The Self-Driving Unicorn You Need to Meet & MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Bet | E2052

The podcast discusses the autonomous driving landscape, with a focus on Wave, a company that utilizes a camera-first approach and a single AI model to enable generalized driving capabilities. The podcast also examines MicroStrategy's Bitcoin strategy and its use of convertible debt to acquire more Bitcoin, sparking debate about potential risks and the company's valuation premium relative to its Bitcoin holdings.

Autonomous Driving

• 00:03:25 Wave's approach to autonomous driving utilizes a camera-first AI solution and a single neural network, offering greater generalization capabilities across different environments and vehicle types compared to competitors like Waymo and Tesla. The company emphasizes AI as the core challenge and aims for scalability through driver assistance features before progressing to fully autonomous driving.

Wave's Approach

• 00:05:55 Wave's strategy prioritizes building a robust AI model that can operate in various environments without high-definition maps. The company believes that camera-based solutions are more scalable and cost-effective, unlike Waymo's approach of relying heavily on LiDAR. They believe that consumer vehicles already possess the necessary hardware to run the AI locally, potentially making their technology more accessible and cost-effective.

Autonomous Driving Cost

• 00:13:44 Wave anticipates that autonomous driving capabilities will become increasingly affordable, potentially being integrated into vehicles costing as low as $30,000 within the next few years. The technology's core components, such as sensors and computers, are relatively inexpensive, suggesting a feasible path to mass adoption of autonomous driving features.

MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Strategy

• 00:37:02 MicroStrategy, led by Michael Saylor, has adopted a significant Bitcoin strategy, leading to concerns about potential risks within the Bitcoin ecosystem. The company's use of convertible debt to acquire more Bitcoin has raised questions regarding the sustainability of its valuation premium relative to its Bitcoin holdings and the potential for a forced liquidation if Bitcoin's price declines.

MicroStrategy's Convertible Debt

• 00:42:14 MicroStrategy's convertible debt, worth $3 billion, matures in 2029, with the lenders having the right to require the company to repurchase the notes for cash a year before maturity. This structure raises concerns about the potential for a large cash outflow for MicroStrategy, especially if Bitcoin prices decline, and could lead to a cascade effect on the company's valuation and the broader Bitcoin market.