Napkin Math

Profit and power in technology.

May 8, 2024

Patreon Should Buy Substack to Save Creators

The solution to the problem of social media is to build something better

Aug 5, 2020

Intangible Assets: The Invisible Value Driver

Book review of The End of Accounting: there are four problems with current financial statements and intangible assets are the biggest reason why.

May 13, 2021

In Defense of WeWork’s Community-Adjusted EBITDA

Clarifying the murky middle ground between Gross Profits and Net Income

Sep 30, 2021

NFT Projects are just MLMs for Tech Elites

A somewhat impartial review of current NFT business models

Feb 28, 2025

Playing ‘Civilization 7’ Is Like Being a Ruthless Corporate Consultant

Let’s talk about the tech world’s relationship with video games

Apr 30, 2024

The AI Wars Have Begun

OpenAI, Meta, and the $120 billion battle for the future of intelligence

Sep 9, 2021

Tech stocks’ favorite lie to investors

How the LTV/CAC ratio is manipulated to take advantage of retail investors

Nov 12, 2020

Cash Conversion Cycle: Bridging the Gap Between Profitability & Cash Flow

What is the Cash Conversion Cycle and why is it useful? In this post, we discuss the Cash Conversion Cycle formula, an example calculation, and a comparison of public retailer IPOs.

Feb 22, 2024

AI and the Vision Pro Don’t Need a Killer App

Software that drives hardware adoption is rarer than you think

Aug 20, 2021

How a Climate Tech Startup Closed 5+ Enterprise Deals Before Even Launching

Remora, The Bureaucracy Buster

Dec 1, 2020

Should you invest in Wish? An S-1 Analysis

A look inside the S-1 of Wish. Included is the background of Wish, a look at their margins, how the universal postal union is changing their cost structure, how their CAC is rising and if they are viable long-term.

Feb 29, 2024

Reddit: The Internet’s Bellwether

Is AI training a sustainable business model for the future?

Apr 23, 2024

Some Things I Know (And Some Things I Don’t)

What have I learned from two years of writing?

Aug 15, 2024

Feasting at the Trough of AI Slop

AI imagery is more popular, more powerful, and less harmful than you think

Aug 13, 2020

Sometimes You’re The Datadog, Sometimes You’re The Hydrant

The history of cloud computing, how DevOps and Observability became so big, and the fate of Datadog

Apr 29, 2021

Gross Margin: An Indicator of Market Power

What America's Oldest Jeweler Can Teach Us About the Value of Bling

May 15, 2024

Google Goes All In on AI

The company has every possible advantage, but can they use it?

Apr 13, 2021

Announcing Napkin Math Fiscal Year 2021

After a short break, Napkin Math returns with a new writer

Nov 19, 2021

iBuy, iRent, iLose My Investors Money

The Murky Future of American Housing

Apr 3, 2024

The One-person Billion-dollar Company

Can AI agents make you a billionaire?

Mar 6, 2025

AI Has Learned How to Capture Our Emotional Metadata

What happens when our computers know us better than we know ourselves?

Jul 9, 2021

Pricing Strategy is Product Strategy

How Technology Enables Companies to Charge More

Sep 22, 2021

Toast—a Vision of Software’s Future

Hints to why their shares popped 60% in their first day

Mar 20, 2025

Can the Startup Mindset Fix America?

Only if buttressed with smart policy, Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson argue in their new book, 'Abundance'

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