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I've co-founded and scaled two multimillion dollar businesses, without investment. The…
Articles by Neal
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Neal Taparia reposted thisNeal Taparia reposted thisFor all the advancements in our industry, it’s frustrating we’ve (mostly) failed to reward publishers for monetization choices that prioritize quality ad experiences over volume and short-term yield bumps. I wrote about those challenges — why they’re difficult to overcome, and why I’m optimistic the OpenAds framework may help shift how we value, measure and reward publisher supply quality in the open market. https://lnkd.in/eYMtkt7KWhy The Future Of Publisher Monetization Depends On Transparency, Not Volume | AdExchangerWhy The Future Of Publisher Monetization Depends On Transparency, Not Volume | AdExchanger
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Neal Taparia reposted thisThrilled to see Solitaire Bliss’s Game of the Day make a NBA Finals cameo on Stephen A’s timeline — excellent way to Unwind!Neal Taparia reposted thisEven during the NBA Finals, Stephen A. Smith knows when to call a timeout — for Solitaire Bliss’s Game of the Day.
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Neal Taparia posted thisHas anyone used Sensor Tower for competitive intelligence? Was it helpful?
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Neal Taparia posted thisI worked with Mel last year to understand how to make content go viral on Twitter. A number of posts went viral and it was enlightening to see the process around it. Mel specializes in crafting authentic social content for founders & public figures on X & LinkedIn, helping them to: * Grow their library of content * Attract opportunities while building industry credibility She has 2 spots open for 2025 and is currently offering a 1-week trial for qualified founders. Some recent wins: * Niche-viral threads on X sparking industry convo * Regular posts with impressions 2-4x network size * 2 investor meetings booked from a client’s first week of content * Top talent reaching out directly after seeing client's thought leadership content Anyway, if this is something you're interested in, feel free to message me and I can facilitate intro.
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Neal Taparia shared thisWarren Buffet makes more money than most countries' GDP. That's crazy! I put this video together on his story and what makes him so successful. Hope you get some insights and inspiration!
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Neal Taparia shared thisA few months ago I wrote a thread on X that went viral on why your 9-5 job is dying. I put it in video format to see if this a better way to communicate these ideas. Anyway, enjoy!
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Neal Taparia shared thisYour 9-to-5 job is dying. By 2034, it'll be extinct. That's Reid Hoffman's latest prediction ⬇️ (The LinkedIn founder who also predicted the rise of social media in 1997) Here's what he said next... Hoffman's past predictions are spooky: • Predicted social networks would change the world (LinkedIn sold for $26B) • Saw the sharing economy coming (Early Airbnb investor) • Called the AI revolution years before ChatGPT So we should probably listen to his latest prediction: The Gig Economy Revolution is coming, and it's bigger than you think. Within a decade, 50% of the US population will be freelancers. But here's the twist: They'll earn MORE than traditional employees. Why? It all comes down to a simple equation... Specialized skills + global demand = premium rates. Platforms like Braintrust already let freelancers keep 100% of their earnings. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The real game-changer? Your digital footprint will become your most valuable asset. Forget resumes. Your online portfolio will be your new CV. Companies will hire based on proven work, not degrees or job titles. But here's what most people are missing: It's not just about showcasing your work... It's about building a personal brand that stands out in a sea of digital noise. But here's the thing: standing out is getting harder every day. Why? Because AI is entering the chat. Everyone's freaking out about AI stealing jobs. But they're missing the bigger picture: For example, lawyers using AI are already 200% more efficient. Instead, they focus on high-level strategy and client relationships. AI is changing existing jobs. But it's also creating entirely new ones. Ever heard of an AI Ethicist? They tackle questions like: • How do we ensure AI decisions are fair and unbiased? • What happens when AI makes life-or-death choices? • How do we protect privacy in an AI-driven world? It's tech meets philosophy. Now, let's talk about where you'll be working in 2034: The Death of the HQ is coming, and it's happening faster than you think: Office space costs will plummet 40% by 2034. GitLab, with 1,500+ employees in 65+ countries, has NO physical office. By 2034, 1 in 3 professionals will have multiple micro-businesses. The passion economy will create unlikely millionaires: • A forager earning $200K/year selling wild mushrooms • A Minecraft architect making $350K designing virtual worlds But the biggest opportunity? It's YOU. The future of work isn't just flexible. It's fluid. You'll seamlessly shift between employee, freelancer, entrepreneur, and investor. But the million-dollar question remains... Are you ready to seize this unprecedented opportunity for freedom and wealth creation? - A bit about me: I built 2 multimillion-dollar businesses without investment, selling my first for $60M after starting it in high school. Now, I'm building a multi-million dollar gaming startup.
