEEING ON THE 10 YEAR, UP ABOUT TWO, THREE BASIS POINTS. A BIG FLOOD OF MONEY ON THE
10-YEAR DEBT. HOW WILL THAT BE TAKEN DOWN? APPLY GOES UP. MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF A SELL-OFF.
HUAWEI MADE IN THE UNITED STATES BY INTEL, QUALCOMM AND WE’RE GOING TO DIG INTO THAT STORY LATER. BUT I WANT TO SHOW THAT WE’RE BOUNCING OFF OUR LOWS. WHAT HAVE YOU GOT IN THE MICROPERSPECTIVE? ED: EARNINGS. OUTSIDE OF EARNINGS BUT LET’S START THERE WITH THE TALE OF TWO RIDESHARING APPS, UBER AND LYFT. UBER HAS A LOT MORE TO IT.
IN ITS QUARTER, THERE WAS ISSUES OF SEASONALITY, REGIONALLY, IT WAS A BIT WEAKER AND THE STOCK WAS DOWN PRETTY SIGNIFICANTLY. AND THE LITTLE BROTHER OF RIDESHARE, LYFT. THEY WERE STRONG. IT WAS STRONGER THAN EXPECTED AND THEY’RE SEEING SOME BUMPING ACTIVITY FOR THE RIDERS THEMSELVES, NOT JUST RIDER GROWTH BUT STICKINESS, THE AMOUNT THEY’RE USING IT. AND RIFTON. IT’S A DIFFICULT ONE. IT’S ABOUT THE FUTURE LATER IN THE HOUR.
IS THIS REALLY GOING TO PLAN AND THEN THERE’S REDDIT. THE DEBUT EARNINGS. SHARES HIGHER FOR REDDIT. LET’S BRING IN PRESCOTT SCENARIO, STEVE HUFFMAN.
TYOU’RE DOING WELL. THE AD ENVIRONMENT SEEMS GOOD. BUT I WANT TO START WITH THE NEXT BIG THING AND THAT SEEMS TO BE IN THE USER ECONOMY. THAT SEEMS TO BE YOUR FOCUS. TELL ME ABOUT THE USER STRATEGY. STEVE: THE USER ECONOMY IS THE FAMILY OF PRODUCTS AND FUTURES THAT WE’RE BUILDING TO FACILITATE TRANSACTIONS BETWEEN USERS ON THE PLATFORM. SO, USER TO USER GIFTING, USER
TO USER SUBSCRIPTION, THINGS LIKE THAT. WE THINK THERE’S A TON OF POTENTIAL HERE. ONE OF OUR ACCUSATION AT REDDIT IS THE ONLY -- SAYING IS THE ONLY THING THAT SCALES WITH USERS IS USERS. THE AD BUSINESS IS GREAT BUT WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE ANOTHER BUSINESS MODEL TO SIT ALONGSIDE IT AND THAT’S WHAT THE USER ECONOMY IS. CAROLINE: THE SELLING OF DATA AND
LICENSING TO SOME OF THOSE BIG BUSINESSES THAT ARE CREATING LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS BASING ON THE DATA. HOW INFINITE IS THAT REVENUE STREAM? BECAUSE ONCE THE MODELS ARE TRAINED, HOW NECESSARY IS IT TO KEEP ON LICENSING? STEVE: SO THERE’S A COUPLE OF WAYS TO LOOK AT THIS. FIRST, THE POTENTIAL VALUE HERE IS I THINK QUITE LARGE. AND BETWEEN US AND OTHER FOLKS IN THE MARKET, WE’RE ACTUALLY STILL DEVELOPING THAT.
WE’RE FINDING INCREASINGLY FOLKS COMING TO REDDIT AND WHO WHAT WE’RE SEEING, BIG PICTURE IS IN THE A.I. ERA WHERE INCREASINGLY CONTENT ONLINE IS WRITTEN BY MACHINES, THERE’S THIS INCREASING PREMIUM ON CONTENT PERSPECTIVES, CONVERSATION THAT COMES FROM REAL HUMANS. AND THAT’S WHAT REDDIT PROVIDES. SO SO FAR, WE’VE DONE ONE MAJOR CONTENT LICENSING DEAL WITH GOOGLE. BUT WE’RE TALKING TO OTHERS AS WELL. BUT YOUR QUESTION IS IS IT A ONE-TIME THING OR ONGOING? I THINK WHAT’S REALLY IMPORTANT HERE IS FOLKS WANT REAL-TIME ACCESS TO UP TO DATE INFORMATION, CONVERSATION PERSPECTIVES. IMAGINE A SEARCH ENGINE THAT
STOPPED INDEXING IN 2021. IT WOULDN’T BE VERY HELPFUL. SO I THINK THAT REAL TIME FEED IS REALLY IMPORTANT. ED: STEVE, YOU TOOK THE INTERESTING STEP TO ASK REDDITTERS TO SUBMIT QUESTIONS. AND SOME OF WHICH YOU ANSWERED ON THE CALL. WHAT IS TELL JUSTIFICATION IN WORKING CAPITAL? I WANT TO TAKE THAT QUESTION AND APPLY IT TO A.I. BUT ALSO, IT HELPS US MORE ABOUT MA WHAT ARE YOU GUYS GOING TO DO TO INCREASE THE TECHNOLOGY OFFERING ON A.I.
STEVE: OUR FIRST PRIOR IS TO INVEST THE BUSINESS. SO THEY CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THE CORE REDDIT PRODUCT, THE USER ECONOMY WHICH WE DISCUSSED THE COPTER PLATFORM, A.I. EFFORTS, ALL OF THOSE THINGS. OUR SECOND PRIORITY WOULD BE M&A. IT’S GOING TO HELP ADVANCE OUR INITIATIVES. AND POTENTIALLY, TO EXPAND IT AS WELL. CAROLINE: LET’S TALK ABOUT EXPANSION. IN PARTICULARLY
INTERNATIONALLY, STEVE. BECAUSE THERE’S MUCH TALK ABOUT HOW YOU’RE BASICALLY TRANSLATING, ABLE TO BRING WHAT IS ALL THE REVIEWS, THE CONTENT, THE DISCUSSION GROUPS, NOT JUST TO THOSE THAT ARE WRITING AND SPEAKING IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE BUT IN FRENCH, IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES. HOW IS THIS LIKELY TO BE ENABLED BY A.I. BUT ADD TO THE SCALE OF INTERNATIONAL GROWTH? STEVE: WELL THIS IS REALLY EXCITING. NOT THAT LONG AGO, WE DIDN’T
HAVE THE CAPABILITY OF TRANSLATING OUR CONTENT AT HUMAN QUALITY. BUT WITH TODAY’S LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS, WE CAN DO THAT. SO WE CAN TRANSLATE WHAT IS TODAY OUR MOSTLY ENGLISH CORPUS INTO JUST ABOUT ANY LANGUAGE.
