If your share portfolio was heavy with tech stocks last year, you likely closed out the year with some healthy gains. The Nasdaq stock exchange, home to the likes of Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Tesla, closed the year with the value of its listed companies increasing 43%, thanks in large part to the hype surrounding artificial intelligence.
But that increase pales in comparison with the rise in value of cryptocurrencies, which collectively jumped over 100% in 2023 as the crypto winter came to an end.
Bitcoin, the most popular and valuable digital currency, climbed 160% to around US$45,000 for a single coin.
We have, of course, seen this sort of bull run often enough to know that it doesn't signal the looming mass adoption of digital, decentralised money. As much as I love the idea of using Bitcoin to pay for my groceries, bypassing the fee-hungry banks and credit card companies in the process, cryptocurrencies are still predominantly a speculative investment.
Technically, many offer methods of transferring value that are superior to the traditional financial systems that currently underpin the global economy.
But history is full of examples of leading technologies that failed to win the race against inferior rivals.
Denne historien er fra January 20 - 26 2024-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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Denne historien er fra January 20 - 26 2024-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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First-world problem
Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.
Applying intelligence to AI
I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.
Nazism rears its head
Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.
Staying ahead of the game
Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?
Grasping the nettle
Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.
Hangry? Eat breakfast
People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.
Chemical reaction
Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.
Me and my guitar
Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.
Time is on my side
Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?
The kids are not alright
Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.
