In this episode of the Tech Strategy podcast, Jeffrey Towson discusses what everyone is getting wrong about Snowflake. Towson argues that Snowflake is a “data ecosystem” company with a compelling digital business model. He believes that Snowflake could become the next Google or Microsoft. Towson also discusses the importance of data in the digital economy and how Snowflake is positioned to capitalize on this trend.
In Part 1 and Part 2, I laid out a framework for Snowflake’s “data ecosystem” business model. I described it as +3 complementary platform business models with +4 network effects. And I think that explains most of what the company is doing right now. However, I also recently listened to an interview with CEO Frank […]
In Part 1, I laid out the basics for Snowflake, a “data ecosystem” or “data warehouse as a service” company. The company appears to have a complicated business model. But it’s actually not if you look at it the right way. Which is the point of this article. I have 7 initial conclusions about the […]
In late 2020, it was revealed that Berkshire Hathaway had an investment in newly public Snowflake, the “data warehouse as a service” company. That was unusual for a couple of reasons. First, Buffett has always avoided new issues. Like in 50 years, he hasn’t bought a new stock issue. Second, Snowflake is a tech company […]
I’ve been trying to get a handle on the growth and development of cloud in China. But the four companies that account for about 80% of infrastructure spending (Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu and Huawei) don’t really publish many cloud details in their financials and filings. Fortunately, Kingsoft Cloud has gone public as a stand-alone China cloud […]
In Part 1 and Part 2, I laid out Baidu’s core search engine and some of the complexities that have evolved in search over time. I have three strategy questions for Baidu going forward: How competitive will a stand-alone search engine be against China’s larger digital giants over time? Can Baidu create a second large […]