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Neal Taparia shared thisSteve Jobs warned Apple before he died... "Innovation first, profits second." Apple is now at $3 TRILLION – but they haven't had a major innovation in years. A full breakdown of the secret risks Apple doesn't want you to know (and why it affects EVERYONE) 🧵 Let's cut to the chase: Apple's innovation engine is sputtering. Last groundbreaking product? The Apple Watch. In 2015. That's 8 years of minor updates and color changes. In tech time, that's practically an eternity. But here's where it gets really interesting: 52% of Apple's 2022 revenue: $205.5 billion from iPhones. One product line controls over half their empire. It's a risky strategy in the fast-changing tech world. Imagine if Netflix relied this heavily on just Stranger Things... Let's crunch more insane numbers: Apple's digital services (App Store, iCloud, Apple Music) are losing steam. Once growing at 24% yearly, they've slowed to just 5.5%. In 2022, services earned $78.13B - more than Nike's total revenue. Now? This slowdown threatens Apple's entire strategy. Think about this: Google's got Gemini. Microsoft's all-in on ChatGPT. Even Meta's launched its own AI model, LLaMA. But Apple? They're still tinkering with Siri. Apple isn't innovating. They're optimizing. 2022 saw 7 new iPhone models hit the market. It's not about new ideas - it's about squeezing more from the old ones. Jobs would be furious. But here's what's keeping me up at night: There are 1.4 billion Android users out there. A massive, untapped market for Apple. Yet their marketing to Android users is practically non-existent. It's like ignoring a gold mine to polish your existing coins. Let's look at the bigger picture: Apple's brand value hit $355.1 billion in 2022. Their brand is their secret weapon. If Apple converted just 1% of Android users? That's 14 million new customers. But Apple's silence speaks volumes: they're either planning something big or dangerously complacent... What if there's a secret project brewing? It's possible. But here's the trillion-dollar question: Can they disrupt the market like they did in 2007 with the original iPhone? Or has the well of revolutionary ideas finally run dry? Here's my candid take: Apple is at a critical juncture. They can keep refining the iPhone and hope it's enough. Or they can take a big risk on the next big thing. What would you do with $3 trillion and the weight of innovation on your shoulders? So here's the trillion-dollar question: Can Apple disrupt the market like 2007's iPhone? Or has the well of revolutionary ideas run dry? Jobs' warning echoes: "Innovation first, profits second." Has Apple forgotten? Or do they have an ace up their sleeve...? A bit about me: I built 2 multimillion-dollar businesses without investment, selling my first for $60M after starting it in high school. Now, I'm building a multi-million dollar gaming startup. Check out Solitaire (to maximize your brain health): https://solitaired.com
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Neal Taparia shared thisHistory's greatest Q&A? Bill Gates' "Ask Me Anything" on Reddit in 2022. He revealed every truth: extending global lifespans, humanity's #1 most important mission, and the 0.1% problem that's driving him mad. Here are the highlights 🧵 Bill Gates: Tech pioneer, philanthropist, and visionary. The man who put a computer in every home is now on a mission to change the world through health and climate change. But what sparked this radical shift in priorities? The answer is a number: 154 million. That's the number of lives saved through immunizations against polio since 2009 through programs supported by the Foundation. Yet, as he tackles more global issues, a pressing question emerges: How will Gates tackle Polio - his white whale? He's poured billions into the fight, but this virus is relentless: The last cases are hiding in war zones and remote villages. What's Gates' secret weapon? It's not what you'd expect from a tech mogul... Community health workers. Gates believes they're key to ending polio. These local heroes build trust, delivering vaccines where others can't. But here's the kicker: This strategy isn't just for polio. It could revolutionize global health. How? He dropped a truth bomb that made Silicon Valley's longevity experts choke on their green juice... Gates thinks living forever is bogus. His perspective will make you rethink the very meaning of a life well-lived... "I don't think living forever is a good goal," Gates said. Instead, he focuses