Pivot · Apr 23, 2021

Apple's podcast play, Netflix's rough quarter, and a listener mail on crypto's carbon footprint

Automatic transcript of the end of the episode, from 44:41. Speakers are labeled by software and may contain errors. Highlighted passages are Scott’s predictions.

Kara Swisher · 44:41 Creators and others are worried about this and buying carbon footprints, buying carbon whatever offsets and this and that they're doing. And so I think it's good. I think Scott is right here. It's going to be possibly a a change agent in a good way rather than let's just make a big old carbon mess here. Mhmm. And, you know, look, is it... There's a question. Is it a reason not to invest in crypto? You shouldn't invest in anything. Like, Disney parks use a lot of energy. So does... Like, if you start to really think about the carbon footprint we all have, like, breathing is a carbon problem. And so so it's an interesting thing, but I do think the the industry, as it becomes more in the mainstream, is going to deal with it in a way that's and they're already doing all kinds of stuff around how they all the proofs happen. Again, I'm not an expert, but I certainly have heard about it extensively. Scott Galloway · 45:35 I've been thinking a lot about crypto. And I think the discussion around the environment, and it's a worthwhile discussion, but I think it actually benefits crypto because I think there's a much bigger concern around crypto that doesn't get nearly the attention it should, and that is its threat to the USD as the default currency. And the people just don't recognize our greatest asset to, our greatest, I don't know, our biggest arrow, our biggest bazooka for US is that our values, I would argue wrapped in the steel hand of incredible ability to deploy force and violence across the world, 138 bases overseas, aircraft carrier squadrons that can deliver, you know, could deliver unbelievable force. Close number two is the US dollar as the default currency. 60% of foreign exchanges held overseas are held in dollars. And that usually means it runs through a US bank, which means we have transparency and influence over almost every organization in the world that wants to participate in the global economy. And the reason that China is all of a sudden jonesing to create their own crypto, the reason India is playing the reluctant bride and might step in and support one crypto over another, if the USD goes from 60% to 40% to 30%, that's almost the equivalent of taking out several aircraft carrier squadron in terms of our foreign influence. And no one's really talking about that. My fear, my real fear here is that if you think about our lawmakers and our regulators, they used to be kind of citizens that came from industry. So they came from the oil industry because there are a lot of people in energy. They came from consumer products, and they sort of understood the externalities of oil or aluminum or financial services. They sort of understood it because a lot of people came from that. The tech industry, the domain expertise, the gap between the actual what's happening in these industries and trying to understand them or domain expertise that leaks into our elected representatives, the delta is so huge that it creates an extraordinary opportunity for delay and obfuscation. And what you end up with is because 8% of our elected officials don't understand technology, technology continues to wreak tremendous damage, and we don't know how to regulate it because all the regulators and elected officials are catching up. That gulf is even wider between cryptocurrency and elected representatives' understanding of crypto. And I worry that similar to just as big tech has run unfettered for way too long Right. I think it's gonna take us, Kara Swisher · 48:02 our elected officials, a long time to catch up to Scott Galloway · 48:05 the externalities of of crypto. I think it's a huge threat. Kara Swisher · 48:08 Yeah. Yep. And they don't love to talk about it. I can tell you that. I've been trying to get a lot of the more official people to talk about it, and they certainly... You're gonna have to on some level. Scott Galloway · 48:16 Well, it's because we're all scared to look like idiots. Yeah. People ask me every day about crypto. Kara Swisher · 48:21 I don't think they get it. I think they don't understand it. Scott Galloway · 48:23 Do you get it? I don't feel as if I Kara Swisher · 48:25 get it. I do on a big level, not on a not on a specific... And what... And the impact, I don't... You know, you know, Peter Thiel on one side talking about the impact, and you sort of were like, it makes sense. And then and then there's others who say this and that. Anyway, it's it's it's an important time for currency, let's just say. Alright, Scott. One more quick break. We'll be back for predictions. [Ad break] — Predictions segment begins — Kara Swisher · 50:16 Okay, Scott. You already gave us some predictions earlier this week, but it's Friday, and we want more. More. We want more. Scott Galloway · 50:24 I think