SO WE’RE DOING THAT IN FRENCH RIGHT NOW AND TESTING THAT IN FRANCE AND IT’S GOING VERY WELL. AND SO, ALMOST IMMEDIATELY, FRENCH SPEAKERS CAN SEE THE ENTIRE REDDIT CORPUS OR CONSUME THE ENTIRE REDDIT CORPUS IN ENGLISH. AND A LOT OF REDDIT’S CONTENT IS UNIVERSAL. IT’S JUST PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT LIFE. BUT EVEN THE CONTENT THAT IS MAYBE REILLY SPECIFIC TO -- REGIONALLY SPECIFIC TO AMERICA, IT’S STILL VERY INTERESTING TO READ AND VICE VERSA. A LOT OF PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, IN DIFFERENT CULTURES TO COMMUNICATE IN THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE. ED:
ROB BLOOMBERG WAS SPEAKING TO THE REDDIT C.E.O. STEVE HUFFMAN. THINGS ARE GOING WELL RIGHT NOW, IT SEEMS. ONE OF THE TECHNOLOGY CHANGES AT THE START OF THIS YEAR AND EVEN BEFORE THAT WAS THAT GOOGLE STARTED APPLYING ITS WORK IN LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS IN A.I. TO ITS SEARCH ENGINE AND THERE
IS A SCHOOL OF THOUGHT THAT REDDIT WAS A BENEFICIARY OF THAT, THAT JUST WITHIN SEARCH, REDDIT BECOMES MORE COMMONPLACE, HIGHER UP, THE RESULTS THAT HAD GIVEN. CAN YOU GIVE US ANY SORT OF GRANULARITY ON HOW THAT’S HELPING YOU IN KEEPING THE REDDITER BASE? STEVE: THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT REDDIT PROVIDES. AND SEARCH ENGINES LIKE GOOGLE 10 YEARS AGO, LAST YEAR OR TODAY, TOMORROW, HELP PEOPLE FIND THAT CONTENT ON REDDIT THAT THEY’RE LOOKING FOR. THOSE ANSWERS THEY’RE LOOKING FOR. THOSE COMMUNITIES THEY’RE LOOKING FOR.
I LOOK AT THIS AS NATURAL EVOLUTION. SEARCH ENGINES ARE GETTING SMARTER, THEY’RE GETTING BETTER, THEY’RE GETTING MORE EFFECTIVE, WHICH MEANS THEY’RE GETTING MORE EFFECTIVE AT HELPING USERS FIND WHAT THEY’RE LOOKING FOR ON REDDIT, WHICH OF COURSE, BENEFITS OUR PLATFORM AND OUR BUSINESS. AND SO, I THINK THESE ARE ALL I THINK WELCOMED EVOLUTIONINGS BUT REDDIT’S BEEN A NET BENEFICIARY OF SEARCH FOR A LONG TIME. AND I EXPECT THAT TO CONTINUE. CAROLINE: HOW MUCH DID THE I.P.O. HELP DRAW PEOPLE TO THE
PLATFORM? HOW MUCH WAS IT THE P.R. EVENT AND BOOSTED SOME OF THE COMMUNITY THERE? STEVE: I’M SURE THAT’S AN ASPECT TO IT IT’S HARD TO SAY. REDDIT PRIMARILY GROWS THROUGH A WORD OF MOUTH ANYWAY.
WE DON’T REALLY DO CONSUMER MARKETING. AND SO I THINK ANY TIME WE’RE IN THE NEWS, THAT HELPS AND THE I.P.O. IS A LOT OF NEWS. BUT LOOK, THE REASON I WAS MOST EXCITED ABOUT THE I.P.O. IS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO INCLUDE OUR USERS AS INVESTORS. OUR USERS HAVE THIS DEEP -- THEY CREATE THE COMMUNITY, THE CULTURE, ALL OF THE CONTENT.
AND FOR THEM TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE ACTUAL OWNERS, THAT WAS OUR DREAM. AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS WE WENT PUBLIC IN THE FIRST PLACE. ED: STEVE, AS RETURNING FOUNDER C.E.O. OF REDDIT, WHAT’S YOUR ONE PERSONAL GOAL FOR THIS YEAR? SOMETHING YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE? STEVE: WELL, WE MAXED OUT TWO OF THEM. WE GOT THE COMMUNITY PUBLIC AND
I HAD MY SECOND KID. SO FOR THE REST OF THIS YEAR, I WANT TO DELIVER ON SOME OF THE PRODUCT INITIATIVES THAT I’VE BEEN VERY EXCITED ABOUT. SO, DEVELOPER PLATFORM THEN USER ECONOMY, THE MACHINE TRANSLATION IT IS A WE DISCUSSED. THESE ARE ALL THINGS IN THE DAY-TO-DAY BUILDING OF REDDIT THAT I’M VERY EXCITED ABOUT. CAROLINE: STEVE, CONGRATS ON THE SECOND KID. STEVE HUFFMAN FROM REDDIT
JOINING US. NEXT, WE WILL HEAR FROM THE ALPHABET C.E.O. ED: WE TAKE A LOOK AT SHARES OF THE FIRM. LOWER AGAIN FROM AFFIRM IT’S BEEN A SEASON OF IF YOU DON’T BEAT EXPECTATIONS OR YOUR PRIOR GUIDANCE YOU GO DOWN LOWER. CONTINUED ABOUT PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION WITH THE FIRM AS WELL. WE’LL CONTINUE THE EARNINGS COVERAGE MUCH MORE AHEAD. THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY."
CAROLINE: LET’S TALK OPENING A.I. IT IS OPENING A FUTURE THAT CAN SEARCH THE WEB AND SLIGHT SOURCES ACCORDING TO A SOURCE. IT WOULD ASK CHAT GPT A QUESTION AND USES DETAILS FROM THE WEB WITH CITATIONS. THIS COULD BE COMPETING HEAD ON WITH A.I.
