Author: Björn Jeffery

Nvidia’s success is a risk factor for all of us

November 21, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

This analysis was first published in SvD Näringsliv, in Swedish, on November 21st, 2024. This piece was translated from Swedish by Claude. Some phrasing may differ from a human translation. Nvidia doubled its profit and the market responded with an “okay.” The expectations placed on the world’s most valuable company have become a problem — for the entire stock market. There are two types of companies on the stock market. The first requires a trained […]

The mission: cut 20,000 billion kronor

November 13, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Musk’s mission: cut 20,000 billion kronor Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-11-13. Translated from Swedish. It is now confirmed — super-entrepreneur Elon Musk is stepping into Washington to clean up among American government agencies. The mission: cut 20,000 billion kronor from the federal budget. Cast your mind back twelve years and try to explain this to someone if you can. A mildly confused Shiba Inu dog becomes popular on the internet. A meme emerges — an […]

Trump’s victory gives Musk the full payoff

November 6, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Elon Musk bet everything on Trump — and is now more powerful than ever Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-11-06. Translated from Swedish. The world’s richest man played an extraordinarily high-stakes political game. Elon Musk bet everything on red — and won. Now comes the payoff. They were not always close friends, the two most talked-about billionaires in America. In the summer of 2022, Donald Trump’s re-election campaign was already under way, and from a podium […]

The market has already picked a winner

October 29, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Prediction markets ahead of the US election can influence more than money Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-29. Translated from Swedish. Want to bet on who will win the US presidential election? With the right prediction you can now make a lot of money. But there are also reasons beyond profit that make speculators want to project a clear winner well ahead of the result. “People overestimate their knowledge and underestimate the probability that they are […]

Did Klarna’s shareholders know what they were doing?

October 24, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Did Klarna’s shareholders realise they were voting away their own influence? Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-24. Translated from Swedish. The extraordinary general meeting at Klarna is over and the major shareholders got what they wanted. Sebastian Siemiatkowski strengthens his grip ahead of the listing. Why did the other shareholders let it happen? “Minor administrative amendments to the articles of association” is not an agenda item that normally excites shareholders. But in Klarna’s case it concealed […]

How our grip on truth could crumble

October 22, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Behind AI-generated deepfakes lies an even bigger problem Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-22. Translated from Swedish. New digital tools have opened the door to mass manipulation that could influence the American presidential election. But behind AI-generated deepfakes lies an even bigger problem. A girl in an orange life jacket sits in a boat. She looks as though she has been crying for a long time — tired, red-eyed. The water around her is brown and […]

The paedophile alarm concerns every Roblox parent

October 20, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Roblox accused of being a haven for paedophiles Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-20. Translated from Swedish. The gaming platform has been described as a “nightmare landscape of paedophiles.” At the same time, two thirds of all primary school children in Sweden use it. Should parents be concerned about the accusations from Hindenburg Research? “Escape to Epstein Island,” “Beat up the pregnant” and “Survive the killer” — these are some examples of games on the Roblox […]

The tech elite found an enemy — and found Trump

October 15, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Lina Khan made Silicon Valley switch political allegiance Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-15. Translated from Swedish. As long as the money kept flowing in, venture capitalists didn’t need to care about politics. A young lawyer changed that. Now the liberal tech power centre of Silicon Valley is a pillar of the conservative movement that wants to make Trump president. The audience cheers. The stage is framed by stone, with an engraved reminder about the importance […]

A Nobel Prize for Google — which may now be broken up

October 9, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

Nobel Prizes for Google — which may now be broken up Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-09. Translated from Swedish. Two Nobel Prizes linked to AI went to Google this week. But it is ordinary search ads that have paid for the development behind them — and now those ads are under threat. Most companies would be thrilled to have had even one Nobel Prize recipient among their staff at any point. Google has just received […]

A power struggle straight out of Silicon Valley

October 7, 2024
by Björn Jeffery
SvD Näringsliv

The fight in Klarna’s boardroom is a sign of things to come Published in Svenska Dagbladet, 2024-10-07. Translated from Swedish. Tensions are rising ahead of Klarna’s approaching stock market listing. A power struggle with echoes of Silicon Valley appears to be taking shape in the boardroom. For 19 years Klarna has been a privately held company. Its twentieth year looks set to be different. CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has been unusually clear — for the CEO […]