The Circuit: Cinco

THE CIRCUIT
LEADING AUTHORITIES' ROUNDUP OF THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, TRENDS, AND PERSONALITIES ON THE SPEAKING CIRCUIT
In advance of Cinco de Mayo observations this weekend, I have five interest items for you to quickly skim that may just be the perfect conversation interlude between the guacamole and the tamales. Enjoy!
FIGURED IT OUT FIRST
Want it delivered fast? Accurate and reliable every time? The Zipline team has mastered something that the world’s largest tech companies haven’t figured out yet – scaling drone delivery on a national level. Keller Rinaudo, Zipline founder, developed and operationalized the world’s first autonomous drone service to provide blood and medical products to hospitals in Rwanda within a 15 minute window. Now he’s making history again, operating in Ghana and set to scale in several other countries, including a launch in the U.S.
NEW IDEA? SOLD!
In a $200 million deal this week, Altice USA agreed to buy the three-year old streaming financial news service Cheddar. Founder and CEO of Cheddar Jon Steinberg will remain on board to lead Altice News. “Our goal is to make Altice News a leader … as we look to build a live news offering for customers,” said Steinberg of the deal. Steinberg started Cheddar on the idea that younger audiences were abandoning traditional television in favor of specialized streaming and would watch a version of “CNBC for millennials.” His idea, creative marketing, and distribution tactics (you watch Cheddar at your gas station) paid off in a big way.
HOW DO I GET AHEAD?
If the first two stories have you feeling like you want to do more in your own life, get some inspiration from Wall Street veteran Carla Harris. In her recent TED talk, she busts the myth that corporate America is a meritocracy and gives powerful advice for stepping up your professional game. Watch as she breaks down the different roles of performance currency and relationship currency and explains how one returns greater dividends than the other.
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2020
On her podcast The Takeaway this week, Amy Walter takes a look at the 2020 Democratic field and why Joe Biden might be the X factor that reshapes the race. In the early conversations Amy says voters are talking trade, climate change, and whether a woman can win the highest office in the country.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!
Congrats to NBC White House Correspondent, Kelly O’Donnell, who is celebrating 25 years with the network! O’Donnell has witnessed a lot of incredible moments – check out her trip down memory lane!