Val Demings, rep... Representative Demings, has kind of had her moment. I think she'll be the Democratic nominee for governor of Florida, which makes her a vice presidential candidate for the Democratic Party. Kara Swisher · 50:34 Oh. Explain what she did for the people who did it. Scott Galloway · 50:37 She just watched a few moments before righteous indignation when Representative Jordan, who I think is one of the kind of he's Speaker · 50:46 kind Scott Galloway · 50:46 of a representative gaslight. I mean, takes pride in look, the the defense, all of a sudden, Republicans finding finding an incredible defense and affinity for the good work police do when they commit these sorts of atrocities, and yet they don't seem to empathize with police when they're bludgeoned with fire extinguishers at the behest of a mob, encouraged by some representatives in Congress and our president. It's just, she pointed out that protecting or endorsing or supporting officers in uniform, which she was for I think twenty four years Kara Swisher · 51:25 Indeed. Scott Galloway · 51:26 Rings hollow when you, it's just purely, you know, when it's convenient. I thought Kara Swisher · 51:31 that He's politicizing the police for his own gain. Scott Galloway · 51:34 And I think everyone... I think at least here in Florida, a lot of people are seeing that clip. And I think she comes across as very strong. And I thought, you know, that's that's that's the person that should represent I us Kara Swisher · 51:45 think she's... These issues are really complex. You can have, you know, look, she was a longtime police officer. There's... She she recognizes the complexity of the job and the and the and the abuses wants to have a real discussion about it versus him who just wants to, you know... They just wanna reduce everything to a ridiculous cartoon characters of each other, and she's not having it. You know what I mean? And also, by the way, she has more respect for the people that police serve or supposed to serve than he ever would. And does... And he also doesn't... It's like those people that sort of are like, I'm for the military, never been in the military, and lecture people who've been in the military and also people who have problems with the, you know, he doesn't want a complex society because then it... It's hard. Then it gives a a hard situation. And so he's just a... More worse than a gaslighter, he's a reductive nincompoop, really. That's what I would say. Scott Galloway · 52:38 Yeah. And I have a couple more. I think that just as WeWork rose from the ashes, you're going to see another brand rise from the ashes and that is Quibi. Quibi. Quibi. At least the content from Quibi. But Roku Kara Swisher · 52:54 sale at various places, right? Roku was looking at it. Scott Galloway · 52:57 Roku bought it, think. Kara Swisher · 52:58 Bought it, right. Scott Galloway · 52:59 And I think they're going to bring a lot of that content in short form, quick bites back to life. And I think all of a sudden Roku and its vertical content this is a gangster movie no one's talking about. Roku has the hardware. They have the rails. Kara Swisher · 53:11 Own Roku? You love talking about Roku. Scott Galloway · 53:13 No, don't own Roku. I wish I did. It's been one of the best performing stocks of the last decade. Kara Swisher · 53:17 You love that Roku. Scott Galloway · 53:19 Incredibly bright CEO. Probably, I mean, again is kind of what I would call the kind of the mini Reed Hastings. The heir to that nice strategic blue flame thinking. Kara Swisher · 53:28 We get him on our show please? Scott Galloway · 53:29 And also they're one of the early product guys, Steve Shannon is one of the brightest guys I've ever met. Anyway, Kara Swisher · 53:37 Bought Quibi Scott Galloway · 53:37 is good So I Quibi. I think Roku going vertical, and I don't know if it's branded Quibi, but I think there's Quick Bites in that format and that jumpstart that it will give Roku around vertical content is really interesting. I think we're to hear more about that. Yeah. And other thing we're going to hear Kara Swisher · 53:51 more about By the way, can I just interject? I'm sorry, Every idea around Quibi wasn't bad. It's easy to make fun of Katzenberg, but he is still a great programmer and Great content. And there was a lot of good stuff on there. It's just something was wrong about it, but it wasn't some of the content for sure. Content wasn't really the biggest problem there. Scott Galloway · 54:08 Yeah. It's just that they were they were trying to charge you you get a dollar for every billion dollars in content from the most of the streaming services, and they were trying to charge $8. And shocker, people didn't wanna sign up for every billion dollars in content. Anyways, also, I think we're gonna have a much broader conversation around the role of whether or not elite universities should in fact be nonprofits. And that is if Harvard is accepting 3.4%, if 54,000 people are applying and they're accepting 1,700 to fill a class of 1,400, so 1,400 people. A Starbucks