News - Silicon Valley Talk

Steph Curry Is A Gift

By Scott Budman: If you’re a basketball fan, a Bay Area fan, or just like watching poetry in motion, Steph is your guy. One MVP notched, a second possibly on the way, and currently taking the court as a world champion. But, like so many basketball players who are not satisfied with on-court heroics, Curry is also moving in another direction. Not a memoir. Not another shoe (although he does have a very successful thing going with sport clothing..

Let Them Play Video Games!

A SCOTT BUDMAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE EVOLVING WORLD OF TECHNOLOGY I know, the conventional wisdom is that video games are bad. I’ve heard that since I was a little kid, which takes us back to the early days of the Atari 2600, where “Pac-Man” was made of little squares, and “Space Invaders” was cutting edge. Games were evil way back then, just like they supposedly are now. Here’s the thing: Since I was a kid, and have grown up, lots of engineers have also g..

Tech’s Young Guns

By Scott Budman:They’re the Young Guns. Seen by some as too young and too cocky; seen by others as the future of the world’s greatest wealth creation engine. Here in Silicon Valley, we hold a special place for young executives. Men and women who wouldn’t get the time of day in most traditional smokestack industries, but who are treated like royalty in tech. They start companies, convince people twice their age to part with hundreds of millions of dollars i..

The first time I met Steve Jobs

By Scott Budman:I remember, as if it was yesterday, the first time I interviewed Steve Jobs, one-on-one, with no other crews in the room. Of course, I also remember when Steve Jobs got fired. I wasn’t reporting back then, but knew of Apple, because it was cool, I was from the Bay Area, and some of my friends had Apple computers. But back to the interview. I wondered if I’d get to experience the “Full Steve.” You know: cocky, impatient, brilliant. The whole..

Investing With the Stars

By Scott Budman I’m hustled down a hallway, for a secretive, exclusive one-on-one. No one can see, and the crowds are kept away. The handler says “You’ll have three minutes.” This, as you might imagine, rarely happens when we reporters talk to Venture Capitalists. This is no ordinary VC, though. It’s Jared Leto, heartthrob thespian and winner of this year’s Oscar for Best Supporting Actor (“Dallas Buyer’s Club”), certified rock star (“30 Seconds To Mars”)..

"Watching Your Health" by Scott Budman

It will tell you the time. The weather. Your stock prices. You can book an Uber ride, a hotel room, or a pizza, all by touching the screen. But, unlike your smartphone, you don’t have to expend the effort to take it out of your pocket. After all the hype, the Apple Watch is here. My first impression? It’s an awful lot like an iPhone – not that that’s a bad thing – but with a much smaller screen. Now, to be honest, if you’ve already spent the money for a sm..