Think in Leverage | Business Leverage, Systems & Automation (Page 4)

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How Michael Burry Sees Molina Healthcare Outsmarting Buffett’s Geico

How Michael Burry Sees Molina Healthcare Outsmarting Buffett’s Geico

Warren Buffett’s Geico is widely hailed as one of the greatest insurance investments ever, growing pre-tax underwriting earnings from $171 million in 1996 to $7.8 billion last year. Michael Burry, famed for The Big Short, now calls Molina Healthcare a "better business proposition" than Geico in

What Hang Seng Bank’s Exit Reveals About Hong Kong Finance

What Hang Seng Bank’s Exit Reveals About Hong Kong Finance

Hong Kong’s financial ecosystem is unique, with blue-chip firms anchoring market indices for decades. Hang Seng Bank has been a pillar of the Hang Seng Index since 1972 but will be removed after January 14 once HSBC's buyout plan passes. This exit signals more than a name

How Warren Buffett’s Tech Blind Spot Changed Investing Leverage

How Warren Buffett’s Tech Blind Spot Changed Investing Leverage

Warren Buffett outperformed the S&P 500 by nearly 500x over 50 years but has underperformed it by 25% since 2007. Despite owning Apple, he largely bypassed Google, Amazon, and Microsoft, missing hundreds of billions in value creation. This isn’t just a personal miss; it reveals a fundamental

How New York City’s Backyard Tiny Homes Shift Housing Constraints

How New York City’s Backyard Tiny Homes Shift Housing Constraints

Building a backyard tiny home in New York City now costs between $300,000 and $400,000, close to half the city’s median home price of $800,000. But despite these steep costs, New York City legalized accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in 2025, allowing eligible homeowners to add a

What SHKP’s Price Hike Reveals About Hong Kong Housing Demand

What SHKP’s Price Hike Reveals About Hong Kong Housing Demand

Hong Kong remains one of the world’s priciest real estate markets, with per-square-foot prices exceeding US$1,400 in top locations. Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) recently raised prices by about 5% on 148 flats at its Sierra Sea project in Sai Sha Wan, signaling growing buyer confidence. But

Why Starbucks' 'Friends' Makeover Reveals a Leverage Trap

Why Starbucks' 'Friends' Makeover Reveals a Leverage Trap

Starbucks' attempts to recapture its soul with a 'Friends'-style café experience reveal hidden operational constraints. Brian Niccol, who became CEO in September 2024, has spent over a year reshaping stores to evoke the warmth of Central Perk, the iconic coffee shop from the TV show Friends.

outsourcing digital marketing

Outsourcing Digital Marketing: A Guide to Business Leverage

Thinking about outsourcing your digital marketing? Most people see it as a way to cut costs. That’s the wrong frame. Outsourcing is a strategic move for serious business leverage. It’s about plugging your company into specialized talent, advanced tech, and market agility—all without the crushing overhead of

How Singapore Built the U.S.’s AI Supply Chain Inner Circle

How Singapore Built the U.S.’s AI Supply Chain Inner Circle

Southeast Asia is rapidly developing AI capabilities, yet Singapore stands alone as the only Southeast Asian country in the U.S.’s new Pax Silica AI alliance alongside allies like Australia, Japan, and Israel. This exclusive group anchors AI supply chains that depend on chips, critical minerals, and secure data

What Meta’s Manus Acquisition Reveals About AI Geopolitics

What Meta’s Manus Acquisition Reveals About AI Geopolitics

Despite US efforts to restrict Chinese access to advanced AI chips and funding, a China-founded start-up specializing in artificial intelligence agents, Manus, was acquired by Meta for billions just nine months after its public launch in Singapore. This deal underscores not only China's competitiveness in AI but also

Why Jamba Juice's CEO Defends Middle Management Amid Cuts

Why Jamba Juice's CEO Defends Middle Management Amid Cuts

Corporate America is slashing middle management to cut costs and boost efficiency. Jamba Juice's former CEO, James D. White, argues this trend threatens the core leverage of company culture that fuels growth. He insists middle managers are the crucial nodes translating vision into employee engagement and performance. “Culture

What Chinese Firms’ Dubai Free Zone Move Reveals About Trade Leverage

What Chinese Firms’ Dubai Free Zone Move Reveals About Trade Leverage

Global protectionism is reshaping trade costs, but Chinese firms are navigating this with a strategic twist. As of November 2025, the Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) in Dubai, managed by state-owned DP World, hosts 507 Chinese companies—nearly double 2021’s figure. This surge isn’t about simple cost-cutting; it’

How Trip.com’s Stablecoin Move Changes Cross-Border Travel Payments

How Trip.com’s Stablecoin Move Changes Cross-Border Travel Payments

Cross-border travel payments typically incur 2-4% currency conversion fees and multi-day processing times. Trip.com, a Shanghai-based online travel giant, began accepting the US dollar-pegged stablecoins USDT and USDC for prepaid flight and hotel bookings on its international platform in October 2025. This is more than a payment option—it’

How OpenAI’s $555,000 Hire Changes AI Safety Leverage

How OpenAI’s $555,000 Hire Changes AI Safety Leverage

OpenAI is offering $555,000 plus equity for a single head of preparedness role, a salary that rivals top AI engineers. This position, posted by OpenAI, requires balancing CEO Sam Altman’s rapid product releases with the complex risk of AI safety. But this isn’t just a high-paying job—