will serve more people than that in a day, and yet they sit on the GDP of El Salvador. It's like, well, okay. Is Harvard really a nonprofit? Is their mission really to do... To make society better? You know, what is exactly the mission of these elite universities universities other other other than to make the faculty, the alumni that already have a degree, and the leadership there feel like some douchebag who shows up in a Lamborghini with a diamond encrusted Rolex and says, look at how blingy and look at how rich and prestigious I am. I think that is really where these universities have gone. They have decided that they're luxury brands, not public servants. Yeah. And I think people are sick of it. And they say, should they be able to buy real estate and then not pay taxes on that real estate when they scrub it? Yeah. Or they make it. And what is the point if a nonprofit is supposed to, at its core, be adding social good, and that clearly isn't at the forefront here? You know how, the thing I hate the most, I got it, I just What's hate [Ad break] Kara Swisher · 55:42 There's so many things. Scott Galloway · 55:43 You know when someone says, oh, I went to school in Boston, it's like, Okay, and what they're really saying is, I want you to know I went to Harvard without actually telling you I went to Harvard. It's like that whole thing, Tell me you're a total douchebag without telling me you're a douchebag, then just just say you went to college in Boston. Mhmm. I find that this this elite luxury Kara Swisher · 56:09 You hate it. Scott Galloway · 56:09 Their mesification, And I and my university is guilty of it too, where we have decided that prestige and exclusivity is the benefit we provide ourselves and other people. You're not a nonprofit. You're Chanel. Okay, fine. There's a market for it, but you got to pay taxes. Kara Swisher · 56:27 Mhmm. Scott Galloway · 56:28 So I think there's gonna be a bigger conversation around elite universities where you're 77 times more likely to get in if you're in the top 1% of income earning households. There's more people from the top 1% at a third of the top 105 of the Ivy Leagues in the bottom 60%. And we're gonna have a more thoughtful conversation around, alright, are they really nonprofits? Are they really... What is the social good here? And I think that's a conversation that's gonna go front and center, and it's overdue. — Predictions segment ends — Kara Swisher · 56:54 Alright. I like all those. That's a lot of predictions. Scott Galloway · 56:57 A lot. Kara Swisher · 56:58 Those are many predictions, Scott Galloway. Here's what I predict. Scott Galloway · 57:02 Yes. Kara Swisher · 57:02 We are gonna have a great time. Scott Galloway · 57:03 We are gonna have a great time. I'm making plans for us. Kara Swisher · 57:06 The Santas, I'm headed down. Get ready for Kara Swisher. That's all Scott Galloway · 57:09 Prince I gotta Andrew and your your carry on luggage? Who else is coming down? Lucky's coming down? Your aunt? Kara Swisher · 57:16 She's there. My mom lives there for this winter, and then my aunt does too. That's why I got Scott Galloway · 57:20 to Poor see people. Kara Swisher · 57:21 They're not, they're just, they might just show up at your house. Might look through your things, rifle through your expensive items, and then leave. That's what we're like. That's the Swisher family. That's how we roll. And I'm coming down people of Florida. So put your mask. So mask up is what I gotta say to you. [Ad break] Scott Galloway · 57:36 That'll happen. That'll happen. Kara Swisher · 57:38 You know what? I'm gonna make some noise around that issue. I'm just like so excited to Floridaize it. And Matt Gaetz, can't wait to see you. Scott Galloway · 57:45 Rep Gaetz? Yeah. He doesn't live in Florida. He lives in the Panhandle. That's in Florida. I know what You that Kara Swisher · 57:50 know, he's going to be in Miami in some club. He's going to like, we're going to sidle up to him. Scott Galloway · 57:54 You think? Kara Swisher · 57:54 Yeah. I'm going give him a big old bear hug when I see him, he pig. Anyway. All right. Don't We're I'm both going have so much good Florida fun. Anyway, don't forget if you have a story in the news and want to hear our opinion, submit your questions to nymag.com/pivot. Scott, read us out. Scott Galloway · 58:12 Today's show is produced by Rebecca Sinanis. Ernie Andratot engineered this episode. Thanks also to Hannah Rosen and Drew Burrows. Make sure you subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts. If you're an Android user, check us out on Spotify. If you like the show, please recommend it to a friend. Thanks for listening to Pivot from Vox Media. We'll be back next week for another breakdown of all things tech and business. The swisher posse. The swisher posse. Speaker · 58:32 All 73 of them are coming are coming to Scott Galloway · 58:35 hang out with the dog in his pack. Oh my god. What a thrill. Kara Swisher · 58:40 Yeah. There can be only one. Let's see who survives this particular show. [Ad break]