Image: Greg Ory / Ataur Rahman / Protocol
The future of direct listings

Good morning! This Thursday, what Palantir and Asana tell us about the future of direct listings, Google launched some COVID-suited gadgets, and what to expect from today's antitrust hearing.
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Yesterday was a big day for IPO critics: Both Asana and Palantir went public via direct listings, joining Slack and Spotify as the only large companies to have done so. IPO haters hoped that the companies could help prove that the traditional way of going public was broken.
But in the end, the outcome was rather mixed.
Asana did pretty well: It opened above its reported private market valuation of $5 billion and climbed steadily from there, closing the day up 7%. "I feel great with where we landed," CFO Tim Wan told Protocol. "Our new investors are happy," he said, adding that "the stock has traded in a pretty tight band."
Palantir's listing went less well. Though it opened at $10 per share, the valuation investors had reportedly been aiming for, they slumped, closing down 5% (although things did recover a little after hours).
The direct listings did show that their pricing mechanism works. Though the stocks did move, both companies' share prices closed relatively near where they opened — a far cry from the triple digit pops we've seen in recent IPOs. That suggests that if this had been a traditional IPO, the companies wouldn't have "left money on the table." And there was none of the volatility that some people suggest direct listings suffer from.
But the performance does raise questions about the future of direct listings. The next big development on the horizon is the NYSE's "Primary Direct Floor Listing" proposal, which will allow companies to raise money via a direct listing, rather than just enabling existing investors to cash out.
But perhaps the whole point is that the NYSE's new approach could be a middle way, one that leaves less money on the table but only provides modest opportunities for raising funds. Whenever someone braves it, we'll find out.
Google's product launch yesterday felt like a masterclass in launching products suited to the times. And I don't mean the slick virtual show: The actual products, and the way Google's rolling them out, might be a perfect fit for the giant mess we all find ourselves in.
That's most obvious with the new Pixel. Google's new flagship, the Pixel 5, is $699 — a full $100 cheaper than last year's Pixel 4. Between that and the $499 Pixel 4a, Google is clearly abandoning the high-end and instead concentrating on making a solid, mass-market product. In a recession, that might prove to be a smart bet: A lot of people that would have spent $1,000 on a phone may simply not be able to do so this year.
Google's also hoping to cash in on this winter's inevitable stay-at-home trend. The $99.99 Nest Audio is supposedly designed to actually sound good, while the $49.99 Chromecast with Google TV offers a much more user-friendly interface than past devices. Crucially, both are also priced keenly, going up against equivalent products from Amazon.
The new hardware might not have the highest specs or the flashiest designs — but with decent prices and good-enough specs, financially pressed consumers might not find themselves too bothered. There's probably a lesson in that for many companies right now.
Emily Birnbaum writes: Today, the House Judiciary Committee will hear from a slate of experts and academics about how to go about reforming antitrust laws and regulations to better take on the tech giants. The committee has been chatting with many of these (mostly progressive) experts behind the scenes for months, including Zephyr Teachout from Fordham Law School and Sally Hubbard from the Open Markets Institute.
The hearing is certain to rile up Mark, Tim, Jeff and Sundar, as well as free market Republicans and some middle-of-the-road Democrats. Why? Because the farthest-left researchers will lay out expansive, detailed policy proposals that would put the tech industry under a whole new regime of regulation.
This will likely be the last hearing before the committee releases its final report, the culmination of its year-long investigation into the market power of Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon. The report is expected next week — and we're sure it is going to be long.
You can watch today's hearing here at 1 p.m. Eastern.
Introducing QuickBooks Commerce, a new way for small businesses to grow
Small businesses need to attract and sell to new customers, but many worry about adding operational complexity – especially right now. QuickBooks Commerce is a new platform to manage multiple online and in-store sales channels and better maintain inventory while getting profitability insights – all from one central hub.
FCC commissioner Geoffrey Starks is worried about undersea cables:
Dick Costolo had a ... take on the Coinbase blog post:
A SoftBank investor said the company's reinvention is all down to Masa Son:
BitTorrent creator Bram Cohen had thoughts on The Verge's profile of Justin Sun's BitTorrent acquisition:
Ross Mason is leaving MuleSoft, the company he founded, two and a half years after Salesforce acquired it. He's focusing on his VC firm now.
Ken Norton is leaving GV, where he was a senior operating partner. He didn't say what his next move is.
Malthe Sigurdsson is out at Stripe, where he was head of design. I assume he'll go on to design more websites that everyone copies.
Chua Sock Koong is leaving Singtel, with Yuen Kuan Moon, head of the company's consumer business, replacing her as CEO.
Luke Schneider is the new CEO of Refraction AI, which makes delivery robots. He was previously COO at Wejo.
Evan Engstrom is joining Milltown Partners to work with tech companies on policy issues. He was previously executive director at Engine.
The best thing Google announced yesterday wasn't a phone, a speaker or a streaming stick. It was "Hold for Me," a new Google Assistant feature that will stay on the line when you're on hold and notify you when it's time to talk. Having spent the last six months stuck on hold waiting for airline refunds, this might be my true pandemic hero.
Introducing QuickBooks Commerce, a new way for small businesses to grow
Small businesses need to attract and sell to new customers, but many worry about adding operational complexity – especially right now. QuickBooks Commerce is a new platform to manage multiple online and in-store sales channels and better maintain inventory while getting profitability insights – all from one central hub.
Today's Source Code was written by Shakeel Hashim. Thoughts, questions, tips? Send them to shakeel@protocol.com, or our tips line, tips@protocol.com. Enjoy your day, see you tomorrow.
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