AND OF COURSE, GOOGLE SEARCH. AND SPEAKING OF WHICH, GOOGLE AND ALPHABET C.E.O. SUNDAR PICHAI SAT DOWN WITH EMILY CHANG TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE GROWING PAINS OF GOOGLE SEARCHES ADAPTATION TO THE A.I.
REVOLUTION. SUNDAR: A.I.’S GOING TO DO THAT. SO, WE VIEW THIS AS CHALLENGE AND I ACTUALLY THINK THE PEOPLE WHO STRUGGLE TO DO THAT.
SO DOING THAT WELL IS WHAT WILL DEFINE A HIGH QUALITY PRODUCT AND THAT IS WHAT MAKES A SEARCH SUCCESSFUL. >> YOU MAKE A TON OF MONEY ON ADS GENERATED BY SEARCHES. IF A CHATBOT IS GIVING YOU CHANCES AND MORE LINKS. ARE WE IN THE MIDST ON ASSAULT ON GOOGLE’S MODELS? SUNDAR: WE ALWAYS WANT CHOICES. AND THAT’S A FUNDAMENTAL NEED. AND I THINK WE’VE ALWAYS BEEN ABLE TO BALANCE IT.
AS WE ARE ROLLING OUT A.I., WE’VE BEEN EXPERIMENTING WITH THE ADS AND THE DATA RECEIVED SHOWS THOSE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES WILL HOLD TRUE DURING THIS PHASE AS WELL. >> THE IMAGES THAT GEMINI GENERATED OF ASIAN NAZIS AND BLACK FOUNDING FATHERS, YOU SAID THAT WAS UNACCEPTABLE. IF YOU LOOK AT ANY PICTURES OF THE FOUNDING FATHERS, YOU’RE SEEING OLD WHITE MEN. PEOPLE ARE CALLING THIS WOKE A.I. IT’S HAPPENING ACROSS THE INDUSTRY.
HOW DID THE MODEL GENERATE SOMETHING THAT IT NEVER SAW? SUNDAR: WE ARE COMPANIES THAT -- AND THERE ARE QUESTIONS THAT PEOPLE COME AND SAY SHOW ME MAJORS OF SCHOOL TEACHER OR DOCTORS OR NURSES. WE HAVE PEOPLE ASKING THIS QUESTION IN INDONESIA OR THE U.S. LIKE HOW DO YOU GET IT RIGHT FOR OUR GLOBAL USER BASE? OBVIOUSLY THE MISTAKE WAS THAT WE ALL APPLIED, INCLUDING CASE WHERE IS IT SHOULD HAVE NEVER APPLIED. SO THAT WAS THE -- SOMEBODY GOT IT WRONG. ED: THAT WAS ALPHABET C.E.O. SUNDAR PICHAI AND EMILY CHANG. YOU CAN CATCH THE FULL
INTERVIEW TONIGHT AT 6:00 P.M. EASTERN ON BLOOMBERG TELEVISION. COMING UP, WE CONTINUE EARNINGS COVERAGE AND SPEAK WITH SPOTIFY PRESIDENT AS THE COMPANY REPORTED A NET LOSS AT THE SHARES ARE GETTING ABSOLUTELY HAMMERED, CAROLINE. CAROLINE: LET’S LOOK AT SOME OTHERS THAT ARE UNDER PRESSURE.
QUALCOMM STILL DOWN .4. INTEL SUFFERING HARDER. DOWN BY ALMOST 3%. THE BREAKING NEWS THAT WE HAD YESTERDAY THAT THE U.S. IS CURTAILING CHIP SALES FOR THE PHONES, THE LAPTOPS OF HUAWEI. AND THIS IS GOING TO MEAN THAT INTEL’S GUIDANCE IS GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT BELOW THE MIDPOINT. SO, THE GLOBAL CONVERSATION CONTINUES LATER. THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY."
CAROLINE: LET’S JUST CHECK IN ON THE SHARES OF SHOPIFY. BECAUSE THEY’RE DOWN THE MOST ON RECORD AFTER THE COMPANY FORECAST LOWER PROFIT MARGINS. THE COMPANY REPORTED A NET LOSS IN THE FIRST QUARTER AFTER THE SELL OF ITS LOGISTICS BUSINESS LAST YEAR. JOINING US NOW TO BREAK DOWN
THE RESULTS, HARLEY FINKELSTEIN, SHOPIFY PRESIDENT. AND HARLEY, I REMEMBER SPEAKING WITH TOBY AND HE SAID ANY TIME ANYONE TALKS ABOUT THE SHARE PRICE IN THE OFFICE, WELL, EVERYONE HAS TO BE BOUGHT DOUGHNUTS. HARLEY: TIDBITS TO BE SPECIFIC. CAROLINE: YEAH, HARLEY, I MEAN, WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE WHEN YOU SEE THE SHARES DOWN THAT HARD? HARLEY: OH, I MEAN, WE’VE ALWAYS MANAGED THE BUSINESS IN A LONG-TERM WAY.
WHAT WE ACTUALLY IS I CAME ON THE SHOW AND I SPOKE WITH ED ABOUT. THIS NEW SHAPE IS UNLOCKING OUR POTENTIAL. WE’RE HELPING ALL DIFFERENT TYPES OF MERCHANTS TAKE MORE AND MORE OF OUR PRODUCTS. WE GENERATE ALMOST $2 BILLION OF REVENUE THAT WAS UP 23% YEAR-TO-YEAR. AND VERY IMPORTANT, THIS MACRO ENVIRONMENT, WE HAVE A FREE CASH FLOW FOR THE QUARTER.
IT DOUBLED FROM Q-1 OF LAST YEAR. SO YOU’RE SEEING ONE OF THE BEST VERSIONS OF SHOPIFY WITH A TON OF OPPORTUNITIES WHETHER IT’S ENTERPRISE, PHYSICAL RETAIL, INTERNATIONAL. WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT WE DID IN Q1 AND THE FUTURE OF THIS COMPANY. ED: HARLEY, THE ANXIETY FROM INVESTORS ABOUT FITTING MARGINS. WE ALL SET THAT AS THE BASELINE. ONE THING YOU’VE BEEN FOCUSED ON IS MARKETING. WITH ACCOUNTS FOR THAT IN PART.
