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23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

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Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#71

Post by breck »

mminer237 wrote: post #66
breck wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I get that, and yeah have seen some of the same movies. I do see a lot of potential in 23andMe (though I loathe the name—never put a number in your name! numbers are incredibly overloaded—millions of times less combinatorics; and they become outdated almost immediately—23 is a largely meaningless number). But 23AndMe at least has built a large number of paying users. If they look at where medicine could be in 10-20 y…

It's not meaningless. Humans have 23 chromosomes (except for those with Down syndrome). That's never going to become outdated.

Click "go to definition" enough and you will figure out what I'm talking about.

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#72

Post by throw_away »

breck wrote: post #50
runako wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You shouldn't take investment advice from strangers on the Internet, but you also should know what you're buying before you buy it.

Dan got me invested in some kind of fruit company. So then I got a call from him, saying we don't have to worry about money no more.

Likewise, the film Forrest Gump should not be considered sound investment advice

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#73

Post by ethanbond »

ericmay wrote: post #40
lordnacho wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Am I the only one who thinks that's a massive hole in the rules? You IPO an empty shell, which passes easily because it does nothing, and then any old shop with a messy business can then be bought by it?

I wouldn't consider it a hole in the rules, it's more of an alternative listing method. In my view, nothing materially changes. If 23andMe is a turd then an IPO through Goldman or JPMorgan isn't going to really change that, and neither will an SPAC. Although it's a little bit "gambling" because you don't know what the SPAC acquisition will be ahead of time, I think the SPAC vehicle is great for retail investors. If y…

What? At least as described above, the material requirements for disclosures changes. Is the description above wrong or do you not find disclosures to public market investors to be material?

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#74

Post by breck »

AlexandrB wrote: post #65
breck wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, I have her 2006 letter and there seems to be some inconsistencies: "As you all know, I'm rich enough from Google that I could just go kick it on a South Pacific Island. Instead though, I'm going to spend the next 15 years of my life grinding, taking flak of the press and internet trolls, so that I can set the record for helping the most people in the world learn there ancestry and pioneer mass genetic testing…

There's a weird push and pull on Hacker News where if a company does something unethical it's: "Well what did you expect, they have an obligation to maximize shareholder value", but at the same time founder and CEOs are often venerated as hard-working, almost selfless individuals who dedicated their lives to make the world a better place in spite of their own self-interest. It's pretty jarring.

There are 100 kinds of people in the world.

1) People who want to get rich first but also would be happy to make the world better

10) People who care about making the world better first but also would be happy to be rich

11) People who are enlightened and don't care about such things

100) People who just love to troll the other 11 groups

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#76

Post by benkoller »

breck wrote: post #71
mminer237 wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not meaningless. Humans have 23 chromosomes (except for those with Down syndrome). That's never going to become outdated.

Click "go to definition" enough and you will figure out what I'm talking about.

Godmode troll activated.

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#77

Post by lotsofpulp »

lordnacho wrote: post #57
tachyonbeam wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right now it kind of seems like every IPO does happen this way. There's kind of a SPAC mania going on. I can name at least 5 companies that are going public through SPACs, and two more that are rumored to be doing the same soon (Virgin Orbit and Lucid Motors).

What I mean is why don't traditional businesses IPO in this way? If it's a pain to do due dilly with a real business, why isn't this a back door?

Theoretically, you get a lower price with an SPAC. However, if so much money is looking for returns, then the price might not be so low as to discourage it compared to other traditional ways to IPO.

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#78

Post by fartcannon »

AlexandrB wrote: post #65
breck wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, I have her 2006 letter and there seems to be some inconsistencies: "As you all know, I'm rich enough from Google that I could just go kick it on a South Pacific Island. Instead though, I'm going to spend the next 15 years of my life grinding, taking flak of the press and internet trolls, so that I can set the record for helping the most people in the world learn there ancestry and pioneer mass genetic testing…

There's a weird push and pull on Hacker News where if a company does something unethical it's: "Well what did you expect, they have an obligation to maximize shareholder value", but at the same time founder and CEOs are often venerated as hard-working, almost selfless individuals who dedicated their lives to make the world a better place in spite of their own self-interest. It's pretty jarring.

Try not thinking of Hackernews, or any forum on the internet, as a single entity, but as many individuals. Some of them have conflicting views with the others.

Averaging the thoughts of a diverse group will just end up as white noise.

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#79

Post by buran77 »

AlexandrB wrote: post #65
breck wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Funny, I have her 2006 letter and there seems to be some inconsistencies: "As you all know, I'm rich enough from Google that I could just go kick it on a South Pacific Island. Instead though, I'm going to spend the next 15 years of my life grinding, taking flak of the press and internet trolls, so that I can set the record for helping the most people in the world learn there ancestry and pioneer mass genetic testing…

There's a weird push and pull on Hacker News where if a company does something unethical it's: "Well what did you expect, they have an obligation to maximize shareholder value", but at the same time founder and CEOs are often venerated as hard-working, almost selfless individuals who dedicated their lives to make the world a better place in spite of their own self-interest. It's pretty jarring.

Every successful founder or CEO sees themselves and their vision as fundamentally good for society, and at worst they may see some evil around their company which they'll chalk up to "price or progress". As the money starts rolling in and the price never ends up being paid by themselves (or the company) it's hard to see it as anything but a fruitful vision. One that's "good for all intents and purposes". The more money, the more of the bad intents and purposes they hand waive or brush aside.

Re: 23andMe to merge with VG Acquisition Corp. to become publicly-traded company

#80

Post by runako »

breck wrote: post #55
runako wrote: post #48

Here's a thread of basic diligence on the company: https://twitter.com/BluthCapital/status/1357469113422069761?... Possibly of interest if you're considering investing.

Thanks! It does explain why the stock price is low. I do have some problems with 23andme (and I've sent Anne a few emails about things over the years about a few simple things that they still haven't corrected, which is a bit worrisome), but that being said, who else comes close to doing what they do? I invested a lot in FitBit (lost a lot), but also Garmin and AAPL and MSFT (I just liked the wearable sector). Simila…

I don't know the space well, but I have been in a position to have purchased a few (IIRC at least 4) genetic tests used in clinical diagnoses. 23andMe was not a vendor that was used in any of those situations. Also, those tests cost a lot more than 23andMe's tests (this can be good if you are an investor).

Even if you suspect something based on a 23&M test, your doctor will likely require confirmation from a clinical testing company. That's IMHO where the money is. 23&me is analogous to the over-the-counter tests they sell in the drugstore, which we know are a cheaper alternative than a "real" lab test.

> who else comes close to doing what they do?

The other vendors in the space who are used in clinical environments ("real" lab tests). Think Lab Corp (LH) as an example. You might also look at the constituents of the ARKG ETF for other options. These are companies that have demand locked in through relationships with healthcare providers and are also able to charge more for their tests.

None of this is investment advice. Obviously you should not take investment advice from strangers on the Internet.

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