el producto #335 đ
Scaling marketplaces, Apple's Vision Pro deep-dive, Meta integrating generative AI, WhatsApp channels, Becoming a Product Leader, PM biases, AI-powered devs & more
Hey team,
Happy weekend and welcome to a new edition of el producto!
đ° The week in figures
$20B: TikTok is targeting $20B in global e-commerce GMV this year, which would be up more than 4x from 2022, primarily due to growth in SE Asia
$270M: Cohere, a Toronto-based startup building NLP and LLM tools for enterprise customers, raised $270M at a valuation between $2.1B-$2.2B
$88M: Pigment, a Paris-based startup building business planning and forecasting software to take on Excel, raised an $88M Series C; the company grew revenue 600% in 2022
296: Nubank, the largest digital bank in Latin America, just announced its first mass layoff; described as a ârestructuringâ of its Brazilian operations it will close 296 positions
200: Spotify announced that it will lay off 200 employees in its podcast division as part of a "strategic realignment;" the reduction, which affects about 2% of the company's staff, comes after Spotify cut 6% of its global workforce in January
5%: Reddit is laying off 90 employees, or 5% of its workforce
đ° Whatâs going on
Spotify is testing "Your Offline Mix," a feature that automatically downloads recently played songs for offline listening
Mark Zuckerberg addressed Appleâs new Vision Pro headset at a companywide meeting, saying Appleâs vision of the future of computing is not the one he wants, as Meta aims for a more social, interactive experience with its XR products
Meta has showcased its standalone Instagram app, which is set to rival Twitter; the text-based app for conversations was unveiled to employees during an all-hands meeting by Chief Product Officer Chris Cox, who positioned it as Meta's response to Twitter
WhatsApp has unveiled Channels, a Twitter feed-like feature that allows admins to send one-way broadcasts of text, photos, videos, stickers, and polls to followers; channels initially launches in Colombia and Singapore with select organizations before expanding to more countries soon
Amazon is reportedly planning to launch an ad-supported tier for its Prime Video streaming service, joining the likes of Netflix and Disney
Amazon will extend its Prime partnership with Grubhub; Prime members will gain free Grubhub+ membership for an additional year
Netflix gained more new US-based subscriptions from May 25-28 than in any four-day window since 2019, according to data from streaming analytics company Antenna
LinkedIn to launch an AI tool for ad campaigns, responding to the growing trend of marketers adopting generative AI; LinkedIn's tool suggests advertising headlines and text copy using OpenAI models
ChatGPT comes to iPad with a load of integrated iOS features
Apple acquired Los Angeles-based augmented reality (AR) headset startup Mira for an undisclosed sum; news of the acquisition comes just a day after Apple unveiled its mixed-reality headset dubbed the Vision Pro; Mira's technology is primarily aimed at military operators, making it unclear how Apple will incorporate the startup's technology into its products
TrueLayer announced it is opening up its suite of APIs to other payment providers; by opening up its suite of APIs, TrueLayer is empowering payment industry giants like Stripe and Airwallex to seamlessly offer open banking payments to their customer base, enhancing the overall payment experience
 WWDC announcements
Apple introduced its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset on Monday, which will retail for $3,500 and be sold starting in early 2024
Standout features: The ski-goggle-like device operates without controllers, utilizing the user's hands, eyes, and voice for control. It boasts five sensors, 12 cameras, dual 4K displays, and the option of an external battery pack or another outside power source. Powered by an M2 chip and a new R1 chip, the headset also has an EyeSight system that shows the wearer's eyes to the outside world or hides them when in full VR mode. Additionally, it scans the user's face to create a highly realistic avatar. iPhone and iPad apps can run in the headset's operating system, called visionOS, which will have its own dedicated App Store.
A deeper dive into the features and functions of Vision Pro headset; a developer session explores how usersâ eyes and hands will be the primary ways of controlling the headset, which also supports physical and virtual keyboards, voice, and game controllers
Apple revealed many more products and updates during Monday's Worldwide Developers Conference. Here's what else was announced:
The 15-inch MacBook Air, Appleâs biggest consumer laptop and the world's thinnest 15-inch laptop
An updated Mac Pro desktop tower with a new M2 Ultra chip
iOS 17 for iPhone, which has a new AirDrop feature, a new native journaling app, updated AI-powered autocorrect, a standby viewfor a full-screen nightstand experience, and more
iPadOS 17 for iPad, offering a more customizable Home Screen, a new Health app and an improved Notes app, and upgraded widgets
FaceTime for Apple TV through tvOS 17, macOS Sonoma for Mac, and watchOS 10
Apple is allowing users to access its developer betas of iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma for free, without requiring the usual $99 annual fee for the Apple Developer Program; the change means anyone with an Apple ID or a Developer Program account can try out the latest beta releases immediately, instead of waiting for the public betas in July
đ Good reads
Becoming a leader - and getting paid for it. An inspiring essay by Leah Tharin on differentiating yourself like a product. âNo tactical tip or framework will make you overcome your impostor syndrome, a growth mindset will. Leaders naturally gravitate towards things that are uncomfortable and not obvious. If they were they would have been done alreadyâ
Psychological biases which Product Managers should avoid. I have shared tons of articles on customer bias and heuristics; this time, Vikram Goyal helps us understand how 3 of such biases can affect us (PMs) on our jobs. Complement with this longer article by Christine Itwaru, in which she explores few more biases that affect PMs
The new problems every marketplaces faces after Product/Market-Fit. Dan Hockenmaierâs essay is packed with insights on navigating marketplaces post-product-market-fit. He masterfully unpacks concepts like pragmatism towards liquidity, focusing on product differentiation, mindful expansion, and careful attention to pricing. It's a dense read, but absolutely worth the dive for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of marketplace dynamics
Finding the white hot center. James Currier delivers another round of concise and actionable founders' wisdom, reminding us that true revolutions often come from those with little to lose and everything to gain. The article is a testament to the importance of searching for the "white-hot center" - i.e. product-market fit for the age of networks
The AI-powered developer. What are the impacts of AI on the job of developers? According to AWSâ Chris Casey - we are seeing a massive paradigm shift in software development as a result of generative AI that is punishing developers to be more in touch with the business domain. The implications of this process on UX, testing, and other ancillary functions of development are hard to fathom. A space worth watching for opportunities
Windows and AI platform shift. Ben Thompson on the Stratechery blog looks into the innovations presented in Nadellaâs latest keynote, at the Microsoft Developer conference. He showcased the potential of integrating the most groundbreaking technological breakthrough in decades (LLMs) with probably the most foundational layer in business: i.e. Windows. Microsoft 365 CoPilot stack has the potential to be a game-changer in powering customized business processes and streamlining of business operations of all kinds. Beyond no code, towards ultra personalization
Thatâs all for today! Let me know what you think by replying back to this email or commenting on Substack
Angel