GIVE ME SOME SPECIFICS. WHAT KIND OF MARKETING ARE YOU DOING? AND YOU’VE ALSO SAID IT’S GOING TO PAY OFF IN ABOUT 18 MONTH’S TIME. HOW DO YOU KNOW THE MARKETING SPEND WILL PAY OFF? HARLEY: FIRST OF ALL, WHEN WE THINK OF MARKETING THE SAME WAY WE THINK ABOUT BUILDING PRODUCTS. BUILD THE BEST INTERNAL TOOLS TO DRIVE IT THROUGH DATA AND THE RESULTS ARE EVIDENT. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE REALLY BELIEVE IS THAT SHOPIFY NEEDS TO BE AGILE ON A TIMES COUNTERCYCLICAL. WHEN WE SEE OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO TAKE ADVANTAGE AND GAIN MORE MARKET SHARE ACROSS ANY OF OUR CORE PRODUCTS, WE’RE GOING TO DO THAT. AND I THINK WHAT DIFFERENTIATES
SHOPIFY FROM A GROWTH PERSPECTIVE IS THAT THE WAY WE INTERPRET DATA, THE WAY WE EXPERIMENT ACTUALLY HELPS US TO WIN. AND WE HAVE MULTIPLE DRIVERS OF THIS GROWTH. BUT THE BEST IS WE DROVE A NEARLY 130% INCREASE WITHIN ONE OF OUR MARKETING CHANNELS FROM Q4 TO Q1. WE’RE GOING TO TAKE THOSE AND BACK TO THE QUESTION THAT CAROLINE OPENED WITH. THAT’S THE REASON WE DON’T REALLY CARE ABOUT THE DAY-TO-DAY REFLECTIONS.
AND SHOPIFY IS BECOMING THE GLOBAL RETAIL COMPANY. ED: NEXT MONTH, YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE A BIG EVENT AND I’M RIGHT IN SAYING IT’S THE FIRST IN-PERSON EVENT AT LEAST SINCE BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, 2018. THAT IS A MARKETING EXPENSE BUT THERE MUST BE A REASON FOR DOING IT. HARLEY: CERTAINLY. I MEAN, WE ARE THRIVING IN THIS REMOTE FIRST ENVIRONMENT AND WE SEE IMMENSE VALUE IN GETTING PEOPLE TOGETHER AS WELL. SO, SUMMIT BRINGS TOGETHER OUR TEAM, OUR PARTNERS, OUR TOP 1,000 DEVELOPERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. AND, YOU KNOW WE THINK THAT THIS REMOTE-FIRST PHILOSOPHY AND WORKING MODEL ALLOWS US TO RECRUIT THE BEST AND THE BRIGHT PROTEST ALL OVER THE WORLD BUT A KEY COMPONENT IS ALSO SUPPLEMENTING IT WITH A FEW REAL LIFE EVENTS AND WE HAVE NOT BROUGHT THE ENTIRE COMPANY TOGETHER IN PERSON SINCE LIKE 2018. WE THINK IT’S IMPORTANT TO DO
SO, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE WE CAN ALSO GET OUR DEVELOPMENTERS IN THE ROOM, EXPLAIN TO THEM ALL THE OPPORTUNITIES. AND THEN THEY GO BACK HOME AND THEY CONTINUE THEIR BUSINESSES AS WELL. CAROLINE: ARE LAYOFFS DONE NOW? HARLEY: WE HAVE NO PLANS TO TWO ADDITIONAL LAYOFFS. WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GROW TOP LINE. WE’VE BEEN ABLE TO GROW BOTTOM LINE. AND WE’RE DOING SO WITH A RELATIVELY FLAT HESS COUNT. -- FLATHEAD COUNT. CAROLINE:
AND YOU’RE BEING COUNTERCYCLICAL RIGHT NOW. TELL US HOW MANY HEADWINDS ARE YOU EXPERIENCING IN THE WORLD OF THE CONSUMER RIGHT NOW? HOW RETICENT ARE THEY TO SHOP? HARLEY: IT’S REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE STATE OF THE CONSUMERS IS SOMETHING THAT’S EVERYONE’S THINKING ABOUT. WE SEE THE CONSUMER REMAINING QUITE RESILIENT. WHAT WE DO SEE IS THESE CONSUMERS ARE BUYING FROM BRANDS THEY LOVE AND FEELING AFFINITY TO. ALL THOSE BRANDS ARE ALL ON SHOPIFY. BUT A NEW AREA OF BUSINESS ARE
THOSE LESS DISCRETIONARY BRANDS LIKE NECESSARILY OR -- NESTLE OR BARK BOX BOX AND WHEN YOU COMBINE OUR ENTERPRISE OFFERING, SHOPIFY POINT OF SELL WHICH IS THE PHYSICAL RETAIL PRODUCT WE HAVE AND B TO B AND ALL THESE NEW MERCHANT SOLUTIONS YOU’RE BEGINNING TO SEE THEY’RE GOING TO LEAD TO SERIOUS GROWTH. AND THAT’S WHY WE’RE OPTIMISTIC. ED: SHOPIFY PRESIDENT HARLEY FINKELSTEIN. THANK YOU. WE’RE GOING TO HEAR FROM THE
RIVIAN FOLLOWING THE COMPANIES EARNINGS REPORT. CAROLINE? CAROLINE: LET’S TALK E.V.’S ELSEWHERE. THERE WAS NUANCE TO THE TESLA NEWS. U.S. PROSECUTORS EXAMINING WHETHER ED: WELCOME BACK TO "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY." ED LUDLOW IN SAN FRANCISCO. CAROLINE: CAROLINE HYDE RIGHT HERE IN NEW YORK.
THEY WERE FLAT, NASDAQ 100 ON THE DAY A LITTLE BIT OF A CAUTIOUS TONE. WE’VE HAD FOUR STRAIGHT DAYS OF GAIN BUT WE’RE ALSO TRYING TO DIGEST A PICTURE THAT IS NOT GIVING US MUCH. MORE SOME OF THE MICRO HEADWINDS WHEN YOU THINK OF WHAT CHIPMAKERS ARE TRYING TO SELL IN CHINA ON THE DAY WHEN IT COMES TO TECH STOCKS. 10-YEAR YIELD. THIS IS ONE OF SALES. -THE-AN AUCTION OF 10 YEAR DEBT OFF BY ABOUT TWO BASIS POINTS.