on reducing inequality in lifespan and health. His target? Bringing the whole world to the U.S. level of 80+ years. But there's a twist to his longevity philosophy... Gates believes the last 20 years of life should be productive and healthy. He's investing in Alzheimer's research and promoting brain-healthy habits. But his personal longevity hack? It's surprisingly simple: Family, health, and meaningful work - that's Gates' happiness trifecta. But he adds a crucial fourth element: continuous learning. Gates is always absorbing new ideas. His favorite book? It's a 577-page optimism bomb... "Enlightenment Now" by Steven Pinker rewired Gates' brain. It challenges our pessimistic view of the world with hard data on human progress. Gates' key takeaway? We're living in the best time in human history. But this revelation comes with a responsibility... Gates believes our unprecedented prosperity obligates us to solve global challenges. Climate change, pandemic prevention, AI safety - these are our generation's moonshots. His final message? Optimism isn't passive; it's a call to action. What impossible puzzle will you tackle? - A bit about me: I built 2 multimillion-dollar businesses without investment, selling my first for $60M after starting it in high school. Now, I'm building a multi-million dollar gaming startup. Check out Solitaire (to maximize your brain health): https://solitaired.com
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Neal Taparia liked thisWhen I sold Fullstack Academy, I did what you’re supposed to do and set up a trusts for my family. The experience was eye-opening. I could track a $20 pizza to my door but with a multi-million dollar trust, I had no idea what was happening. I’m an engineer so when something is broken, I want to know why. I spent a lot of time with trust officers, attorneys and advisors and the answer was simpler than I expected: the whole thing runs on paper, phone calls and PDFs and old software that no one wanted to rebuild in a new, modern way. So Rush Sadiwala and I did. Today Sava Trust Company is live! We’re a chartered Nevada trust company, which means we’re the trustee, with the same fiduciary duties and oversight as the firms that have been doing this for a hundred years. The difference is what happens behind the desk. We’re using software to make the back-office work fast and flawless for our trust officers, so they can spend more of their time getting to know your family and doing right by it. It changes things for the professionals around the trust too. If you’re the attorney who drafted it, you see the status of every client trust from one login. If you’re the advisor, you keep managing the investments. We never try to take them over and you don't have to chase a trustee for an answer again. We've raised $10 million to build this, led by Gradient Ventures, with Y Combinator, SV Angel, Max Mullen (Instacart co-founder), Orange Collective and SurgePoint Capital. If you’ve been putting off a trust because the process felt like a black box, I’d love to talk. Same if you’re an attorney or advisor whose clients have. Lets go!Neal Taparia liked thisToday, we're excited to announce that we have raised $10 million in funding and officially launched Sava Trust Company, an AI-native, modern trust company chartered in Nevada, open to clients and their attorneys & advisors nationwide. Our funding was led by Gradient, with participation from Y Combinator, SV Angel, Max Mullen, Orange Collective and SurgePoint Capital. For too long, trust administration has relied on manual processes, disconnected systems, and complex fee structures. Establishing a trust can take weeks or months, with limited visibility for families and their advisors over the life of the trust. With Sava, we're building a better way. Sava combines modern software with experienced human trust officers to simplify how trusts are established, funded, and administered. Our approach includes faster onboarding, transparent annual pricing, and greater visibility throughout the process, while allowing families to maintain their existing attorney and financial advisor relationships. Our goal is to make trust services easier to use and access without sacrificing the human expertise and fiduciary oversight that matter most. Our customers are founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, their investors and other individuals seeking a solution to protect and preserve their family’s net worth (liquid and illiquid). We’d love to have a conversation if this sounds like you, or with the estate planning and wealth professionals that serve them. To learn more, read CEO & Co-founder Nimit Maru's letter on our website (https://lnkd.in/eVtzrig7) and feel free to reach us at hello@savatrustcompany.com. If you’re a talented engineer, PM, or trust administration professional interested in building a multi-generational company from the ground floor, we’re hiring! https://lnkd.in/e8ujVpuD
