We have a new name, new website and audited 2020 results.
This week we’ve got big news to share.
First off, my team has released audited performance results that outperformed $ARKK since the Fund was founded on May 9th, 2020 and we are currently beating the Nasdaq across roughly 34 positions. You can view the press release here.
How does a team of four dedicated people beat a team of 38 at Ark Invest or a team of hundreds at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley? I discuss this below.
As you are aware, I’ve been publishing under Beth.Technology, but this name no longer fits the services we provide. I’ve evolved from a tech insider with a blog to an actively managed tech fund that offers in-depth research and real-time trades.
I can no longer run a site with my name only as this is a team effort. We are rebranding Beth.Technology as I/O Fund.
I/O stands for input-output and is used across all computing (cloud, AI, ML, etc). We specialize in tech growth, and this name symbolizes our singular focus on this niche.
As you’ll see, we outperform some of the best funds on Wall Street.
With audited returns of 115.5% from May 9, 2020 to Dec. 31, 2020, I/O Fund narrowly outperformed ARKK within the same timeframe. Our actively managed fund was founded on May 9th, 2020 following the launch of the premium service on July 15, 2019.
One reason a small team of four can achieve this performance is that individual investors have more tools they can use, including hedges, small caps and allocation to crypto.
The second reason is that we believe in each other and know our respective positions very well. By combining our specialized strengths, we outperform the major indexes and larger teams.
I’m amazed at how collected my team is under pressure and how humble they are during rallies. I’ll introduce you to Knox Ridley, David Marlin and Jessica Ablamsky below. First, I want to tell you about myself and how I’ve come to analyze tech companies day-in and day-out.
An Edge on Wall Street
Ten years ago, I started a blog on startups and tech companies for the private sector called CitizenTEKK.
I worked with more than 300 startups to help communicate the importance of their products to wider audiences. I also wrote white papers and analyst reports for deals in the private sector for about 5 years.
These reports simplified complex technical concepts so busy executives could make big decisions quickly on venture investment rounds and strategic partnerships, or decide whether their company should be an early adopter.
Due to high switching costs, adopting technology is often a costly investment. My research reports helped guide these big decisions.
About three years ago, I took this experience and brought it to public markets. The reason is simple. I saw lots of errors being made when retail investors attempted to understand tech products. Even worse, financial analysts with no experience in tech were feigning expertise.
Because I was trained specifically to communicate at the highest level on the importance of complex tech products and their strategic value, I saw an area where I could help.
I’m not an engineer—and that is a good thing. Engineers built products. I was trained to communicate the purpose of those products and their strategic value.
That experience provides an edge you can’t find anywhere else. Stock screeners, algorithms, quant models, etc—these are plentiful and therefore erode competitive edge. Meanwhile, having experience in communicating the strategic value of hundreds of complex tech products is the edge that institutions seek.
This is demonstrated by my results. I predicted the biggest stock drop in history in Q2 2018 with Facebook's miss and the biggest IPO loss in history with Uber in Q2 2019. I break down company strategies and product roadmaps before they become apparent to the market, which is why invested in Zoom and Roku from the IPOs and have been holding for a more than 1,000% gain.
My free newsletter is consistent and full of original research. In a world where research is ripped off and recirculated, you can rest assured everything I publish is original—and has been dating back to 2011.
This is extremely important, because borrowed research can’t stand the test of a steep selloff. I held Roku through two pullbacks of 60% or more.
Don’t guess with your hard-earned money. Seek out experience and find someone who offers more than the dime-a-dozen algorithms and trading software. I won’t always be right, but I’m able to outperform analysts at institutions because they haven’t spent a day inside of a tech company or a day working with a product.
Cathie Wood is a great example. She’s an excellent money manager but hasn’t worked with tech products or analyzed hundreds of startups and companies. I’m probably into the thousands by now.
Experience in tech is one reason why we beat Ark in our first year and why we are beating the Nasdaq right now.
It’s been a thrilling experience to bring my skills to retailers and I have no plans of slowing down. For fun, I thought I’d give you some throwback videos on when I presented to audiences on tech products.