BITCOIN DOWN THERE. MAYBE THAT’S ALSO TO DO WITH A STRONG U.S. DOLLAR BUT ALSO WHETHER THOSE ETF FLOWS COOLING DOWN. TESLA OFF. WE KNOW THAT U.S. PROSECUTORS HAVE BEEN LOOKING IN THE WAY IN WHICH TESLA AND ELON MUSK MISLED DRIVERS. ARM HOLDINGS, UP. THIS IS A COMPANY THAT ITS
CURRENT VALUATION IS 90 TIMES FUTURE EARNINGS OF AT THE MOMENT. MANY WONDERING HOW THEY LIVE UP TO THIS VALUATION ON THE MARKET, HOW WE BAKED IN TOO MUCH EUPHORIA AROUND A.I. FOR THIS CHIP DESIGNER. SO TOO IS AIRBNB. EXPLOSION BOOKINGS GROWTH THAT WAS SEEN IN 2020. ED: LET’S HEAD OUT TO D.C. AND TALK ABOUT TIKTOK AFTER CHINA MADE IT CLEAR IT WON’T COMPLY WITH THE NEW U.S. LAW REQUIRING IT TO SELL THE
VIDEO SHARING APP SAYING FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, CONGRESS HAS ENACTED A LAW THAT SUBJECTS A SINGLE NAMED SPEECH PLATFORM TO A PERMANENT NATIONWIDE BAN AND BARS EVERY AMERICAN PARTICIPATING IN A UNIQUE ONLINE COMMUNITY WITH MORE THAN ONE BILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE. IT IS NOT A SURPRISE, RIGHT, CHRIS, THE LEGAL CHALLENGE, BUT THE QUESTION TO BE CONSIDERED BY THE COURTS IS WHETHER OR NOT THIS IS AN OUTRIGHT BAN AND I THINK THE ACADEMIC CONSENSUS IS THAT THAT WILL BE SOMETHING THAT THE COURT LOOKS THAT CLOSELY. >> THAT’S RIGHT. TIKTOK IS MAKING A FEW DIFFERENT ARGUMENTS HERE SAYING THAT THE LAW THAT WAS SIGNED INFRINGES ON THE FIRST AMENDMENT. IT REPRESENTS AN ILLEGAL TAKING, AND, YOU KNOW, TIKTOK IS SAYING THAT IT’S NOT FEASIBLE FOR THEM TO SEPARATE TIKTOK U.S. FROM THE REST OF THE TIKTOK, YOU KNOW, GLOBAL COMMUNITY. AND SO, REALLY WHAT TIKTOK HAS
DONE HERE IS THEY’VE JUST BOUGHT A LOT OF TIME. BY FILING THIS LAWSUIT BECAUSE THERE’S NO WAY THIS IS GOING TO BE RESOLVED BY NEXT JANUARY. THERE’S GOING TO A LONG COURT BATTLE. REGARDLESS WHAT HAPPENS, IT’S
GOING TO BE AN APPEAL AND GO TO THE SUPREME COURT. CAROLINE: OK. ON THIS SORT OF TIME FRAME, MANY FEELING THAT AN EXPEDITED WILL NOT COME UNTIL THE FOURTH. -- FOURTH QUARTER. IT FEELS THE SENTIMENT IS THIS ISN’T GOING TO BE A SALES PROCESS. CHRIS: RIGHT. THEY HAVE NO -- OF DIVESTING TIKTOK.
THEY’RE DIGGING IN FOR A PROL PROLONGED LEGAL BATTLE AND WITH THE HOPE OF A TRUMP ADMINISTRATION THAT MIGHT BE MORE FRIENDLY TO THEM. SO THE LAW SAYS THAT THEY NEED TO DIVEST BY NEXT JANUARY OR THERE’S GOING TO BE A BAN IN THE UNITED STATES. THE LEGAL PROCESS WON’T BE RESOLVED BY THEN. IF THEY GET UP TO THE POINT WHERE THE BAN IS SUPPOSED TO GO INTO EFFECT, THEY’LL SEEK AN EMERGENCY INJUNCTION TO PREVENT THAT BAN FROM GOING TO EFFECT. AND IT WILL MOST LIKE I WILL BE GRANTED.
AND SO WE’RE A LONG WAYS FROM THIS BEING RESOLVED. ED: CHRIS, WHAT ARE THE PLAYERS HERE? YOU JUST OUTLINED THE SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM PROCESS. BUT IF THEY HAVE FILED A LEGAL CHALLENGE, WHO ARE THEY CHALLENGE SOMETHING WHO’S ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TABLE? CHRIS: IT’S INTERESTING BECAUSE THEY FILED THEIR LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, MA MERIT GARLAND. D.O.J.
IS CHARGED WITH ENFORCING THE LAW. AND SO, YOU KNOW, IN ORDER TO BRING ILLEGAL LAWSUIT, THEY NEEDED TO FIND A DEFENDANT THAT THEY WERE GOING TO SUE, SO THEY CHOSE MERRITT GARLAND. BUT THEY’RE CHALLENGING THE LAW THAT CONGRESS PASSED THAT BIDEN SIGNED. CAROLINE: THIS IS JUST MORE BROADLY SHOULD BE REGULATED IN THE U.S. RATHER THAN BANNED. BUT CHRIS, I’M INTERESTED FROM A LEGAL PERSPECTIVE.
CAN WE READ ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED TO MONTANA? CAN WE SEE THAT SENTIMENT WILL BE ON THE SIDE OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT PERSPECTIVE EVEN THOUGH WE’RE HEARING FROM TIKTOK THAT THEY COULDN’T SEPARATE THE BUSINESSES ANYHOW? CHRIS: THERE’S GOING TO A LOT OF SUPPORT FOR TIKTOK. IT’S ALREADY COMING. AND IT’S GOING TO SPAN THE POLITICAL SPECTRUM, THE ECONOMIC SPECTRUM. YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WHO ADVOCATE FOR FREE SPEECH SAYING THAT TIKTOK SHOULDN’T BE BANNED. YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE SAYING THAT THE GOVERNMENT HASN’T MADE, YOU KNOW, A LEGITIMATE NATIONAL SECURITY ARGUMENT TO TRY TO BAN TIKTOK. I WOULD EXPECT THAT THERE’S GOING TO BE A LOT OF AMICUS FILINGS IN THIS CASE. AND THEN YOU HAVE THE STATE
CASES THAT ARE PLAYING OUT LIKE YOU MENTIONED. AND SO, YOU KNOW FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, THERE’S GOING TO BE A LOT OF LITIGATION OVER THIS ISSUE. ED: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CHRIS. FORMER U.S.
