P.S. You Should Know... | Issue #433
Vacationing
my story 🚀
fun facts 🙌
Moneyball was supposed to kill human scouting. “It's been nearly twenty years, and the opposite is happening... What's happening in the prospect evaluation and development realm is bigger than baseball...” ~ learn more
Protein bars and frozen fish filets. The founder of RXBAR is building a new brand with David protein bars, which is getting very popular quickly. Now they launched another product that seems like masterful marketing. “Our newest masterpiece: cod. Slightly more protein per calorie than a David bar. We're committed to high protein, so we're selling it.” ~ learn more
23andMe sold back to founder as a non-profit. “I am incredibly excited and humbled to share with you that TTAM Research Institute (TTAM), a new non—profit medical research organization that I founded and lead, has completed the acquisition of 23andMe. I formed TTAM and pursued the acquisition of 23andMe because of my strong belief that everyone should continue to have the ability to learn about and benefit from their DNA, and that a non-profit structure is the best way to solidify our values and commitments to our customers, the scientific community and the world at large.” ~ learn more
oh, chicago 🏆
Deep discounts in distressed commercial real estate? A 65-story tower on Wacker Dr. just sold for $45 million. “The Zeller-Cindat venture bought the approximately 1.3 million-square-foot property for more than $302 million in 2014, when office values and demand were soaring.” ~ learn more
tech, startups, internet ⚡
How to use Cursor for iOS development. This blog post was so good that the Cursor folks referenced it when they built their own simplified explainer. ~ learn more
Rewiring Silicon Valley for the world of atoms. “The reindustrialization of America represents an unprecedented capital deployment opportunity. At the foundation, venture capital must return to its roots of backing high-risk, high-reward technologies that fundamentally transform manufacturing. These aren't incremental improvements—they're paradigm shifts in automation, materials, and production techniques that will deliver venture-scale returns while rebuilding critical capabilities.” ~ learn more
A zero-click attack on an AI agent. “The nature of the vulnerability means that the user doesn’t need to click anything or interact with a message for an attacker to access sensitive information from apps and data sources connected to the AI agent. In the case of Microsoft 365 Copilot, the vulnerability lets a hacker trigger an attack simply by sending an email to a user, with no phishing or malware needed.” ~ learn more
better doing 🎯
Important business metrics to know. “Lies per Second, Meetings per Decision Ratio…” ~ learn more
Execution is easy. A provocative title for a reasoned point of view by Ryan Kulp. “startup founders are trained to believe “ideas are (cheap | useless | easy), execution is everything.” but in other industries, execution specialists are a dime a dozen. take the session guitarist. although paid well to strum chords on Taylor Swift’s new album, they won’t be remembered. they won’t be on stage. they won’t get a royalty check. they don’t really make a difference.” ~ learn more
to your health ⚕
The FDA just sent WHOOP a warning letter about their blood pressure insights feature. Company CEO Will Ahmed reacts in this LinkedIn post. “Blood Pressure Insights by Whoop is a wellness feature. It gives members a daily estimate of their blood pressure range, based on passive, overnight data, to help optimize sleep, recovery, and performance. It’s accurate and non-invasive.” ~ learn more
under the microscope 🔬
Kidney metabolite mimics exercise benefits for aging. “A team of scientists led by the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has uncovered how the naturally produced metabolite betaine acts as a "molecular proxy" for actual exercise. So when administered at a level seen in people who are highly active, it can stall – and potentially even reverse – aging in kidney, vascular and immune cells.” ~ learn more
200 misfolded proteins in the brains of aging rats with cognitive decline. “Scientists believe these “stealth” molecules could evade the brain’s cleanup systems and quietly impair memory and brain function. The discovery opens a new frontier in understanding dementia and could lead to entirely new targets for treatment and prevention.” ~ learn more
staying thirsty 🚰
Cyprus is funding desalination plants at hotels. The scale here is a bit smaller than I would have expected. “Maria Panayiotou, the country's agriculture and environment minister, said the government will provide 3 million euros ($3.24 million) of funding over the next two years to help hotels build their own desalination plants.” ~ learn more