Wonders & Blunders: Telepathic Success

06.19.2017
By: Kevin Dinino

Telepathic Success

This week, we can’t help but tease a bit of our own “wonder.” The newsletter you read before you is getting a makeover! Tune in next week for a grand debut.

 

Now for this week’s ups and downs. Hackers took the lights out in a Ukrainian city, but cybersecurity experts quickly uncovered how. Facebook is going telepathic, all while Uber is, well, still dealing with a crisis. And our beloved city of San Diego climbed the ranks of startup stardom and made us proud! Whether a wonder or a blunder, we try to find a lesson in it all.

When A City Goes Dark…

Shout out to our friends at cybersecurity firm ESET for helping analyze how hackers were able to temporarily shut down power  to part of the Ukrainian city of Kiev. Although power was back on in Kiev within an hour, experts believe the hack could have been a dry run. 
Surf’s Up Startups!
Move over Silicon Valley, there’s a new startup city on the block! A new study has rated San Diego 4th nationally based on the number of startup businesses. Our city came out ahead of Silicon Valley but behind Los Angeles, Austin and Miami. About one out of every 200 adults in San Diego are entrepreneurs. We hope to see all these entrepreneurs at San Diego Startup Week!

Telepathic What?

Facebook’s latest goal is to look inside your brain. At its annual conference, Facebook announced its new research initiative to create telepathic typing by shining light on your brain and then measuring the light reflected back (…ish). Though outside scientists and engineers are skeptical, Facebook already has 60 of its brightest minds working on the project. Results may be far off, but here we’d love to be able to play ping pong while think-typing at the same time.
IN THE NEWS
D iversity is good for business! David Knoch, President of 1st Global, tells The Wall Street Journal that financial advisories with the healthiest growth have diverse staff and clients. 
DON’T MISS THIS 
Startup enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, investors and lovers of innovation, you’re not going to want to miss San Diego Startup Week! SDSW brings together the community to share progress, exchange resources and celebrate the thriving innovation economy found in our city.  
Date: June 19-23, 2017
BOTTOM LINE

What is Fintech PR?

 

Today, fintech is synonymous with leading companies like PayPal, SoFi, Venmo and GoFundMe. Within a well-saturated marketplace (more than 1,000 companies, $105 billion in funding, $867 billion in value and its own stock market index) strategic public relations is playing a critical role in helping fintech firms stand out from the crowd.

Are you excited for the new W&B look?
Yes
No
Share you thoughts on our social networks:

Surviving One Crisis at a Time

In times of crisis, there’s no room for distractions. Eric Dezenhall, a crisis management expert, says that companies under siege can only focus on one crisis at a time. Dezenhall spoke with CNBC the day after an Uber executive resigned after backlash from a sexist commit he made at a board meeting. As we know, Uber is currently under investigation for sexual harassment at the company. Most companies can’t spend time responding to what their executives are saying while also handling a crisis. However, Dezenhall also cautions against making “knee-jerk” firings over small issues. In times of crisis (and also in normal times), don’t forget to stop, think and breath.

 

Our newsletter delivers Wonders & Blunders

Sign up for our weekly newsletter for the latest news, trends and financial advice in the fintech world.

"*" indicates required fields

woman holding cell phone with newsletter

Ready for results?
Let's connect.

Want to work with KCD PR? Receive a 15-minute no obligation consulting session.