How California’s Billionaire Tax Threat Breaks Economic Leverage

How California’s Billionaire Tax Threat Breaks Economic Leverage

California’s attempt to impose a 5% one-time tax on billionaires’ net worth reshapes a $1 trillion+ capital ecosystem. Governor Gavin Newsom faces a letter from powerful attorney Alex Spiro, warning that billionaire clients will “permanently relocate” if the tax passes. This isn’t just another tax fight—it’s

How Zohran Mamdani’s Agenda Reshapes New York City Leverage

How Zohran Mamdani’s Agenda Reshapes New York City Leverage

New York City’s government budget dwarfs many nations’ economies, yet its challenges often come down to basic service delivery. Zohran Mamdani, elected NYC mayor at age 34, begins his tenure in January 2026 promising radical shifts aimed at affordability for working-class New Yorkers. But this isn’t just politics—

What China’s Taiwan War Games Reveal About Future Combat Leverage

What China’s Taiwan War Games Reveal About Future Combat Leverage

China’s military exercises around Taiwan combine complex air, sea, and rocket forces in a scale and coordination rarely seen globally. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army kicked off “Justice Mission-2025,” mobilizing dozens of warships, 89 aircraft including J-10 and J-16 fighters, drones, and long-range missile systems. This effort isn’

What OpenAI’s $550K Safety Hire Reveals About AI Risk Management

What OpenAI’s $550K Safety Hire Reveals About AI Risk Management

OpenAI is offering a $555,000 salary plus equity to hire a “head of preparedness” focused on mitigating the growing risks of AI, signaling how high the stakes have become for AI safety. CEO Sam Altman acknowledged the role will be “stressful” as the company tackles issues from cybersecurity threats

Why Ukraine’s River Drone Shift Signals New Warfare Leverage

Why Ukraine’s River Drone Shift Signals New Warfare Leverage

Naval drone warfare typically conjures images of open ocean clashes involving expensive warships. Ukraine is rewriting this script by deploying modular Barracuda river drones on inland waterways like the Dnipro River as of late 2025. This geographic pivot isn’t just tactical—it reveals a deep shift in how low-cost

How Trump’s Tariffs Bleed $25,000 Per Month from Small Businesses

How Trump’s Tariffs Bleed $25,000 Per Month from Small Businesses

Small businesses across the United States are paying an estimated $25,000 more per month on average due to the Trump administration’s tariff policies. The Center for American Progress revealed that since April 2025, approximately 236,000 small-business importers have faced an added $151,000 in tariffs compared to

Why Netflix’s WBD Bid Signals Cable TV’s Long Decline

Why Netflix’s WBD Bid Signals Cable TV’s Long Decline

The U.S. cable TV industry is bleeding fast but quietly—advertising revenue fell nearly 6% in 2024, subscriber counts dropped 7.1% to 31.4 million homes, and affiliate fees slid 3% to under $39 billion. The 2025 annual report from S&P Global Market Intelligence frames the

What Oleg Tinkov’s Forced Sale Reveals About Russian Wealth Control

What Oleg Tinkov’s Forced Sale Reveals About Russian Wealth Control

Russian billionaires typically safeguard fortunes through diversified assets or offshore holdings. Oleg Tinkov, founder of Tinkoff Bank, faced a sudden collapse of wealth after a single Instagram post in April 2022 denouncing the war in Ukraine cost him nearly $9 billion. The forced sale of his 35% stake in TCS

What Creative Agencies’ Fear of AI Reveals About Innovation Constraints

What Creative Agencies’ Fear of AI Reveals About Innovation Constraints

Adoption of AI in creative agencies isn’t held back by technology but by mindset, according to Jules Love, founder of Spark AI. His consultancy has guided over 60 agencies on integrating AI into daily workflows, stressing that deliberate roles and protected time are vital. This shows that the biggest

How Senegal’s Farming Shift Reverses Urban Job Market Crunch

How Senegal’s Farming Shift Reverses Urban Job Market Crunch

Urban living costs in African capitals like Dakar and Nairobi rival major European cities despite far lower salaries. Senegal is countering this by turning to agriculture, empowering young people to profitably farm with new tech and funding since 2023. This is not about nostalgia—Senegal’s World Food Program initiative

How Box’s CEO Explains AI Driving More White-Collar Jobs

How Box’s CEO Explains AI Driving More White-Collar Jobs

AI efficiency gains are slashing costs on complex knowledge work like coding and contract review. Box CEO Aaron Levie recently argued AI will fuel more white-collar jobs, not cut them, challenging doomsday predictions from some AI leaders. Levie’s insight follows a pattern seen since the industrial revolution: making work

How Trump’s Student-Loan Overhaul Pushes Borrowers into Repayment Limbo

How Trump’s Student-Loan Overhaul Pushes Borrowers into Repayment Limbo

Seven million borrowers enrolled in the SAVE plan face paused payments and resumed interest charges, while over 800,000 others await income-driven repayment forgiveness approval. Former President Donald Trump’s sweeping student-loan changes, signed into law in the U.S. in 2025, reset decades of repayment rules and eligibility, targeting