SECRETARY SECRETARY STEVE MUNITION -- MNUCHIN IS STILL INTERESTED IN BUYING TIKTOK. IT COULD BE REPLICATED. LISTEN TO THIS. >> STILL VERY INTERESTED IN BUYING IT AND TO THE EXTENT THEY WANT TO SELL IT OR SPEND IT OFF, WE VERY MUCH WANT TO PURSUE THAT. I SUPPORT THAT CONGRESS PASS THE BILL AND HAS NOW BEEN SIGNED INTO LAW.
I WILL SAY THIS HAS HAD OVERWHELMING SUPPORT WITH REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS. THIS MAY BE THE ONLY THING THAT EVERYBODY AGREES ON. THE FACT THAT IT’S ON 160 MILLION PHONES IS A SECURITY ISSUE. CAROLINE: NOW, ONE OF THE OTHER PEOPLE WHO REPORTED TO BE INTERESTED IN GETTING IN ON BUYING WITH MNUCHIN IS ERIC SCHMIDT. HE’S NOT INTERESTED ANYMORE. JUST TAKE A LISTEN. >> MY PERSONAL VIEW ON THIS IS YOU’RE BETTER OFF REGULATING THAN BANNING OR A JUDICIAL ACTION.
ALL THE BIG TECH COMPANIES ARE IN VARIOUS LEGAL FIGHTS. I WOULD REFER TO SEE A REGULATORY REGIME THAT HAS THE RIGHT INCENTIVES. MY OWN VIEW OF TIKTOK IS IT’S NOT SOCIAL MEDIA, IT’S TELEVISION. AND YOU CAN REGULATE TELEVISION BY THE EQUIVALENT OF THE EQUAL TIME RULE BUT SOMEHOW WE’RE NOT HAVING THAT CONVERSATION. ED:
LET’S GET BACK TO EARNINGS AND RIVIAN, POSTING A WIRED THAN EXPECTED ADJUSTED LOSS THE FIRST QUARTER. A BREAK DOWN WITH RIVIAN C.E.O. RJ SCARINGE. RJ: IT’S A FALSE METRIC AND IT JUST CAUSES A LOT OF NOISE. SO WE’D LOOK TO FOCUS ON THE PRODUCT. WE’RE TWO YEARS OUT FROM LAUNCH. AND OUR GOAL IS TO RAMPING
PRODUCTION AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE SO PEOPLE DON’T HAVE TO WAIT IN THE CASE OF OUR R-1 PRODUCTS. ED: RJ, IN YOUR FILINGS IS THE PROPORTION OF THE R-1 GENERATION THAT AT LEAST VERSUS BOUGHT SEEMS TO BE GOING UP -- PLEAS VERSUS BOUGHT SEEMS TO BE GOING UP. IS IT A GOOD THING FOR RIVIAN IN THIS ENVIRONMENT WHERE YOU’RE BETWEEN THE TWO GROWTH PHASES.
IF MORE R-1 GENERATIONS AT LEAST. RJ: YEAH. WE DON’T DISCLOSE THE SALES ON LEASE. WE’VE EXPAND THE LEASE TO OFFER THE R1S AS WELL. IT’S NOW 32 STATES. NOW THAT THE KEY TO RECOGNIZES
LEASING DOES HAVE AN ADVANTAGE FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN THAT ANY LEASE QUALIFIES FOR THE $7,500 TAX CREDIT AND OF THAT LEADS TO A DISPROPORTIONATELY LARGE NUMBER OF LEASES GIVEN THE BENEFITS OF THAT CREDIT. CAROLINE: AND I DO WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT’S GOING ON WITH THE FACTORS. BECAUSE YOU SHUT DOWN SOME OF THE ASSEMBLY LINES TO MAKE COMPONENT UPGRADES. IF YOU COULD WALK US THROUGH THE MATH AND THE PATH FORWARD ABOUT THOUSAND THAT GETS YOU -- THAT GETS YOU TO THE GROWTH PROFIT FOURTH QUARTER. THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. RJ: YEAH, WE STARTED PRODUCTION IN LATE 2021. AND THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT THERE HAD BEEN NO VEHICLES ON THE LINE. SO THE START OF APRIL, THE
PLANT WAS REALLY EMPTY. WE DRAINED OUT EVERYTHING THAT WE WERE PRODUCING WITH THE LARGELY ORIGINAL SUPPLY CHAIN AND COMPONENT DESIGN. WE MADE A LARGE NUMBER OF CHANGES TO THE PLANT. AND THEN ALSO HAD A NUMBER OF
NEW SUPPLIERS COME ON BOARD REPLACING EXISTING SUPPLIERS, PART DESIGNS, COMPONENT DESIGNS. AND THAT’S A STEP CHANGE IMPROVEMENT IN OUR COST STRUCTURE BOTH AT THE BILL OF MATERIALS LEVEL, BUT IMPORTANTLY, ALSO AT THE CONVERSION COST LEVEL, ALLOWING THE PLANT TO RUN MORE EFFICIENTLY. AND WE DID A SIMILAR SHUTDOWN WITH OUR EDD PROGRAM AND THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE DID AT THE BEGINNING OF 2023. WE TOOK ABOUT 25% BILLING MATERIAL COST OUT WITH THAT SHUTDOWN AND THE SCALE OF CHANGE WE’VE MADE WITH R1 HERE IS VERY SIMILAR TO THAT. CAROLINE: GREAT INTERVIEW, ED. THE RIVIAN C.E.O. RJ SCARINGE. COMING UP, WE WILL BE JOINED BY LOGITECH C.E.O.
ABOUT GAMING ON A.I. SO MUCH MORE. THAT CONVERSATION YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS. THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY." CODE FOR ALL THE DETAILS THAT YOU NEED. THIS IS BLOOMBERG. CAROLINE: LET’S TALK LOGITECH. IT’S LINKING ITS PRODUCTS TO GUESS WHAT? ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN A WHOLE NUMBER OF WAYS.
LIKE THE NEW A.I. PROMPT SOFTWARE WHICH WILL TURN YOUR LOGITECH KEYBOARD, YOUR MOUSE INTO A SHORTCUT OF CHATGPT. FOR MORE, HANNEKE FABER JUST FINISHED HER FIRST 100 DAYS AS THE NEW C.E.O. COMING BY HERE.
