Welcome to Ignore the Confusion

Thoughts from parallel frontiers

First things first, nobody’s perfect. Please ignore the confusion whether from me or other voices.

“The world appearance is a confusion: even as the blueness of the sky is an optical illusion. I think it is better not to let the mind dwell on it, but to ignore it.” -Vasistha from Yoga-Vasistha.

As for the exploration of parallel frontiers, those frontiers are often technology related, but could also be tangential or directly related to music, art or other forms of expression.

Examples include:

All things emerging technology mostly relating to macro themes like climate, healthcare, or digital. I love to think about how these technologies will transform the future of family, work, social lives and everything in between. I welcome new technologies and am willing to take the bad with the good - I believe since people in the western-world are hell-bent on developing the next new thing and understanding every facet of life (and death), it’s too late to put the toothpaste back in the tube. Harnessing new technology is the only (viable) path forward. So rather than fighting it, I embrace it. Autonomous vehicles, EVTOL’s, Metaverse, eternal life (though I will likely not participate) are all on the table. Let’s dig in, invest and focus on making the tech as positive and accessible as they can be for people from all walks of life.

Technologies on the frontier include robotics, synthetic biology, artificial intelligence, batteries, 5G, drones, methane reduction, carbon capture, plant protein….the list goes on and on. I find these frontiers fascinating, and I’ve been studying them through the patent analytics firm I co-founded in 2004. We analyzed innovation activity around augmented reality in 2008, drone delivery in 2010, blockchain tech in 2013, we’re always early to the trend.

In 2017, we began to take equity in exchange for our services to assist companies develop robust and defensible IP strategies. That turned into a handful of successful exits which has led to the formation of a new pre seed, frontier technology venture capital firm (more on this soon).

Music from the West African Diaspora and beyond. From Senegalese Mbalax to Brazilian Samba Reggae, African American Fife and Drum Music, and New Orleans Brass Band music I’ve had amazing opportunities to listen, learn, perform, participate and record music across three continents. I am particularly interested in Gewel (griot) music - passed down through families. Sometimes these manifest through a music class system within a culture and other times it is simply a family band. Almost always, the tradition is passed down orally.

I am also a big fan of rhythmically intense music of all types - blues, jazz, this, and rock and roll, in all stripes.

Blockchain was a pandemic passion of mine….I fell deep down the rabbit hole. I was green pilled or red pilled or whatever you want to call it. Either way, I dug deep and collected a long list of resources that helped me understand how this technology has the potential, to one day (not willing to commit to when) disrupt the foundations of our society.

I am a big believer in Appchains and am partial to the Cosmos Ecosystem. I think modularity will win out over monolithic. I am keeping an eye on Celestia. I am also a fan of what Helium, Hive Mapper, Braintrust, and Figure are trying to do. I recognize there are (significant) flaws and these models are not perfect. However, I believe these projects, which go beyond decentralized finance (DeFi) bring new, efficient solutions to industries that that are controlled by a very small number of participants (wireless, digital mapping, talent networks, bank loans). I’m one of those people who sees the potential. Blockchains will massively impact finance, real-estate, insurance, legal and government. It’s about maximizing efficiency.

These are a few of the parallel frontiers that I will focus on, among many others. Please subscribe and Enjoy!