The New Yorker Profiles Peter Thiel

The November 28th issue of the venerable magazine includes an in-depth profile of Thiel, the PayPal co-founder who now splits his time between a hedge fund, venture capital firm, and namesake non-profit organization, which created both the Thiel Fellowship and, more recently, Breakout Labs. Author George Packer traces the personal and professional threads of Thiel's story, and hones in on his efforts to re-ignite American innovation and reverse what he sees as a "tech slowdown" that has been present since 1973.

"When Thiel questions the Internet’s significance, it’s not out of an indifference to technology. He’s enraptured with it. Indeed, his main lament is that America—the country that invented the modern assembly line, the skyscraper, the airplane, and the personal computer—has lost its belief in the future. Thiel thinks that Americans who are beguiled by mere gadgetry have forgotten how expansive technological change can be."

Read a summary of the 10+ page story here. New Yorker subscribers can also read the article in the publication's iPad app or online archive.

20 Under 20 Program Proves College Not Always the Only Path to Success

KTVU – Feb. 15, 2012

Peter Thiel’s 20 Under 20 program was featured on KTVU as an unconventional, yet positive path to success, citing one fellow’s experience with the program. Laura Deming, 17, was chosen as a Thiel Fellow in 2011 to pursue alternative therapies to prevent aging.

 “For those students who want to strike out on their own, there's a fellowship that will pay you to do so.

Offered by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, the '20 Under 20' fellowship program wants to help young adults and teens turn groundbreaking ideas into reality.

For two years, the 20 selected candidates under the age of 20 are given access to mentors and innovators already working in their field and $100,000.

The only requirement? The fellows, such as Laura Deming, can't be full-time college students. Deming was just 15 years old when she was accepted to MIT.

‘When I first got to MIT, it was a bit difficult to adjust to being in class and having regular homework to turn in. Sometimes I wouldn't understand the point of an assignment, and that was a bit odd,’ said Deming. She dreams of being a bio-tech entrepreneur. More specifically, Deming wants to cure aging.”

Read the full story here.

Tonic Health Selected as One to Watch at HIMSS

InformationWeek – Feb. 7, 2012

InformationWeek’s Marianne McGee highlighted Tonic Health's mobile data intake platform as one of the 14 most interesting health IT products and services that will be displayed at the 2012 HIMSS Conference.

 “Tonic Health develops patient-friendly and robust medical data collection tools for healthcare organizations, including physician practices, hospitals, and research institutions. Tonic's lead product is an iPad-based data collection platform that combines an easy-to-use interface, visually appealing graphics, and game-like elements with the potential to deliver higher patient engagement, more accurate data, improved patient tracking and screening, and lower costs. The technology is currently being implemented at all five of the University of California campuses as part of the landmark Athena breast cancer study.”

See the full list here.

Too Young to Fail

Technology Review – Feb. 3, 2012 

Technology Review’s Jessica Leber profiles 17-year-old Laura Deming, one of 24 Thiel Fellows pursuing their dreams to change the world. After enrolling in MIT at age 14, Deming “stopped out” of college to use her $100,000 grant to research new therapies for age-related diseases.

“Laura Deming was studying for finals in a crowded MIT reading room last April when her phone rang. That’s when she learned she may never again take another exam.

Deming, only 17, had just been chosen by Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel for a high-profile experiment: Put $100,000 apiece in the hands of 24 entrepreneurial teenagers and give them free rein to pursue innovative ideas.

The condition? Deming had to leave her studies and classmates, and vow to stay out of college during the two-year fellowship.” 

Read the full story here.

Pre-IPO Filing, Facebook Trading Privately At $84 Billion Valuation

Tech Crunch – Jan. 30, 2012

TechCrunch’s Erick Schonfeld utilizes auctions conducted on SharesPost to estimate Facebook’s worth. Based on these numbers, Schonfeld concludes that if Facebook went public today, it would get a valuation of approximately $85 billion.

“Facebook shares trade on private markets like SharesPost and SecondMarket. In fact, there is an auction going on right now on SharesPost for a block of Facebook shares which ends February 2 (the same day the filing is expected to hit). The last contract was yesterday at $35.50, which gives Facebook an implied valuation of $83.5 billion. The last auction on SharesPost closed at a ‘clearing price’ of $34 on January 20, which gave it an implied valuation of $80 billion.

SharesPost is an illiquid market with limited supply, so this is a very loose proxy. But it sets an important benchmark.”

Read the full story here.