Dara Khosrowshahi

a superpower or it could be a weakness is total separation of church and state in terms of content and business, right? So like when I asked, well, what's the cost of certain kinds of content and then how much traffic, you know, can we have the connection between cost of content and traffic? It was like, no, you cannot ask that question because the content is separate.

So it's just a fascinating organization. And the bet that they made on subscriptions was amazing. It was not obvious because the advertising business was much bigger at the time, but it was an enterprise bet based on a core identity of the company, which is we believe in quality content. And I thought that was one of the most impressive bets because it was totally non-obvious at the time.

So it's just a fascinating organization. And the bet that they made on subscriptions was amazing. It was not obvious because the advertising business was much bigger at the time, but it was an enterprise bet based on a core identity of the company, which is we believe in quality content. And I thought that was one of the most impressive bets because it was totally non-obvious at the time.

Every single news organization, et cetera, was advertising, advertising. This is the BuzzFeed days, right? It was quick content, et cetera. But I think that the bet that they made in quality was very much a bet on their identity that wasn't backed up by data and certainly wasn't backed up by their financials. But the company went all in and they've really benefited.

Every single news organization, et cetera, was advertising, advertising. This is the BuzzFeed days, right? It was quick content, et cetera. But I think that the bet that they made in quality was very much a bet on their identity that wasn't backed up by data and certainly wasn't backed up by their financials. But the company went all in and they've really benefited.

Yeah. I think they're very sure of that core, the quality of the content that they're building. And that allows them to make those kinds of business bets because in the end, they know that the content is going to win. Absolutely. A little bit like Netflix, too. It's like quality content. focus on subscriptions. Now they are going to the advertising, right?

Yeah. I think they're very sure of that core, the quality of the content that they're building. And that allows them to make those kinds of business bets because in the end, they know that the content is going to win. Absolutely. A little bit like Netflix, too. It's like quality content. focus on subscriptions. Now they are going to the advertising, right?

So you can't have a forever strategy or be so dogmatic as to not to understand that markets change, strategies have to change at the time, but it was absolutely the right bet at the right time.

So you can't have a forever strategy or be so dogmatic as to not to understand that markets change, strategies have to change at the time, but it was absolutely the right bet at the right time.

There was absolutely a view of the management and the board agreed, and I have to be careful because it was a boardroom and it's confidential, et cetera, which is if there's going to be a top global brand for quality news, that should be the New York Times. Why would it not be the New York Times? They were very clear-eyed about that, and they're quite determined to achieve that.

There was absolutely a view of the management and the board agreed, and I have to be careful because it was a boardroom and it's confidential, et cetera, which is if there's going to be a top global brand for quality news, that should be the New York Times. Why would it not be the New York Times? They were very clear-eyed about that, and they're quite determined to achieve that.

I think they're doing a great job.

I think they're doing a great job.

Well, it will be interesting to see, which is they... Netflix is building...

Well, it will be interesting to see, which is they... Netflix is building...

korean content that then extends globally new york times isn't necessarily doing that right it's english language content that is relevant to the world but is probably relevant especially international to sub-segment right it's it's higher end consumer etc who can't afford the price but again it's been an absolute winner of a strategy and what's been a tough business

korean content that then extends globally new york times isn't necessarily doing that right it's english language content that is relevant to the world but is probably relevant especially international to sub-segment right it's it's higher end consumer etc who can't afford the price but again it's been an absolute winner of a strategy and what's been a tough business

That is an unanswerable question. It is because there's the last 2% of use cases, the tail use cases. It's unknowable what it'll take to get past that last 2%. And there's this pretty interesting philosophical question, which is, How safe does a robot have to be? In the US, I think there are 40,000 deaths as a result of car accidents. Let's say that robot cars are 10 times safer

That is an unanswerable question. It is because there's the last 2% of use cases, the tail use cases. It's unknowable what it'll take to get past that last 2%. And there's this pretty interesting philosophical question, which is, How safe does a robot have to be? In the US, I think there are 40,000 deaths as a result of car accidents. Let's say that robot cars are 10 times safer

Yeah. If you're 10 times safer, you know, fast forward 25 years from now, like who knows what it will be, 4,000 deaths a year, right? So a little more than 10 a day. And like if you have four companies... that are responsible for the marketplace, five companies, right? And there are 10 deaths a day. Like a good day is, hey, we only had one fatality. That's a good day.