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Neal Taparia liked thisIt's been a busy week here at Garuda Ventures! Two acquisitions, one new investment and we've still got a few days left 😀Neal Taparia liked thisIt's only Thursday (on a short week), and it's already been a week for the books here at Garuda Ventures and for our LPs! While others wait with baited breath debating the timing and details of the Anthropic IPO at VC dinners, we are over here printing DPI for our LPs - via two acquisitions by Tier 1 enterprise software leaders - and writing new first check investments into explosive markets: 💰 A sizable acquisition of C1 by Workday, bringing the leading agentic identity platform for people and agents to the enterprise agentic system of record for HR, finance, and IT. As Workday put it: "Today's companies run on a combined workforce of people and AI agents". C1 + Workday will secure that hybrid workforce. Congrats to the incredible Alex Bovee and Paul Querna, and the entire C1rew! 💰 Acquisition of our portfolio company ComplianceCow by ServiceNow. ComplianceCow built agentic continuous controls monitoring - validating controls and exposures in real time for cyber risk and compliance - and will nicely complement and strengthen ServiceNow's Integrated Risk Management (IRM) product line. Congrats to the amazing Raj Krishnamurthy and the killer CCow team! 🚀 Committed to lead a pre-seed round for a robotics simulation infrastructure company. This market is taking off and we're pumped to back a hungry and technically ambitious team at Day 1 that is playing to win. More to come on this one soon! :) Thank you as always to the LPs and founders who bet on us and what we are building. You are how and why we do what we do, and Rishi and I are grateful for your partnership. Back to work!
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Neal Taparia liked thisNeal Taparia liked thisLast week, Paul Graham (founder of YC), made a post titled "How Universities Should Prepare Founders." I mostly agree with his prescription, with the exception that he left out two important things: community and culture. Paul is a clear thinker and communicator, and has the credibility to back up his ideas. The gist of his post was the universities shouldn't teach entrepreneurship, but give space and time for students to work on their own projects. He also states that founders can come from any background, and that a liberal education is nearly ideal for founders; that visibility and accessibility to recent successful founders is important; and that finding other people to work on projects with you is important. The Garage is built around all of these principles. We don't teach any academic courses, rather have a space and extracurricular resources for students to work on their own projects on their own time. We serve students from all schools and level of study, being truly interdisciplinary. We bring back alumni who were sitting in the current students seats just a few months or years ago, that are now running their startups full time. And we have a Startup Matchmaking event every quarter, where founders find their teammates. Paul acknowledges that a culture of starting startups on campus is important - and I think this is where universities can play a role. Having a centralized hub like The Garage brings those students together in one place to form that culture, instead of being distributed across dorm rooms. It helps build a culture on campus of students working on interesting projects. This space and culture creates one of the biggest amplifiers of success for founders, the same one that has made YC so successful: a community. Being around other ambitious people, especially when they are collaborative and rooting for each other, raises the tide for all boats. Universities have a unique opportunity to create these communities. Some have taken away from Paul's essay that universities shouldn't create resources for student founders, and should instead leave them alone. From my vantage point, our obligation is to create the space, time, culture, and community for them to build things. The results will follow.
