Responding to Linus - why people are confused and concerned on Lab32

[Morata]

Hello reader, (and hopefully @LinusTech because this was written for you bossman respectfully)

 

I want to start by saying that I am in no means trying to cause or start controversy, although I expect this post to receive a wide array of reactions including some that may be harshly critical and/or negative. I'm simply a long-time viewer who myself was baffled by the investment into Lab32, but not enough to be vocal about it until Linus made a few comments that really rubbed me the wrong way.

 

On the most recent episode of the WAN show, Linus said that he "(doesn't) see a problem with playing whatever game (they) have to play to attract people to learning more" - I, and I really can't say this enough, but I really hate this comment for so many reasons. Not only does it feel like Linus is calling his audience stupid, but you really would have to be incredibly naïve and stupid to believe that there is clearly not a profit incentive for clickbait-y thumbnails and titles. I watched the video, I watch all the videos, I know that LTT will make money from my YouTube Premium subscription and I'm perfectly fine with that. If I was truly angry with Linus or the channel in some way, I wouldn't have spent $400 on some gimmicky plush bananas, t-shirts, and the expensive albeit hopefully good (haven't received it yet) backpack. It just rubs a good number of people the wrong way when you are being dishonest about what you are. LTT is not a charity or a non-profit business, it's a for-profit business, first and foremost. I'm sure that a large number of the LTT audience is not absolutely loaded with money so seeing Linus go crazy over millions of dollars in equipment isn't exactly the most entertaining thing. To be honest, I am disappointed in Linus for a few things he's said, particularly how he still believes not having an HR department is acceptable, especially at the size of his company and the current year. I'm not accusing anyone at LMG of anything, but there will inevitably be a time when a serious crime will occur and even if Linus is capable of dealing with it, is he the best person for it, is not having at least one HR individual seriously worth it? I just think the days of a humble Linus are really gone. His house combined with Lab32 are really showy and don't get me wrong, I think the house techified is cool and all, but it is very showy.

 

Lab32's investment and the level of risk involved is purely based on what people calculate as "risky", and let's not lie here, Lab32, at least at the investment-level stated, is incredibly risky. Linus is and has been playing with fire for a long time, but that's fine, it's ultimately not my business at the end of the day. I think a lot of people, given that we don't see the day-to-day financials or the up-to-the-minute revenue numbers, see Lab32 as hedging too large a bet on continued growth and the ability to monetize the data it provides. I can't say for certain whether this is what happened with Floatplane and if it is net-profitable since inception, but the averaging trend of both LMG and regular businesses makes me concerned. I share the same feelings that Linus may have bitten off more than they can chew. I personally believe that Linus would have been better off building an American office in Washington, where they could have built a brand new building to whatever spec he and his team desired, as well as allowing people without Canadian permits to finally join the LMG team. I, and others, also take issue with the "democratization" comment made about the data, because we're not going to own the data, I don't think anybody expects LTT to just hand the data out without being cited as a source, regardless of if you'd even trust the data without a source.

 

I've watched for a long time and I don't expect that to change, but I do hope that some of the folks at LMG will see this and be able to extract something useful, or Linus will see this and get a better understanding of at least one take from his audience. I'm sure the replies will be full of more responses, I do hope this can be a healthy discourse for people to freely and fairly share their opinions of what I said and the company as a whole.

 

P.S. While I'm here, please bring Luke back to the main channel more, or to Techlinked, the hardcores miss him!

[emosun]

7 minutes ago, Morata said:

Linus said that he "(doesn't) see a problem with playing whatever game (they) have to play to attract people to learning more" - I, and I really can't say this enough, but I really hate this comment for so many reasons. Not only does it feel like Linus is calling his audience stupid, but you really would have to be incredibly naïve and stupid to believe that there is clearly not a profit incentive for clickbait-y thumbnails and titles.

So you dont actually know that he was talking about the hoops youtube itself makes ltt jump through in order for their video to even be recommended due to the majority of views being from clicks on recommended vs actual subscribed users.

In every respect if they could just title the video what it was and have zero thumbnail and still get the same view count , that would be way easier to do than doing the song and dance youtube wants.

[Morata]

Just now, emosun said:

So you dont actually know that he was talking about the hoops youtube itself makes ltt jump thrugh in order for their video to even be recommended

In every respect if they could just title the video what it was and have zero thumbnail and still get the same view count , that would be way easier to do than doing the song and dance youtube wants.

I'm aware of "gaming the algorithm" and I think that would have been a far more appropriate response, and he did mention it slightly. In this case though, I believe the "learning" part is what seems disingenuous and misleading at best.

[emosun]

16 minutes ago, Morata said:

particularly how he still believes not having an HR department is acceptable, especially at the size of his company and the current year.

