Gallant Macdonald - Insights February 2023

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EMPTY NESTERS...?

A bar graph depicts the record-high share of young people living with their parents

We have all heard the anecdotal stories about more young people living at home. We love seeing the data behind the tales, and this one checks out. That slope is distinctly up and to the right, and we would only expect it to become more material following the cost of living increases seen in 2022. Make those RESP contributions.

Source: ONS, Apollo Chief Economist

Focusing is about saying no | Steve Jobs

A classic video showing the moment Steve Jobs publicly transitioned Apple to a company with focus, arguably setting off one of the greatest reinventions in corporate history. There was a massive amount of skepticism and harsh reporting at the time given the volume of projects being cut. History certainly vindicated Jobs on this one.

The result of that focus is going to be some really great products where the total is much greater than the sum of the parts

What do US Growth Zones Have in Common?

There is certainly a bit more nuance than is suggested in this article, but there is lots of interesting data here on housing supply and migration. All very intuitive economics at the core. i.e. more houses equals lower cost of housing.

In April 2020, these regions were home to 45.6% of 331.4 million US residents, a share that had risen to 46.3% by mid-2022. From 2020 through 2022, they accounted for 65.8% of new housing construction.

All Markets are Uncertain

Complaining about the inaccuracy of economic forecasts is a long steeped Gallant MacDonald tradition. Particularly when it is in the context of relying on the forecasts to make short term predictions. This article does a great job calling out the latest round of inaccurate forecasts. It’s also pretty funny.

I find it interesting that there is no Forecasters’ Hall of Fame. There is no one to induct.

Why legal services chatbot DoNotPay is abandoning its idea of putting a robot in court

A practical example of the puts and takes that will dominate AI headlines over the coming months. The hype reaching a slightly overblown level led to the announcement of “robots in court”…which of course is now not happening. That said, the practical implications of the, somewhat less eye catching, actual product here are hugely material.

Two weeks ago, we released our first GPT product on our website. It simplifies terms and conditions and lease agreements. So [it’s] live right now, any consumer can upload a lease for or the terms and conditions. And GPT will go ahead, find all the red flags, and explain those red flags to the consumer.