31–40 of 136 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's actually a great captcha - if the presumed human can write a haiku about something very quickly, they are probably a bot.
Umm, I think any respectable human would simply deny writing a haiku. So, a bot can simply mimick that behaviour.
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So they can't be finance bros? I'm not sure what point you mean to make here.
I believe GP was specifically addressing the “this is America” part.
Either Klarna is really good at pulling strings to get media coverage, or mainstream media does not fact checking themselves. About a year ago, the company was everywhere in the media when its CEO announced that it created an AI bot that is doing the equivalent of 700 fulltime customer service folks. I did what seemingly no other publication reporting on it did: signed up for Klarna, bought one item and used this bot…
Glen Okun of NYU business school has written about BNPL loan portfolio weakness. The AI marketing is just an attempt to reframe the value narrative of the company before IPO. They would rather be seen as an AI company than an unsecured lender of last resort. The narrative on Klarna’s core business is not good in any case, either an extractive lender benefiting from people buying what they may not afford and charging…
I thought they more or less instantly offloaded the risk as asset backed securities to clueless people who didn't know the actual risk profile what they were buying
sound familiar?
Either Klarna is really good at pulling strings to get media coverage, or mainstream media does not fact checking themselves. About a year ago, the company was everywhere in the media when its CEO announced that it created an AI bot that is doing the equivalent of 700 fulltime customer service folks. I did what seemingly no other publication reporting on it did: signed up for Klarna, bought one item and used this bot…
Glen Okun of NYU business school has written about BNPL loan portfolio weakness. The AI marketing is just an attempt to reframe the value narrative of the company before IPO. They would rather be seen as an AI company than an unsecured lender of last resort. The narrative on Klarna’s core business is not good in any case, either an extractive lender benefiting from people buying what they may not afford and charging…
I think it is generally in the best interest of companies to overstate what they are able to do with AI. Investors aren't interesting in hearing "we tried vibe coding but got tired of reviewing and fixing the trash code it produced". No, they want to hear "we've reduced our headcount by 40% while increasing customer satisfaction by 60%". Overstating AI adoption and success amplifies P/E ratios.
> AI gives us speed. Talent gives us empathy Not sure if this is the primary reason. It just seems to me their AI adoption was unable to meet the baseline effectiveness of their human agents.
Either Klarna is really good at pulling strings to get media coverage, or mainstream media does not fact checking themselves. About a year ago, the company was everywhere in the media when its CEO announced that it created an AI bot that is doing the equivalent of 700 fulltime customer service folks. I did what seemingly no other publication reporting on it did: signed up for Klarna, bought one item and used this bot…
Glen Okun of NYU business school has written about BNPL loan portfolio weakness. The AI marketing is just an attempt to reframe the value narrative of the company before IPO. They would rather be seen as an AI company than an unsecured lender of last resort. The narrative on Klarna’s core business is not good in any case, either an extractive lender benefiting from people buying what they may not afford and charging…
Shopkeepers don't want it, but fear they must if big chains start offering it, just as online shops feel like offering it is unavoidable due to the popularity in certain demographics. The financial watchdog doesn't like Klarna, and is increasing scrutiny³.
If Klarna has trouble marketing their value, then that at least is good news, but not unsurprising given the spate of attention it received over the last two years.
1: So much for the ethical side of Adyen (e.g., https://www.adyen.com/impact sounds hollow when you partner with loan sharks).
2: Some people are quick to defend Klarna for offering people a chance to buy their necessities with what amounts to a payday loan, but that is bullshit. Klarna predominantly is not used for daily necessities.
3: Klarna now has to state that they are offering a loan in the Netherlands where they are available as payment option, with the mandatory "borrowing money costs money" tag-line.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I believe GP was specifically addressing the “this is America” part.
Again, so? The grocery store on my block is beneficially owned by a Belgian and Dutch corporation which feels no compunction in union-busting. What stops a Swede from similarly parasitizing my local economy?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Glen Okun of NYU business school has written about BNPL loan portfolio weakness. The AI marketing is just an attempt to reframe the value narrative of the company before IPO. They would rather be seen as an AI company than an unsecured lender of last resort. The narrative on Klarna’s core business is not good in any case, either an extractive lender benefiting from people buying what they may not afford and charging…
They are scum, and currently are suffering from increased scrutiny from governments for pushing their buy-now-pay-later exploitative business everywhere. In the Netherlands they are even attempting to gain access to brick-and-mortar stores by partnering with Adyen¹ which provides the payment solutions, but the government is being vocal about that being unwanted. This is in addition to the unabating coverage in the me…