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Neal Taparia liked thisNeal Taparia liked thisI hopped on the AdTech Therapy™ podcast to share some thoughts on SPO strategy & how we approach direct vs reseller partnerships at Unwind. We unpacked why resellers aren’t a part of our monetization strategy & why that decision remains a fundamental zag from how most publishers approach their stack. Thanks for having me on the couch Jana Meron and Scott Messer for some much needed Ad Tech Therapy: Spotify: https://lnkd.in/ghbQjKhs Apple: https://lnkd.in/gr5EwvWR YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gkEf3KvB
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Neal Taparia liked thisNeal Taparia liked thisIt’s been a year since SevenRooms joined DoorDash, and we’re only beginning to scratch the surface of what we can do to help operators grow and deliver more personalized hospitality at scale. That’s the idea Allison Page, Kinesh Patel and I set out to pursue when we started SevenRooms. It has only grown stronger at DoorDash, where we can now help operators connect the guest experience across more touchpoints—from delivery and expanded reservation offerings to events and much more. I shared more about our journey and the questions founders face when considering an acquisition with Kevin Ryan in Inc. Magazine - it was a great moment of reflection, and while the article shares my perspective, it’s grounded in the work our team does every day to serve merchants and everything they continue to teach us. And now back to continuing the next phase of our story, so much more to come! https://lnkd.in/gqpEc5vy Special thank you to the Unapologetic Foods team for hosting us for the article and shoot. Roni Mazumdar Saadhya Singampalli Erin LetteraDoorDash Paid $1.2 Billion for This Startup. Here’s the Unconventional Advice Its Founder FollowedDoorDash Paid $1.2 Billion for This Startup. Here’s the Unconventional Advice Its Founder Followed
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Neal Taparia liked thisNeal Taparia liked thisWe at Health Velocity Capital are thrilled to co-lead Ours Privacy's latest growth financing. Healthcare marketers no longer need to choose between growth and compliance. Every healthcare marketer we’ve talked to has reinforced what a real, debilitating problem this is across the industry. We're excited to back Ours Privacy's category-defining HIPAA-compliant CDP and growth marketing platform that was built with privacy-first infrastructure. More than 200 organizations already run on the platform, marketing efficiently without putting patient data at risk. Great teams (like Jessica, Tyler, Adam!) have their pick of partners, and we're so glad they picked us to co-lead with Lightbank. https://lnkd.in/gC4jYKksHIPAA-compliant marketing platform Ours Privacy lands $15M amid growing pixel concernsHIPAA-compliant marketing platform Ours Privacy lands $15M amid growing pixel concerns
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Neal Taparia liked thisThanks to Jason Siegel for having me on his Digital Doorways podcast. It was a great opportunity to share some of the lessons we’ve learned along the way in partnership with our great management teams!Neal Taparia liked thisEpisode 79 - Branding the Classified: Selling Trust When You Can't Show the Product w/ Sagewind Capital Founder Raj Kanodia Spotify: https://bit.ly/4q3MsnP iHeart: https://bit.ly/4wN3JEh Apple: https://bit.ly/3S0HdbP www.digitaldoorways.net www.bluetext.com www.sagewindcapital.com
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Neal Taparia liked thisNeal Taparia liked thisI'm partnering with LinkedIn for Marketing to call out something every marketer knows, but nobody talks about. I ran the same ad on two platforms. One got 100K views. The other got 22K. Guess which one drove 3x more customers? Stop optimizing for vanity metrics. Cut the Bullspend. Get started with LinkedIn Ads. Learn more at linkedin.com/ads. If you're selling to businesses, the targeting alone is worth it. #marketing #b2b
Experience & Education
Publications
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5 Reasons You Want to Become a ‘Growth Hacker’
Time
See publicationAn article about understanding your product and users to achieve growth.
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6 Ways to Turn Millennial Stereotypes into wins for everyone
Fast Company
See publicationMillennials have have unique expectations and needs. If you embrace them, you can be a win-win for your organization
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Say Hi (It's Great Marketing)
Forbes
See publicationFor our new product GetCourse, we reached out to our alumni networks. I write about the strategy and that experience in this article.
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Small business, big mistake: Starting on a second product before completing the first
Washington Post
See publicationI had the opportunity to write for the Washington Post about some of the business lessons we've learned over the years. This talks about how we learned more about focus the hard way.
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How Bibliographies Inspired Innovation From EasyBib to ResearchReady
eContent Quarterly
See publicationThe story behind EasyBib, and our inspiration to create ResearchReady. Starts on page 8
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Who needs $100k in student debt when there are open online courses?
Quartz
See publicationArticle I wrote for Quartz, an Atlantic Media publication, that discusses how online courses can foster real world business skills and entrepreneurship.
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Students most often cite Wikipedia in their bibliographies. Why that could kill future startups
Quartz
See publicationArticle I wrote for Quartz, an Atlantic Media publication, on how research and inquiry skills relate to being an entrepreneur.
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