A reminder for new readers. That Was The Week includes a collection of my selected readings on critical issues in tech, startups, and venture capital. I selected the articles because they are of interest to me. The selections often include things I entirely disagree with. But they express common opinions, or they provoke me to think. The articles are sometimes long snippets to convey why they are of interest. Click on the headline, contents link or the ‘More’ link at the bottom of each piece to go to the original. I express my point of view in the editorial and the weekly video below. Congratulations to this week’s chosen creators: @TechCrunch, @Apple, @emroth08, @coryweinberg, @mariogabriele, @peterwalker99, @KevinDowd, @jessicaAhamlin, @stephistacey, @ttunguz, @annatonger, @markstenberg3, @EllisItems, @TaraCopp, @ingridlunden, @Jack, @karissabe, @psawers, @Haje, @mikebutcher, @tim_cook Contents * Editorial: Hating the Future * Essays of the Week * Apple’s ‘Crush’ ad is disgusting * Apple apologizes for iPad ‘Crush’ ad that ‘missed the mark’ * Milken’s New Power Players * Ho Nam on VC’s Power Law * State of Private Markets: Q1 2024 * The weight of the emerging manager * Pandemic-era winners suffer $1.5tn fall in market value * Video of the Week * Apples iPad Video * AI of the Week * The Fastest Growing Category of Venture Investment in 2024 * Meet My A.I. Friends * OpenAI plans to announce Google search competitor on Monday, sources say * Leaked Deck Reveals How OpenAI Is Pitching Publisher Partnerships * A Revolutionary Model. * An AI-controlled fighter jet took the Air Force leader for a historic ride. What that means for war * Sources: Mistral AI raising at a $6B valuation, SoftBank ‘not in’ but DST is * News Of the Week * Jack Dorsey claims Bluesky is 'repeating all the mistakes' he made at Twitter * FTX crypto fraud victims to get their money back — plus interest * Apple’s Final Cut Camera lets filmmakers connect four cameras at once * Startup of the Week * Wayve co-founder Alex Kendall on the autonomous future for cars and robots * X of the Week * Tim Cook Editorial: Hating the Future An Ad and its Detractors bet a lot of money that the TechCrunch writing and editorial team have had an interesting 72 hours. After Apple announced its new iPad on Tuesday, the ad that supported it was initially widely slammed for its cruelty to obsolete tools for creativity, including a piano, guitar, and paint. This week’s Video of The Week has it if you don’t know what I am talking about. A sizeable crushing machine compresses the items with colossal force, and in the end, an iPad can incorporate the functions of traditional items. It's not the most amazing ad ever, certainly not as bold as Steve Jobs's 1984 ad, but it's in the same genre. The past must be crushed to release new freedom and creativity for a fraction of the price and, often, the power and flexibility. Oh, and it’s thin, very thin. I was not offended. Devin at TechCrunch was. He leads this week’s essay of the week with his “Apple’s ‘Crush’ ad is disgusting” and does not mince words: What we all understand, though — because unlike Apple ad executives, we live in the world — is that the things being crushed here represent the material, the tangible, the real. And the real has value. Value that Apple clearly believes it can crush into yet another black mirror.This belief is disgusting to me. And apparently to many others, as well. He also makes the incorrect point that: A virtual guitar can’t replace a real guitar; that’s like thinking a book can replace its author. It’s more like a digital book replacing a paper book than the author being replaced. Oh wait… that has happened. That said, a virtual guitar can replace a real guitar, and an AI guitar can even replace a virtual guitar—and be better. That is not to say there are no more actual traditional guitars. They will be a choice, not a necessity, especial