Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:34 AM on Tuesday, May 28th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
What Could Google’s Blockchain Mean For Bitcoin?
A Google led blockchain promises to totally change the way blockchain technology exists in the world.
Of course, Google have not yet confirmed that they are building their own blockchain as such, but we can bet your bottom dollar (or Bitcoin) that Google have employed a team to heavily investigate the use cases of blockchain technology.
A Google led blockchain promises to totally change the way blockchain technology
exists in the world. Of course, Google have not yet confirmed that they
are building their own blockchain as such, but we can bet your bottom
dollar (or Bitcoin) that Google have employed a team to heavily
investigate the use cases of blockchain technology.
Google are of course behind some of
the biggest technological products available in our era, namely Android
and the Google Search network. Combined, this pair makes Google one of
the most prolific tech giants around. This means notoriety, which in
turn means the name of Google gets about a little bit. In fact, you’d
struggle to find a person in the western world that hasn’t already heard
of Google. So, what does this mean? Well Google is clearly huge, they
are a vast company with a truly international reach – this means when
they release new products, they don’t have to work very hard to market
them. Moreover, because they already have a portfolio of products, they
often find ways to link them together, meaning everyone with an android
phone (for example) can automatically get access to the latest Google
updates (again, for example).
If Google created their own
cryptocurrency, called say, Googlecoin, this would be guaranteed instant
world adoption, simply because Google itself is already so widely
adopted. Moreover, people trust Google, it’s a name that people know and
therefore it’s a name that people are happy to buy from. A Googlecoin
would be well greeted within the world and this could have significant
consequences for the growth of the rest of the cryptocurrency market.
When one large coin see’s mass adoption, the entire markets will open up
and cryptocurrency all in all will become far bigger than it already
is.
The production and development of Googlecoin will ensure that more people start to invest in other cryptocurrencies
such as Bitcoin, XRP and Ethereum too. A Googlecoin would no doubt be
tradeable on many exchanges and as a matter of fact, we could also
expect Google to build their very own exchange too.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:25 PM on Monday, May 27th, 2019
SPONSOR: Tartisan Nickel (TN:CSE)
Kenbridge Property has a measured and indicated resource of 7.14
million tonnes at 0.62% nickel, 0.33% copper. Tartisan also has
interests in Peru, including a 20 percent equity stake in Eloro
Resources and 2 percent NSR in their La Victoria property. Click her for more information
Benchmark nickel on the London Metal Exchange surged nearly $500 in about 10 minutes in the morning, spurred by Chinese investors covering short positions, traders said, continuing the rally in the afternoon.
That sent nickel surging 5 per cent to a peak of $12,495 a tonne, the highest since April 30, before paring gains in closing open outcry activity to a bid of $12,370, a rise of 4 per cent.
Published on: May 26, 2019
Nickel — the key metal mined in Sudbury — spiked to its highest level
in over two weeks last week as bearish investors covered positions,
while other industrial metals gained on a weaker American dollar and
hopes for a U.S.-China trade deal.
World stocks edged higher and oil prices also recovered from bruising
falls last week after U.S. President Donald Trump nurtured hopes of
progress in U.S.-China talks.
“With the stock markets popping up a tad this morning and also the
dollar strength pausing, that’s giving the market an excuse to cover
some shorts ahead of the weekend, which is a long weekend in the UK and
US,†said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in
Copenhagen.
“But we are by no means out of the woods yet, if anything, it may just be the market pausing before we hit the next headline.â€
Benchmark nickel on the London Metal Exchange surged nearly $500 in
about 10 minutes in the morning, spurred by Chinese investors covering
short positions, traders said, continuing the rally in the afternoon.
That sent nickel surging 5 per cent to a peak of $12,495 a tonne, the
highest since April 30, before paring gains in closing open outcry
activity to a bid of $12,370, a rise of 4 per cent.
