flâneur

The Power Law Of Attention (Looking Back On 2022, Ahead To 2023) – Semil Shah Blog

semilshah.com · 1,144 words · saved by 1 readers

As an unofficial tradition, I attempt to “look back” on the previous year in technology startups and tease out the big themes. Looking back on 2022, I’ll admit I found it harder to step back from the noise of work and family life, to zoom out and take stock of what happened, and to put it into a few words. I will remember 2022 as the year where “The Power Law Of Attention” dominated our reality in the tech startup world. In venture capital, early-stage private portfolios lucky enough to generate a return often see the distribution of outcomes form what is popularly-referred to as “The Power Law.” You can read about it elsewhere, but in a nutshell, the rule says the biggest return will be so big it will cover all losses. Put another way, early-stage investors build portfolios with the hope that one (or more) company will be that elusive Power Law winner, driving returns and profits for the fund’s investors. But this isn’t the only Power Law in our world. Another version of this law that

As an unofficial tradition, I attempt to “look back” on the previous year in technology startups and tease out the big themes. Looking back on 2022, I’ll admit I found it harder to step back from the noise of work and family life, to zoom out and take stock of what happened, and to put it into a few words. I will remember 2022 as the year where “The Power Law Of Attention” dominated our reality in the tech startup world. In venture capital, early-stage private portfolios lucky enough to generate a return often see the distribution of outcomes form what is popularly-referred to as “The…

related reading