I'd also like to hear what size company you feel needs an HR department. Because I worked as a waitress at a resturaunt with twice the number of employees as lmg and it didn't have an HR department. and it was a normal sized resturaunt not even particularly large at all.

In my opinion , they spent more time considering and were more careful choosing the path for the concerns you brought up than you did typing them. I don't care about lmg at all but I can definitely tell when someone started a rant without ever considering they might be just incredibly far off the mark.

[Vishera]

The concern is understandable, LMG is becoming more corporate by the day and it raises issues and concerns.

We are yet to see whether those concerns are justified.

[Morata]

22 minutes ago, emosun said:

I'd also like to hear what size company you feel needs an HR department. Because I worked as a waitress at a restaurant with twice the number of employees as LMG and it didn't have an HR department. and it was a normal sized restaurant not even particularly large at all.

In my opinion , they spent more time considering and were more careful choosing the path for the concerns you brought up than you did typing them. I don't care about LMG at all but I can definitely tell when someone started a rant without ever considering they might be just incredibly far off the mark.

Well, they have the money to invest in the business. I think they should invest a tiny portion in HR. I know that Linus hates it, but I think it would make his company run smoother if/when issues arise. I'm not an expert by any means so I have no idea when HR is truly required.

[LinusTech]

Thanks for the post, but I think it's pretty plain that we are a for-profit enterprise. 

 

We need watch time to survive. 

 

The way we build long-term viewership is by ensuring that our videos contain substance in addition to entertainment. That's where the education part comes in. 

 

As for the investment into the lab, thank you for your concern, but we are fine. We sold a cool $5M+ of backpacks this month and screwdriver looks like it's going to be a smash hit. Those are the only really big bets that I was counting on to get lab up in the air. We have a very safe runway at this point. 

[jeo]

33 minutes ago, LinusTech said:

As for the investment into the lab, thank you for your concern, but we are fine. We sold a cool $5M+ of backpacks this month and screwdriver looks like it's going to be a smash hit. Those are the only really big bets that I was counting on to get lab up in the air. We have a very safe runway at this point. 

Is the end goal of the lab to be self sustaining like floatplane, or is its mission just to provide research and data for other parts of LMG?

[AndyW99]

I personally don't see an issue with the lack of a HR department as ,whilst LMG has clearly grown, it still has a relatively small workforce (based on personal experience). As long as HR aspects are covered within the local management a dedicated HR department may not be required. I say all this without knowing the inner workings of the company to be fair.

 

In regards to Linus' new home, I don't see thats fair to be saying its "showy" as its quite clear how much the company has grown from the start so surely having an increased income to afford a house like that is expected? I enjoy the videos of it being kitted out and I think it helps give us ideas too

 

It would be interesting to know the long term goal of Lab32 though as asked but I think treating it as an investment is kinda fair and I look forward to the better data being collected regardless of its use. But this is all just my opinion!

[Neroon]

3 hours ago, LinusTech said:

Thanks for the post, but I think it's pretty plain that we are a for-profit enterprise. 

 

We need watch time to survive. 

 

The way we build long-term viewership is by ensuring that our videos contain substance in addition to entertainment. That's where the education part comes in. 

 

As for the investment into the lab, thank you for your concern, but we are fine. We sold a cool $5M+ of backpacks this month and screwdriver looks like it's going to be a smash hit. Those are the only really big bets that I was counting on to get lab up in the air. We have a very safe runway at this point. 

How dare you talk numbers!!! Now people know you are raking in cash and just flaunt it!!!

 

Also can you please stop doing things to keep viewership high and other sources of income, because we want you to have less money, so you can no longer pay your people and invest in things such as the lab.

Oh and sell merch at cost, I thought this was a communist 'company'!

[LinusTech]

3 hours ago, jeo said:

Is the end goal of the lab to be self sustaining like floatplane, or is its mission just to provide research and data for other parts of LMG?

Hard to say. Only time will tell. One way or another I'm committed to it 100%

[Dracarris]

4 hours ago, LinusTech said:

Thanks for the post, but I think it's pretty plain that we are a for-profit enterprise.

That's all fine and dandy. I think there is only one big danger that others have already pointed out in other threads: Do not go corporate.

 

It will destroy so much what makes LTT currently so great. And I have a guts feeling that you're currently (with the massive expansion and all) at the edge of falling for that danger. I hope I am wrong.

[jeo]

30 minutes ago, LinusTech said:

Hard to say. Only time will tell. One way or another I'm committed to it 100%

Very excited to hear that!

I don't know if I am representative of the a large portion of your audience but if labs is able to offer something comparable to NYT's Wirecutter or Consumer Reports I could absolutely see myself paying a monthly subscription.