If you’ve always wanted to be a Venture Capitalist, here’s your opportunity. Kiva according to their pressrelease is:
the first microlending Web site designed to provide individuals with the ability to connect with and make personal loans to small businesses in developing countries. Founded in 2004 by Matthew and Jessica Flannery, Kiva’s goal is to reduce poverty in developing countries by giving entrepreneurs the ability to build their businesses through flexible loans with six-to 12-month terms. Kiva allows individuals to act as a “micro VC” by loaning directly to entrepreneurs with feasible business plans. Kiva is headquartered in Palo Alto, CA. For more information about Kiva, please visit www.kiva.org
(see also a Businessweek article on Kiva for more information. I think this is a brilliant idea!).
[edit, on BBC I found an article, which mentions another peer-to-peer VC site called Global Giving.]
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Multinationals from China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and even Egypt are coming on strong. They’re hungry — and want your customers. They’re changing the global game.
Today I listened to the podcast of this week’s BusinessWeek cover story on emerging giants, the future multinationals not coming from the Western world but from emerging markets. Each with their own suprising business model. When emerging markets are in your field of interest, I highly recommend listening to this podcast and read up on the article. By clicking on this link you can download the audio file of this particular article.
Another very interesting podcast that I recommend is on Innovation Champions.
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Check out this solid presentation on Identity 2.0 by Dick Hardt, Founder & CEO of Sxip Identity, which is similar to the presentation style of Larry Lessig.
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Who knew that good old GE was into developing Web2.0 applications? Well, I suspect they’re not, but they have created this awesome online collaboration tool.
You can use it with others to work on designs, and it is incredibly nifty, my favourite feature being the chat function that goes with it. This means you can chat at the same time you’re creating something on the workscreen. Try it out, preferably with a friend so you can see the full thing in action. Doodling… I love it! Now, if they only add functionality so you can import images, that would make this a supertool.
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