Forbes - Reddit's Alexis Ohanian Is Rebooting Digg, Bidding On TikTok And Betting On AI And Women's Sports
Alexis Ohanian and Kevin Rose, former rivals, have teamed up to buy back Digg.com, aiming to revitalize it by leveraging AI to enhance user experiences. They plan to recreate the positive online community vibes from the mid-2000s, addressing issues like polarization and engagement bait prevalent in current social media. Ohanian believes AI can provide real-time feedback to users, helping them self-regulate and improve interactions, similar to offline social cues. Additionally, Ohanian is involved in a bid to acquire TikTok's US operations, advocating for its separation from Chinese government influence and exploring blockchain integration for user identity and reputation management. He also emphasizes the importance of diversity and inclusion in business, arguing that organizations embracing these values will attract top talent. Ohanian is optimistic about the growth of women's sports as undervalued assets and is actively investing in them. He also launched a podcast, "Business Dad," to normalize discussions about balancing successful careers and fatherhood, and is developing a social media app for athletes to better monetize their engagement.
Key Points:
- Alexis Ohanian and Kevin Rose have bought back Digg.com to rebuild it with a focus on AI-enhanced user experiences.
- Ohanian is involved in a bid to acquire TikTok's US operations, aiming to separate it from Chinese government influence and integrate blockchain for user identity.
- He emphasizes the importance of diversity and inclusion in business, predicting that organizations embracing these values will attract top talent.
- Ohanian is investing in women's sports, viewing them as undervalued assets with significant growth potential.
- He launched a podcast, "Business Dad," to discuss balancing successful careers and fatherhood, and is developing a social media app for athletes.
Details:
1. 🤝 Reuniting Rivals: Reviving Dig.com
- Alexis and his former rival CEO Kevin Rose announced they have decided to buy back and rebuild dig.com, emphasizing that it is not just a nostalgic move but a strategic one.
- The announcement was made 24 hours ago and received a positive response, highlighting the internet's excitement and engagement.
- Alexis and Kevin, who were once rivals during the 2005-2010 period between Reddit and Dig, became close over the past five years and found common ground.
- The decision to revive Dig.com stemmed from a shared vision to make the internet fun again and bring back the community-centric atmosphere of the early internet days.
- The strategic plan for Dig.com includes re-establishing it as a hub for community-driven content, with a focus on innovative features that enhance user engagement and interaction.
- They plan to implement modern technology to ensure a seamless user experience and aim to attract both old fans and new users by offering unique content that reflects the spirit of the original platform.
2. 🌐 Technology and Social Polarization
- Technology has the potential to ameliorate social polarization by providing tools that can help moderate extreme behavior online.
- Online communities can mimic real-life social environments where social cues help regulate behavior, such as in an infinite convention hall analogy.
- AI can provide real-time feedback to users about their content's reception, such as notifying them that only 10% of the community may view their content due to its nature.
- Using AI, users can have more control over their online experiences, leading to improved self-regulation and community standards.
- The closer online feedback mimics offline social cues, the better it can bridge the gap caused by the anonymity and distance of online interactions.
- AI can automate the moderation process, reducing the need for manual intervention by community managers.
3. 📈 Strategic Moves in TikTok Acquisition
- Frank McCourt has involved strategic advisers, including the speaker, in his bid to acquire TikTok's US operations, emphasizing the importance of separating TikTok from Chinese government influence.
- The speaker has publicly supported the idea of TikTok US being controlled by entities not aligned with the Chinese government, highlighting a strategic opportunity for this acquisition.
- Frank McCourt's pitch to acquire TikTok included leveraging cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, as the speaker is experienced with crypto, having seeded Coinbase in 2012.
- The strategy includes reimagining TikTok as an on-chain platform, enhancing user experience by allowing users to own and transport their identity and reputation without needing to understand complex tech details.
- The speaker expressed optimism about winning the bid, despite acknowledging strong competition, and emphasized the priority of having TikTok US controlled by an American entity.
4. 👩💼 Advocating for Diversity and Inclusion
4.1. Benefits of Prioritizing DEI
4.2. Implementing DEI Policies and Strategies
5. 🏀 Revolutionizing Women's Sports Investment
- Angel City FC, a women's professional soccer team, has achieved a valuation of nearly $300 million in just four and a half years, highlighting the rapid investment growth in women's sports.
- Projections suggest that a women's professional sports team could reach a $1 billion valuation within five years, driven by significant expansion fees such as Cleveland's WNBA fee of $250 million.
- Despite being lagging indicators, media deals are crucial, while metrics like year-to-year revenue growth and innovative brand deals are primary indicators of success in women's sports.
- The digital native fan base offers unique revenue opportunities through social media, where athletes as content creators drive high engagement but receive limited revenue share.
- To address this, a specialized social media app for athletes, starting with those in track and field, is being developed to enhance engagement and brand association through gamified interactions and weekly cash payouts.
6. 🎙️ Business Dad Podcast: Balancing Careers and Fatherhood
- The podcast 'Business Dad' was created to normalize conversations among successful men about balancing career success with being effective fathers, a topic often overlooked for men but commonly discussed for working women.
- The host identified a lack of resources and conversations available for men on this topic, leading to the creation of a platform where men from various industries discuss their dual roles.
- The podcast aims to provide young men with healthier alternatives to prevailing online narratives about masculinity by showcasing positive role models from diverse fields such as business, sports, and entertainment.
- Guests on the podcast are successful men who talk earnestly about their responsibilities as fathers, providing aspirational yet relatable content for listeners.
- The initiative seeks to fill a vacuum by offering insights into how successful men manage fatherhood alongside their careers, counteracting disenfranchisement among young men.
7. 🧠 Emphasizing Human Over Artificial Intelligence
- The speaker emphasizes the importance of human intelligence over artificial intelligence, noting that raw intelligence is becoming commoditized.
- There's a focus on teaching children qualities like creativity, empathy, and emotional intelligence, which are seen as increasingly valuable.
- The speaker suggests that as AI handles more intellectual tasks, humans will have more time to engage in activities that enhance their humanity.
- Emotional intelligence and personal taste are highlighted as areas where humans will continue to excel and find value.
- The transition allows humans to focus on what makes life enjoyable, as AI takes on more of the 'raw horsepower' tasks.
8. 🚀 AI's Transformative Impact on Entrepreneurship
- AI is enabling the possibility of a one-person billion-dollar company, as predicted by Sam Altman.
- Entrepreneurship is transforming with smaller teams achieving what larger teams did five years ago, thanks to AI.
- Lean teams, empowered by AI, are able to compete aggressively against larger, slower companies.
- AI allows startups to require less capital and become profitable sooner.
- There is an increasing advantage for founders who are high-agency, empathetic, and tasteful, as AI levels the playing field.