AND INTERESTED TO HEAR ABOUT HOW QUICKLY YOU’VE HAD TO EVOLVE WITH A.I. IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO BE NIMBLE ON? HANNEKE: YEAH, A LOT HAS HAPPENED EVEN IN MY FIRST 100 DAYS THERE WHICH HAS BEEN FUN. BUT A.I. IS DEFINITELY ONE THE TAILWINDS FOR OUR BUSINESS GOING FORWARD. HYBRID WORK IS A TAILWIND FOR US AS FAR AS GAMING AND CONTINUING TO GROW. BUT IF I LOOK AT A.I., THERE’S REALLY THREE THINGS WE’RE DOING. FIRST OF ALL, LIKE EVERYONE
ELSE, IT’S HELPING INTERNAL PRODUCTIVITY. AND WE’RE SEEING ESPECIALLY WITH OUR SOFTWARE ENGINEERS, SOME REALLY GOOD PRODUCTIVITY GAINS FROM USING SOME OF THE NEW A.I. TOOLS. THEN WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR PRODUCTS, TWO THINGS. IN THE SOFTWARE WE JUST
LAUNCHED THE NEW A.I. PROMPT BUILDER WHICH IS A SHORTCUT TO CHATGPT. IF YOU’RE A BIG USER OF CHATGPT, YOU HAVE TO GO IN AND OUT AND THIS IS A SHORTCUT SO THAT YOU CAN STAY IN THE FLOW WHICH IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR OUR HEAVY USERS. CAROLINE: AND ONLY OPEN A.I.’S OF CHAT GAMUT ABOUT THE SNORES. HANNEKE: FOR NOW. I’M SURE MORE WILL FOLLOW.
AND THEN ONE I’M PROBABLY MOST EXCITED ABOUT IS ACTUALLY IN THE VIDEO AND AUDIO SPACE WHERE WE’VE FOR QUITE A WHILE HAVE BEEN USING THESE LARGE DATA MODELS TO REALLY STEP CHANGE THE QUALITY OF AUDIO AND VIDEO. SO, MAYBE TWO QUICK EXAMPLES, HEADPHONES. OUR LATEST GENERATION OF HEADPHONES DOES TWO-WAY NOISE CANCELATIONS. SO LET’S SAY WE’RE ON THE PHONE AND I’M AT THE AIRPORT AND IT’S SUPER ANNOYING BECAUSE YOU’RE HEARING EVERY ANNOUNCEMENT AT THAT AIRPORT. THE NEW HEADPHONES DO TWO WAY NOISE CANCELATION ON BOTH SIDES.
SO NOW IT’S SMART ENOUGH TO RECOGNIZE MY VOICE BUT TO TUNE OUT EVERYTHING ELSE THAT’S GOING ON AROUND ME, WHICH REALLY, REALLY STEP CHANGES AUDIO QUALITY. WE LOVE THAT. CAROLINE: YEAH. HANNEKE: ON THE VIDEO SIDE WE JUST LAUNCHED THIS NEW VIDEOCONFERENCE TOOL FOR OFFICES CALLED SIGHT. IT’S A CAMERA THAT YOU SET IN A LARGE MEETING ROOM. I’M SURE YOU’VE BEEN IN MEETINGS. THERE’S 12 OF YOU OF ONE SIDE AND ONE GUY ON THE OTHER SIDE THAT’S LEFT OUT.
THIS ACTS LIKE A INTELLIGENT PRODUCER IN THE ROOM. IT SWIVELS AROUND TO FOCUS ON THE RIGHT PERSON. BUT AGAIN, ALSO AUDIO. IT SWIVELS TO YOU WHEN YOU’RE SPEAKING BUT NOT WHEN YOU’RE OPENING A PACKET OF CRISPS WHICH IS QUITE IMPORTANT. CAROLINE:
I’M AFRAID -- ED, GO AHEAD. ED, NO REAL QUICKLY. I THINK WE’VE RUN OUT OF TIME BUT LIKE GAMING STILL A THIRD OF YOUR BUSINESS AND AS WE REFLECTED, IT’S REALLY HARD ON THERE. SUM UP THE ENVIRONMENT. HANNEKE: IT’S A REAL TAILWIND FOR US. GAMING WAS UP 8% FOR US IN THE
LAST QUARTER. THE FUTURE OF GAME IS REALLY BRIGHT. CAROLINE: LOGITECH C.E.O. HANNEKE FABER. WE WISH WE HAD MORE TIME WITH YOU. ED, WHAT’S COMING UP? ED: LYFT SHARES RALLYING UP TO REPORTING RESULTS. THE B ESTIMATES. WE HAVE THE C.E.O.
COMING UP NEXT. THIS IS "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY." ED: RIDESHARING COMPANY LYFT REPORTED RESULTS THAT BEAT INFER EXPECTATIONS SENDING THE COMPANY HIGHER. JOINING US, THE C.E.O. YOU MADE IMPROVEMENT IN BOTH RIDER RETENTION AND NEW RIDERS. BUT ACTUALLY, I WANTED MORE SPECIFICS ON WHAT YOU DID TO ACHIEVE THAT.
>> YEAH. SO I BREAK IT DOWN LIKE THIS. FIRST OF ALL, GOOD TO BE HERE. SECOND OF ALL, I BREAK IT DOWN LIKE THIS. FIRST, YOU’VE GOT TO GET THE BASICS RIGHT. WE CALL IT RIDESHARE PERFECTION. OUR ETA’S WERE FASTER THAN IN FOUR YEARS. AND THEN YOU CAN DO THINGS LIKE
INNOVATIONS ABOUT HOW FAST CAN WE PICK YOU UP FROM THE AIRPORT? THE LAST TIME WE TALKED WE HAD JUST ROLLED OUT THIS ON-TIME PICKUP PROMISE AND LESS THAN 1.5% OF PEOPLE ARE BEING PICKED UP SO LATE THAT WE HAD TO GIVE THEM THE $100. AND AFTER THE BASICS TO INNOVATE, AND THEN YOU PARTNER UP WITH PEOPLE WITH CHASE, DELTA AND OTHERS. YOU PUT ALL THOSE THINGS TOGETHER, IT WORKS REALLY WELL. ED: YOU ARE MOBILITY FIRST. CAROLINE: WHAT ARE THE PARTNERSHIPS DO YOU HAVE IN MIND? DAVID: SO I PROBABLY WON’T BE ABLE TO ED: YOU SPECULATE ON NEW PARTNERSHIPS, BUT I CAN TELL YOU THIS. I SPENT IN MY PRIOR CAREER A
LOT OF TIME IN AFRICA. AND A LOT OF COUNTRIES IN AFRICA, IF YOU WANT TO GO FAST, YOU GO ALONE. BUT IF YOU WANT TO GO FAR, YOU GO TOGETHER. SO, YOU KNOW, DELTA, AMAZON AS A PARTNER, WE PICK UP SOME OF THEIR FOLKS AS A DISTRIBUTION CENTER, LINKED IN. WSKYMILES AND WE HELP MOVE THEIR PLIGHT CREWS AROUND IN EARLY MORNING HOURS. THE PARTNERSHIPS -- CHASE,
SAPPHIRE. AND WHEN YOU REALLY GO DEEP WITH SOMEONE T LIKE A RELATIONSHIP. YOU CAN FIND ALL SORTS OF AMAZING THINGS. ED:
THOSE ARE THE GROUPS OF PEOPLE THAT ARE MOVING. I SPEND A A LOT OF TIME THINKING HOW PEOPLE MOVE FROM A TO B. TESLA WILL SHOW US A ROBO TAXI IN AUGUST. YOUR COMPETITOR UBER HAS THIS RELATIONSHIP WITH WAYMO. I DON’T THINK YOU HAVE A FORMAL
RELATIONSHIP. BUT IF TESLA COMES TO MARKET, YOU MUST BE THINKING ABOUT THAT LONG TERM. DAVID: YES, BUT FIRST, ROBOT TAXIS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN.
