10 Stories From the Web to Know About This Week At CGI, students offer edible bugs, YouTube grants super commenting powers, lessons from MIT's Comedy Hack Day, Thrillist's founders tell their startup story. This week's notable news and tantalizing tidbits for entrepreneurs:
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At CGI, students propose to end world hunger with edible bugs, YouTube grants uploaders super commenting powers, lessons from MIT's Comedy Hack Day, Patagonia launches "Worn Wear" line, two retirees realize their dream entrepreneurial dream, Thrillist's founders tell their startup story, the online sales tax is back… This week's notable news and tantalizing tidbits for entrepreneurs:
1. Eating bugs to fight world hunger: Former President Bill Clinton looked to business school students to solve one of humanity's most challenging problems: hunger. With $1 million in seed money on the table, these students have come up with an idea for bringing edible bugs to slums. (CNNmoney)
2. YouTube grants super commenting powers: YouTube is overhauling how uploaders manage the comments section for their videos. The change is expected to give creators Google+ comment-moderation powers. Would have been cooler to have superhuman strength, but we're not complaining. (CNET)
3. MIT's Comedy Hack Day: The MIT Media Lab hosted Comedy Hack Day to pair comedians with programmers with the goal of turning funny ideas into apps. This peculiar hackathon organized by Cultivate Wit, yielded a plethora of startup advice for all burgeoning treps. (Fast Company)
4. Patagonia says, buy it again: The startup story of Patagonia has become the stuff of legend at this point. But the outdoor apparel company -- known for its consistent message: reduce, reuse and recycle -- isn't done saving the world yet. Check out its latest line of "Worn Wear." (Business Week)
5. Inside the scope: Vice gets behind the sights of one of the most controversial new products on the market today: a precision guided firearm called TrackingPoint. This so-called smart rifle is the brain child of Austin, Texas entrepreneur John McHale. (Vice)
6. When life gives you lemons: Start a farm/restaurant. That's the crux of this cool story where one couple's plans for retirement turned into a business that supported their ideal lifestyle. Surely, it's an inspiring tale for all dreamers who seek a better life through entrepreneurship. (BBC)
7. Live mapping Russian streets: Here's how one young Russian entrepreneur wants to bring augmented reality technology to motorcycle helmets. Andrew Artishchev, CEO of LiveMap, is taking his idea on tour to secure funds to make his dream a reality. (Wired)
8. Dating advice from 1946: This awkward instructional film for teens going to junior prom in 1946 addresses the basic tenants of human communication. Although, quite the laugh to people in 2013, these timeless lessons hold strangely poetic advice for helping you communicate effectively today. (The Atlantic)
9. Young treps hit the big city: Ben Lerer and Adam Rich, "semi-recent graduates of the University of Pennsylvania," talk with Mashable about the meteoric rise of their startup, Thrillist Media Group. Learn how these entrepreneurs took a "product that didn't exist" to a multi-million dollar business in eight years. (Mashable)
10. Online tax is back: The discussion around online-sales tax has resurfaced in congress. In an attempt to level the playing field for brick-and-mortar stores, lawmakers have released an outline of the principles for online-sales tax regulation. The major point of interest: there's no small-business exemption. (The Washington Post)