Put another way, nickel finished At US$5.5980 on Friday, up 0.2161 cents from the day before.
The move higher in nickel gained steam as it broke through its 200-day moving average, a key technical level, traders said.
* NICKEL FORECAST: Fitch on Friday revised down its London
three-month nickel average price forecast for 2019 to $13,250 a tonne,
from $14,500 estimated earlier, on rising global economic risks, an
escalating trade dispute and disappointing refined nickel demand from
China so far this year.
* COPPER: Three-month LME copper (another key metal in Sudbury)
climbed 0.5 per cent to finish at $5,955 a tonne in closing rings, but
on a weekly basis it marked a sixth consecutive decline.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 3:16 PM on Monday, May 27th, 2019
SPONSOR: New Age Metals Inc. The company’s new Lithium Division has already made significant acquisitions in Canada and the USA. The company also owns one of North America’s largest primary platinum group metals deposit in Sudbury, Canada. Updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate 2,867,000 PdEq Measured and Indicated Ounces, with an additional 1,059,000 PdEq Ounces in the Inferred. Learn More.
NAM: TSX-V
———————
The lithium industry needs a $17b injection to meet 2025 demand – here come the deals
One expert says at least US$12 billion ($17.3 billion) needs to be invested in new lithium projects by 2025 if the industry is to have any realistic hope of matching supply with demand
Corporate deals in the lithium industry are heating up at a time when
there is a predicted multi-billion-dollar cash injection needed to ramp
up supply to meet rapidly growing demand.
One expert says at least US$12 billion ($17.3 billion) needs to be
invested in new lithium projects by 2025 if the industry is to have any
realistic hope of matching supply with demand.
US lithium expert Joe Lowry told delegates at the Latin America
Downunder mining conference in Perth that the ‘Big Four’ global lithium
producers – SQM, Albemarle, Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium and Tianqi – could
not alone meet 2025 lithium demand.
“Overall, the industry faces a lack of financing and needs to inject
more than US$12 billion within five years to have a chance of meeting
demand,†he said.
“This requirement is exacerbated further by known and emerging
failures in lithium start-ups which have demonstrated a lack of
necessary skillsets – high profile failures that have discouraged sector
investment.
“There will not be any significant lithium chemical oversupply
anytime soon. While there have been many optimistic supply forecasts,
recent results speak for themselves.â€
He dismissed the forecasts of oversupply as a myth.
“The ‘myth’ is driven by reports from ‘big bank’ analysts and
supported by statements by Chilean regulator, CORFO, after its revised
agreements allowing Albemarle and SQM to produce more material from the
Atacama brine resource,†Lowry said.
“The reality is increasing production quickly is not so easy.”
Last year there was about 270,000 tonnes of lithium demand and Lowry estimates that will rise to about 1 million tonnes in 2025.
“It’s pretty much not argued anymore that e-mobility is happening —
whether it’s EVs or scooters or ferries in Scandinavia, the transition
to e-mobility is on,†Lowry said.
“My numbers are actually some of the lower numbers out there.â€
Battery-related lithium demand in 2018 accounted for 60 per cent, up from 25 per cent five years earlier.
“So this market is becoming a battery-related market. There’s really no question about that,†Lowry said.
But new lithium supply is hard to bring online and SQM, Albemarle,
Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium and Tianqi are likely only be able to maintain
their 68 per cent market share, according to Lowry.
“Almost every lithium project that has ever started with optimism has
taken three or four years longer to reach full capacity and that’s what
we’re seeing,†he said.
“That means there’s a lot of juniors or smaller companies around the world that need to get financed and need to get moving.â€
The cash injection gives Galaxy a roughly 11.5 per cent interest, and
a blocking stake, in Alliance, managing director Mark Calderwood told Stockhead.
Galaxy’s investment was part of a larger $32.5m placement at 20c per
share, which also included $10m from a subsidiary of Jiangxi Special
Electric Motor Co.
