Lucas Bédout's Linkedin Analytics

I think Apple is doomed. But not because of the App Store fees decision or the possibility that the DOJ may cancel the Google contract. A tech company that stops innovating will eventually fail or become irrelevant. Apple stopped innovating several years ago. I used to want the new iPhone every year. Now, I don't even know which one I'm using, nor can I tell the difference from the model I had three years ago. MacBooks haven’t changed in five years. They might be a bit more powerful, but I still can’t run Figma without having to restart my Mac every five hours. They’re missing the AI wave—both in internal research (they haven’t built anything noteworthy) and in software integration, as Apple Intelligence is far from revolutionary. AirPods are good only because Apple won’t open the protocol to other brands. My mom still can’t hear me when I’m calling from the street. AirPods Max are 2018 hardware, still sold for €600, with no planned upgrade. iPads are just glorified YouTube players. Apple has a huge brand and an extremely loyal customer base (I don’t see myself switching anytime soon), but if they can’t find a way to start innovating again, other companies will begin to replace them.

Deals signed but never onboarded? 18 months ago we were brand new on the market. People didn't know us and requested outrageous conditions on their contracts. Exit clauses, no payment until onboarding is completed, first year free... We needed logos so we accepted. I didn't know it at the time but despite what you're being told when you start, giving your product away is the worst strategy. You can make it cheap, but people need an incentive to get started. In September 2024, I told the team we were done with absurd terms 👉 First payment max 2 months after signature for yearly deals 👉 Migration from another provider is a paid service 👉 No free period, discounts within very specific rules 👉 No exit clause, we do paid trials instead And no surprise, it's a miracle. Average implementation time has been divided by 3, we sign more deals and have dodged some bullets.

I'm in NYC for the next 10 days 🗽 Last time I was there (in April), I was surprised by how different it feels from Europe. I could make a long list (and I will, later) -- but I believe it all comes down to one thing. Americans see money as a vector for growth and not as a scarce resource. Not necessarily because they have more money than Europe, it's a mentality. Yesterday I took a Uber from JFK to Brooklyn, the guy had an iPad for me in the back with a live view of the ride (and ads...), and one in front to manage his rides. The ride from the Airport was $60, same as CDG to Paris in France, yet he spent at least $1,500 on both devices. It felt more premium than the ride from CDG and I had a good experience (also, I saw a bunch of ads which created some value for someone somewhere). It's the same for campaigns in the subway, ads, events. In America you spend a lot of money to acquire customers, be seen and overall you have to be aggressive with your strategy if you want to exist. Some businesses will fail faster of course, but in the end dying slowly over 5 years isn't better than trying 3 different businesses in the same amount of time. A $4M seed in Europe is actually more money than the same amount here, because salaries and costs are cheaper, yet American businesses tend to achieve more with the same amount. Also, Victoria posted this billboard a month ago and while we spent significantly less on this photoshop than actually buying the spot, it tricked a lot of you 🫶