| | | Thursday, March 19, 2015 | Issue #2502 | |
|
WAIT! Don't File Your Taxes Yet...
There's one simple tax form that could put as much as $2,600 in your pocket by April 15.
A form only three out of 100 taxpaying Americans file every year.
It's so little-known your accountant probably doesn't even know it exists.
You won't believe how easy it is. And it's all 100% legal.
TAKE A LOOK AT THIS...
| |
|
Cybersecurity, Virtual Reality and Other Hot Sectors for Startup Investors Andrew Gordon, Founder of Early Investing LLC
Editorial Note: Today's featured essay comes from Andrew Gordon, founder of Early Investing LLC. Andy spoke at our annual Investment U conference last week about how to find high-quality deals in startups. We found what he had to say so compelling that we asked if we could share the following piece with Investment U readers. If you want to receive more articles like this from Andy, you can automatically sign up for his free e-letter by clicking here.
 My bank replaced my debit card a couple of months ago. A store my wife or I visited was hacked. Was it Target? Home Depot? Neiman Marcus? EBay?
To tell you the truth, I don't remember. We shop at all of them. And they were all cyberbreached last year.
Companies and retailers are desperate for solutions to the ongoing wave of cyberattacks. But this will take years to fix. And at best, we'll be playing a game of leapfrog. Hackers have leapt over the white hats (computer security experts) and at some point the white hats will leap over the hackers.
And on and on it will go, the fixes temporary, the technology in a state of constant flux...
Point and counterpoint...
Both sides continuously adjusting and improving.
At the moment, cybersecurity is a joke. An oxymoron. Cyberinsecurity is more like it. But as an early investor, I find the broken sectors like this are the ones that whisper in my ear.
"Come, invest. There's money to be made here."
These Tiny Companies Think Big
You see, my cofounder Adam and I - our website is EarlyInvesting.com, by the way - target very young companies. Many of them focus on sectors ripe for disruption. We vet the most impressive ones, and if they pass our standards, we then recommend them to our members.
Grabbing equity shares years before a company hopefully IPOs or gets bought out isn't for everyone. The failure rate is high. But companies that do make it can return to investors double-digit multiples of their equity stake (sometimes even more).
The key is to invest in at least 10 startups. We recommend 15-20. Basically, the more the better. Which is why we've built a portfolio of 21 startup recommendations, two of which address the hacking problem I just mentioned.
The first is Appvance, which offers cloud-based performance testing tools. (It's essentially making it easier, faster and safer for tech companies to develop new programs and apps.) The other is Ansa. Its tagline: "Experience the freedom of disappearing messaging." The company offers a messaging service with military-grade encryption technology.
Over the months and years ahead, we'll continue to troll the cybersecurity sector and other parts of the economy ripe for disruption. The goal is to find companies that are creating exciting breakthrough technology.
I want to introduce you to five sectors we're looking at today. Let's begin with (what else?) the broken-down healthcare sector. The government can't save it... can startups?
Why Wireless Soon Won't Work...
This could be troubling...
A series of problems with the nation's wireless networks could soon leave millions without access to the Internet.
It has been widely reported that there are simply too many devices and too many networks out there.
These "data munchers" gathering at coffee shops and everywhere else are creating a massive shortage. In fact, we could run out of "space" on the Internet by 2020.
Find out the full story behind the massive $1.5 TRILLION threat to the Internet right here. | |
1. Healthcare Is Ripe for Disruption
In 10 years, chances are you won't recognize our healthcare system. The transformation is already underway.
A few months ago, for example, a founder pitched me on his technology that prevents doctors from handing out prescriptions to the wrong patients. Yes, it happens, sometimes with tragic results. But it shouldn't be a problem for much longer. Startups are all over this, including one that I like called Kyruus.
Have you heard of the new nanobiophysics technology? If not, it's understandable. It's pretty new. It makes portable diagnostic information available to individuals anywhere at anytime. Nanobiosym Diagnostics, for example, is using this technology.
Another startup is testing the effectiveness of new drugs in the real world. Applied Predictive Technologies brings big-data analytics to drug testing and treatment protocols.
Really, we're just scratching the surface. Much of the healthcare technology coming from Silicon Valley right now is potentially game-changing. (Marc Lichtenfeld echoed this sentiment recently while reporting from the 2015 JPMorgan Healthcare Conference - you can read his thoughts here.)
2. The Next Epoch of Social Networks Is Just Around the Corner
WhatsApp, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook (Nasdaq: FB), Pinterest, WeChat, and Twitter (NYSE: TWTR). Most - if not all - of the apps and platforms we're using today will soon be ancient history.