THERE’S NO QUESTION. WE KNOW THEY’RE HAPPENING YOU SEE THEM ON THE STREETS. BUT FIRST, SOMEONE’S GOT TO MAKE THE TECH. AND THEN THEY’RE GOING TO HAVE TO BUILD THE CAR, OWN THE CAR AND RUN THE NETWORK. THESE ARE FOUR DIFFERENT PIECES OF BUSINESS THAT PEOPLE HAVE TO DO. WE RUN THE NETWORK. AND IT’S A VERY EXPENSIVE, VERY
EXPANSIVE NETWORK THAT WE RUN EVERY DAY, TWO MILLION RIDES A DAY. SO IF WE NEED TO INCORPORATE AND OF COURSE WE WILL, AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES, THAT’S GREAT. IT WILL INCREASE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT WAYS. BUT I DON’T REALLY LOOK AT AN
INITIATIVE LIKE THEIRS AND THINK IT WORRIES ME. THAT’S REALLY INTERESTING. IT’S GOING TO EXPAND THE MARKET AND I WOULD SAY FOR THEM, GOSH, THAT’S A LOT TO TAKE ON ALL AT ONCE. SO WE’LL SEE HOW THAT GOES.
CAROLINE: DAVID, INNOVATION WAS WHAT YOU’RE JUST TALKING ABOUT. WOULD YOU EVER RECONSIDER INNOVATION BUT TAKING MORE THAN JUST PEOPLE, FOOD, GROCERIES? DAVID: OUR REAL FOCUS IS ON MOVING PEOPLE AROUND AND GET THEM OUT OF THEIR HOUSE. AND THIS IS WHERE I GET A LITTLE PHILOSOPHICAL. IF YOU READ ANY OF THESE ARTICLES ABOUT THE HEALTH OF OUR NATION, WE TALK ABOUT POLITICAL DIVIDE BUT A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF LONELINESS. SO I SEE THAT REALLY IS GOING TO BE OUR FOCUS. IT DOESN’T MEAN -- WE ALSO GET PEOPLE OUT ON BIKES. YOU AND I ARE JUST TALKING
ABOUT IT. THAT’S IMPORTANT AS WELL. BUT I REALLY THINK GETTING PEOPLE OUT AND ABOUT IS REALLY OUR FOCUS. AND THEN WE CAN PARTNER FOR OTHER THINGS TO THE EXTENT THAT IS IMPORTANT TO CUSTOMERS. ED:
WE WERE GOING THROUGH THE NUMBERS AND TRYING TO SEE IF IT PROVED YOU’VE TAKEN MARKET SHARES FROM UBER. DIARRA IS UP NEXT. WHAT’S YOUR MESSAGE FOR HER IN TERMS OF WHETHER HE SHOULD BE LOOKING OVER HIS SHOULDER IN THE PROGRESS YOU’RE MAKING? DAVID: IT’S SO FUNNY. PEOPLE LOVE TO TALK ABOUT THIS SORT OF HEAD-TO-HEAD THING. OUR COMPETITION IS PEOPLE STAYING AT HOME.
THAT’S OUR COMPETITION. I WANT MORE PEOPLE OUT. I WANT THEM CONNECTED WITH OTHER FOLKS. IT’S A MORE INTERESTING WAY TO RUN BUSINESS THAN JUST ALWAYS FOCUS ON YOUR COMPETITOR. THEY’LL GO THROUGH OUR UPS AND DOWNS. IT’S FINE. ASK HIM ABOUT ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS HE’S GOT IN MIND. WE’RE GOING TO FOCUS ON OUR
DRIVERS AND RIDERS. CAROLINE: ON YOUR MIND, GEN Z, COOPERATE TRAVELERS, WHO’S RIDING YOUR BIKES, DAVID? DAVID: SO A LOT OF WOMEN ARE. WE HAVE WOMEN PLUS CONNECT. ONE OF THE GREAT QUOTES I HEARD FROM A FRIEND IS WHAT HE SAID WHY DO YOU LIKE THIS WOMEN PLUS CONNECT DRIVER CONNECTION ONFULLY AND SHE SAID I CAN FINALLY TAKE A NAP ON RIDESHARE. WE’VE HAD SOMETHING LIKE 20,000 NEW WOMEN JOIN THE PLATFORM ON THE DRIVER SIDE JUST SINCE WE’VE STARTED THE LYFT PROGRAM.
SO SUPER IMPORTANT. ANOTHER THING THAT’S REALLY INTERESTING. WE’RE SEEING COMMUTERS HAPPENING AND PARTY TIME. PEOPLE ARE GETTING OUT. IF IT’S AFTER 5:00 OR 9:00, IT’S GOING GREAT.
I AM HERE FOR PARTY TIME. DAVID RISHER, LYFT C.E.O. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME TODAY. THAT DOES IT FOR THIS EDITION OF "BLOOMBERG TECHNOLOGY." AND WE’VE GOT A PARTY TOMORROW. ED: A BIG SHOW TO RECAP. CHECK OUT THE POD. PUTTING YOU ON APPLE, SPOTIFY, AND THE BLOOMBERG PLATFORM.
2024-05-10