Some Predictions for 2019

/

With the end of the year 2018 it’s time for some 2019 predictions.

  • Crypto Goes into Hibernation - Crypto and blockchain technology more widely will undergo a winter with most investors and the mainstream forgetting about the technology. Developers will continue working on it and with the hype gone we will finally start seeing some very useful applications emerge. Ethereum is my bet for the big winner long term here since it seems to have the biggest traction with developers who will be free to experiment outside the public eye.

  • Amazon’s march to world domination continues - I’m still betting on Amazon wherever they go. Even if there is a stock market crash Amazon will emerge stronger than ever and will climb its way back to $1T+ market cap in the coming years. The prescient move to open a 2nd/3rd HQ right outside DC is Bezos playing the long game and looking to neutralize the only real threat he had, government regulation and an Amazon break up.

  • Augmented Reality (AR) - I think this year is when Apple will begin revealing more of its vision and what is been working on around AR. A setup year but one that will herald interesting things to come with AR. My guess is Apple will actually be leading the way into AR and mainstream adoption, not startups unfortunately.

  • Softbank and the Vision Fund - I doubt the recent Saudi Arabia issues will even really slow the Vision Fund down and we will continue to see large investments at jaw dropping valuations.

  • Self Driving Vehicles Rolling out to Consumers - Finally, consumers will have access to on demand self-driving vehicles with Waymo and others beginning live roll outs in select locations. This is the most exciting thing happening in 2019!

  • Tesla - As I write this things seem to be going extremely well with the company having reported a profit in the most recent quarter. However, I don’t think it will be smooth sailing in 2019 for the company, with large financial issues they’ve temporarily swept under the rug hitting them. If the stock market crashes, the cheap capital that has kept Tesla going will vanish leaving them in hot water again.

  • Facebook - Scandal after scandal has hit the company. My bold prediction is we see a large senior leadership exodus, with potentially Sheryl Sandberg moving on to become CEO of another company (Disney?).

Onward to 2019!