How soon? I estimate five to eight years from now. The way people communicate and play games with each other is going to look completely different. Think an advanced and less geeky version of Google glasses.
And much of the technology hastening the demise of today's top apps and platforms will come from startups.
Companies like DataRPM. It boasts a natural-language interface that is reportedly superior to that of IBM's (NYSE: IBM) Watson.
Or MetaMind. It claims to process images and text better than any other available technology. How? By using algorithmic-based deep learning technology.
Or VocalZoom. Its microphone has an optic sensor that measures the vibrations from the throat and face of the speaker. It then converts that data into a clean audio signal devoid of ambient noise.
Put them all together and you have the recipe for a massive technological shift.
3. Marketplaces Are Already Changing Our Daily Routines
Marketplaces connect buyers and sellers. Eventually, when they get big enough to ward off challengers, they charge a fee. EBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) is an early example.
With a good idea and decent coding, these startups can also scale quite well and become very large and profitable businesses. Airbnb, which connects property owners with renters, is a highly successful marketplace.
My cofounder Adam particularly likes this business model. He's invested in several marketplaces: UpCounsel, for legal help; Verbling, a language-learning portal; and Lawn Love, for lawn work.
All are early-stage, so they're also risky. But they come with quite a bit of upside, if they get it right.
4. Virtual Reality Is Ready for Prime Time
The macro factors are lining up. Multiple applications and potentially vast markets? Check. Made-to-order early adopters (i.e. tens of millions of gamers)? Check. A millennial generation excited by the possibilities? Check.
The runaway success of the Oculus Rift Kickstarter was no accident. Virtual reality should generate several huge winners.
VR Union's goggles, for instance, offer a 12-million-pixel display and are already being used to simulate Peter Pan-style flights over Prague (you can watch video of that here). A nice start.
I also like Silicon Valley-based Leap Motion. Its device allows you to use your hand movements to move and pick up things on your screen.
Just this week, Adtile announced its new VR technology that provides a 3-D virtual world experience for any phone. Using your smartphone's sensors, it tracks and displays gestures and motion so you can do things like draw objects in the air.
As I said, you can bet that virtual reality will generate some huge winners. However, at this stage it's quite difficult to tell who they'll be. It's still a very young market, speculative even for a seasoned early investor.
5. Sensor Technology Is Taking Off
The mainstream financial media isn't giving this sector much publicity. Probably because right now it's just one company doing the heavy lifting: General Electric (NYSE: GE).
GE has attached sensors to 21,500 locomotives, 23,000 wind turbines, 3,900 gas turbines and 20,700 pieces of oil and gas equipment. The resulting data is then fed to repositories for analysis.
Among its results? GE has identified jet engine defects 2,000 times faster than before.
GE will make over a billion bucks this year alone from its sensor business. And it's just the beginning. As an early investor, I like Pivotal, the cloud-based big data company GE is using. GE has already put a cool $100 million into the company.
Of course, there are many other firms you could look at. That's true of all the industries I described today. Which is why it's of the utmost importance that you do your due diligence, just like you would with a stock.
The Earlier the Investment, the Bigger the Potential Gain
Today's accredited investors can get a piece of the action earlier than ever before. And soon everyone will be able to do the same, once the JOBS Act of 2012 is fully implemented.
Adam and I make most of our recommendations at the "seed" stage, when companies are still raising capital in the early rounds of funding and flying under the radar as tiny private startups. We recommend the ones we believe have the best chance to get to the next level.
At this stage, if the company is successful, the payouts can be large and can compensate for losses generated from the laggards in your portfolio.
Good investing,
Andy Gordon
| |
|
If You're Worried You Don't Have Enough for Retirement...
You're not alone. According to the 2013 Retirement Confidence Survey, fully 76% of Americans have saved less than $100,000 for retirement. And more than half have saved less than $25,000! Fortunately, there's now a "fast track" plan to help grow any portfolio - no matter how meager - from 6 to 21 times faster overall than most other investors. Find out how right here. | |
|
| |
On February 15, the FAA announced proposed rules for small drones. Here's why that's concerning Amazon, Google and even the White House. Read On... | |
|
| |
Early investors aren't the only ones who can play emerging technology trends. Today Investment U Plus readers are discovering a young tech developer that's already making a killing - but the biggest gains for shareholders are still ahead. To find out how you can get all the details, click here. | |
|
| |
U.S. household net worth and corporate profits wouldn't be hitting new highs if our economy was worsening. And yet the stock market bears are still out in full force... Read On... | |
|
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment
Keep a civil tongue.