RPARK's Profile

Thanks for this interesting post. I once downloaded Aaptiv, but upon realizing that I had to pay for it, decided it wasn’t worth it, considering I was already paying for other studio classes. I also have always found it difficult to watch these videos and follow along, because I need to keep pausing, turning back, or something like that. As ridiculous as this may seem, I wonder if there’s a way for Aaptiv to use augmented reality techniques to make the classes even more real.

Thanks for this interesting post! I really enjoyed it because of how relevant it is to all of us at HBS. I think it’s super interesting how the fitness space has gotten so crowded, but for some reason, no amount of wearables, apps, etc. does it for me like a personal trainer or actual class. I totally agree with you that the human element is too important. I also really like your suggestion about connecting it to health records. I think that would be helpful for all constituents involved. I wonder, also, if there would be a way for HBS to crowdsource and leverage any of this, given its large population size.

Thanks for the post! As someone going into consulting post graduation, I am grappling with these issues and it was great to see your analysis so far. As you mentioned, data gathering used to be an essential part of a consultant’s job, but now machine learning and other techniques make it much more efficient to gather and analyze data without relying on the work of humans. That being said, I wonder how big the threat will be for consulting companies when large data-driven companies such as Google, Facebook, or Amazon have their own consulting arms now.

Interesting post! It’s great to see that work that was once performed manually is now being tagged automatically through these techniques. To your point, I’m also pretty concerned about the fact that some things may be mis-tagged, which requires humans to detect and fix. I suppose that if there is enough data, the algorithm will eventually learn to correctly identify, but until then, humans may still need to perform manual check-ups.

Thanks for this very interesting post. I agree with you that this seems problematic and just because such a conclusion may be inferred through analyses of past statistics and data, doesn’t mean that it’s something that should be taken at face value. I especially agree with your point on how much data is enough data. While I believe big data and analytics can be extremely powerful, if used correctly, I do worry that we are losing too much of a human element.

Super interesting post. I go to Sweetgreen from time to time, but didn’t realize their app could be so useful. Connecting the data and content to the iPhone health app seems like an incredibly powerful way to sync right into our lives. The part about being able to connect with Uber through the app is fascinating as well. I do wonder how UberEats factors into this?

Super interesting that Waze is moving from traffic to gas stations to Outlook, etc. Especially given that Waze is a subsidiary of Google, it will be interesting to see how far Waze will go in taking part in our lives. That being said, the Waze Carpool model worries me a bit. I wonder if it will be sustainable for drivers to pool together simply to share the cost. Unlike Uber drivers, no one is being paid any extra, so I wonder how they will continue to incentivize people to ride together in terms of logistics, etc.

Super interesting post! Funnily, I’ve used GasBuddy a few times and had no idea that the data points were crowd-sourced. Similar to Austin’s point, I do wonder what the implications are for the company as more drivers switch to electric vehicles. Do you know if GasBuddy plans to play in the charging station space as well?

Thanks for the article! I agree with the points that the long-term sustainability and value creation of such crowd-sourced campaigns is questionable. It’s certainly a hard balance for companies to navigate. I wonder if there’s a way for companies to offer more guidance in the campaign so that it won’t veer off into a completely different direction.

I agree with you that at the moment, it seems that Etsy has multiple advantages that can help protect it from Amazon. However, I do wonder why Amazon’s commission fees and referral fees are so much higher, when they are trying to compete against Etsy. In addition, I wonder if the main advantage that Amazon has over Etsy is that while Etsy will often have sellers selling unique pieces, due to Amazon’s more commercial nature, Amazon can get sellers to make multiple of the same piece.

This is a super interesting topic – it’s crazy to think that algorithms may one day hire and fire employees. It seems that it may be easier to attract candidates, rather than companies, as some companies may feel reluctant to use AI to aid their recruiting process. In addition, I agree with your point that the app needs to be free for candidates, as that would create a larger pool. However, I do wonder to what extent that is feasible, and whether there is a point at which candidates would need to pay for additional services gained through the platform.

I think the online dating space is very interesting because as you say, people are looking for “true love”. However, if they find their true love through an app such as Coffee Meets Bagel, they will no longer be on the app, meaning they are not contributing to the overall network effect. Does this mean that Coffee Meets Bagel and other such apps don’t actually want customers to find true love and stay forever on their platform?

I think you bring up a really interesting point about whether Venmo will be able to maintain its current position. Whenever I see my bank prompt me to download Zelle, I think to myself “Why would i do that. I have Venmo”, but to your point, perhaps at some point, apps such as Zelle will have more credibility. To that point, I wonder if Venmo would consider partnering with any of the larger banks?

Great post, Ting! I agree with you that Mobike is a winner in that it is a very large player in the bike sharing market. However, I wonder who bike sharing services are really winners to? The public transportation system? Cars? Walking? In particular, I am thinking of cold regions, such as Boston, where bike sharing may be more of a seasonal activity. In fact, as far as I know, the bikes in Boston are put away during the colder months. In that case, who is a player such as Mobike winning against?

I really enjoyed reading this, as a coffee lover and fan of Starbucks’ app. I thought the part about having customized store experiences, such as baristas being informed of customers’ birthdays, was really interesting. However, I’m also wondering how such actions would be enforced? While this experience is certainly good for the customer, the employee may not be getting any additional benefit from doing so.