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I recently joined Dan Caruso on The Bear Roars podcast , and our conversation brought one thing into focus: we’re living through a shift that’s not just changing what we build—it’s changing how we learn, lead, and collaborate. We talked about AI, quantum computing, and robotics, but what we kept coming back to was access. How do we make sure every learner, founder, and educator has the tools—broadband, curiosity, and the freedom to experiment—to participate in this next era? The challenge isn’t the technology itself; it’s building the human systems around it that help people adapt and thrive. ...

On Saturday, May 31st, from 3:30 to 5:00 PM in downtown Denver , I’ll have a public conversation with Phil Weiser about various topics, including technology and innovation in Colorado. We will also talk about what (and how) we’ve learned from each other over the years and how we’ve worked constructively through disagreements, conflicts, and mistakes. ...

As I often do, I had a long, complicated dream last night. I’ve been fighting off a cold, so let’s call it a fever dream. During the dream, I saw the number 2050 on something. In 2050, I’ll be 84 – an old man by today’s standards. I was running through a city full of tall buildings. It was the middle of the day, but the streets were relatively empty. Little vehicles flew overhead constantly, but they were background noise. ...

My dreams were vibrant and bizarre last night. It’s no surprise since I finished two books yesterday – The Bright Hour and The Migration. These followed a three-day binge of The Expanse Season 4, which had echoes of BSG Season 3. I have a recurring nightmare about accounting. I’m running a business, but I can’t get the monthly financials produced. We are many months behind and my partner (sometimes Dave, sometimes my Dad) keeps coming up with reasons we can’t close the books. I continue to hear “we have cash in the bank so don’t worry.” I wander down the endless hallways of my office trying to find the CFO (sometimes Stephanie, sometimes Amy, sometimes someone I don’t know) but I can never find her (it’s always a woman.) There is no resolution to this dream, just a feeling of fear, emptiness, and impending loss. ...

A few weeks ago I wrote about the launch of the Looking Glass, a desktop holographic display made for 3D creators. Since then, over a thousand people have purchased a Looking Glass for their desks. I think part of the reason for this attention is that the Looking Glass is filling a much-needed hole in the REPL for Hardware flow alongside additive and subtractive desktop 3D printers and laser cutters. It also helps that the Looking Glass works without a VR or AR headset. ...

On August 13th, I’m giving a talk as part of the Aspen Entrepreneur Showcase . I’m doing an AMA moderated by Chris Klug on: Entrepreneurship & Innovation in Rural Communities Angel & Venture Capital Investing The GiveFirst Ethos and its Impact on Startups Forming Great Boards of Directors Techstars Accelerator Going International Mental Health and Depression Philanthropic Giving Trends for 2019 And, since it’s an AMA, that means people who show up can ask me whatever they want. ...

We’ve been soaking (and investing) in the world of 3D printing since our investment in MakerBot in 2011 . Since then, we’ve made three other investments in the world of 3D printing – Formlabs , Glowforge , and Looking Glass . While Looking Glass is a holographic display and is the inverse of a 3D printer, you’ll see how it fits into this in a moment. While I continue to be impressed by Desktop Metal , the incredible press that they get, and am a big fan of the writing of Jason Pontin , I think Jason’s story in Wired – 3-D Printing Is The Future of Factories (For Real This Time) – misses several key points that take the idea that 3D printing is the future in a different direction. ...

Amy Batchelor and I have been married for 25 years today. Here’s what we looked like a long time ago on a vacation together in Cabo. R.E.M. and Dilbert together kind of says it all. Here’s another picture of us in our apartment at 15 Sleeper Street in Boston on Amy’s 25th birthday. Amy remembers that I took her out that night to Biba for dinner. That keyboard is the one that almost burned down an entire fraternity building on 351 Mass Ave one night. But that’s another story. I loved Amy’s permed hair – maybe that look will come back in fashion some day. ...

We have just hours. The FCC is about to vote to end net neutrality—breaking the fundamental principle of the open Internet—and only an avalanche of calls to Congress can stop it. So we decided to help “Break the Internet” on our sites . You can also support on Twitter , Tumblr , Youtube or in whatever wild creative way you can to get your audience to contact Congress . That’s how we win. Are you in? ...

Now that US Border agents are aggressively asking for your cell phone and passwords when you cross the border, it’s time for Apple and Google to add a new feature to iOS and Android. The feature is needed because it’s not enough to just lock your phone, or turn it off before you go through the border . A while ago, to make it easy to comply with FAA regulations, which many believe to be unnecessary , iOS airplane mode and Android airplane mode were created. I’ve always been mildly fascinated with the feature because it’s a good example of Apple and Google doing something clever to make the use of their product super easy in a particular context. ...