Jiangxi has about a 9.9 per cent stake in Alliance.
“I guess from [Galaxy’s] point of view it’s stopping us from being a
target for someone else to come and grab, and we were the cheapest
lithium miner in the market,†Calderwood said.
“Both Jiangxi and Galaxy are a lot bigger than we are, they’re both
experts in their sectors so that’s good for us and it enables us to be
cooperative in the future.
“Both parties have either a blocking stake or almost a blocking stake.â€
Australia’s downstream gaining momentum
Right now, Australia has absolutely zero per cent share of the global
lithium chemical market, but the Galaxy-Alliance deal is another step
towards building the country’s downstream industry.
“I think [Galaxy] has desires to go further downstream as well, and
Jiangxi [Ganfeng Lithium] already has that joint venture with Jiangxi
Special Electric Motors, which is downstream, but there’s other things
we can do as well,†Calderwood said.
The research partnership of 58 industry, academic and government
partners will address industry-identified gaps in the battery industries
value chain.
The goal is to expand battery minerals and chemicals production and
develop opportunities for manufacturing batteries in Australia.
Good time to invest
Lowry says rapidly rising demand and the difficulty in bringing new
lithium supply online supports his “thesis†that the market is going to
outgrow supply.
“Anyone who is interested in investing in the lithium market has a
great opportunity now because share prices are very, very depressed,†he
said.
“If you look at the market caps of some of the Australian companies,
even the ‘Big Four’ companies, their market caps are very much down from
where they were a couple of years ago.
“So if you’re interested in lithium, I would tell you now’s a good time to get in.â€
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 11:35 AM on Monday, May 27th, 2019
SPONSOR: Esports Entertainment
$GMBL Esports audience is 350M, growing to 590M, Esports wagering is
projected at $23 BILLION by 2020. The company has launched VIE.gg
esports betting platform and has accelerated affiliate marketing
agreements with 190 Esports teams. Click here for more information
GMBL: OTCQB
———————–
The First NASCAR Esports League Kicked Off This Weekend At The Charlotte Motor Speedway
This past weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway the first ever NASCAR esports league got underway, with the action taking place alongside the Coca-Cola 600 race.
Players on both Xbox One and PlayStation 4 competed at the event,
with Slade Gravitt of Wood Brothers Racing taking the win on PS4 and
Brian Tedeschi of Team Penske taking the win on Xbox One.
This race was the opening of the eNASCAR Heat Pro League, a major
esports league that features 30 drivers from 15 race teams, which are
owned by prominent NASCAR race teams. The league will feature 16 races
across a variety of tracks, with the league concluding at the 2019
NASCAR playoffs later this year. It was streamed on the NASCAR Facebook
page, along with the 704Games Twitch livestream.
“Charlotte Motor Speedway was the perfect venue and environment to
drop the green flag on the eNASCAR Heat Pro League season,†said Ed
Martin, managing director of esports at 704Games. “Our drivers fed off
the energy of the crowd and the thrill of competing on the busiest day
in Motorsports, delivering incredible action to fans in attendance and
watching around the world through our livestreams. It was exciting to
see the best players from across the country capture the NASCAR drama
and excitement through the NASCAR Heat 3 game before transitioning to
Coca-Cola 600 action. When 704Games, the Race Team Alliance and NASCAR
set out to create the first-ever eNASCAR league on consoles, this is
what we had envisioned.â€
Gravitt, who won the PS4 competition, is just 16 years old, and
decided to try and compete in the league after playing with friends who
wanted to see how well they could do in the qualifiers. He quickly
noticed he was pretty good, and went on to earn a spot in the
competition before going on to win it.
After the opening race in the competition Team Penske Esports are at
the top of the team standings with 78 points. Just below them is Wood
Brothers Gaming with 73 points and then JR Motorsports and Petty Esports
are tied for third with 70 points. Nine of the remaining teams are
within 10 points of third place, meaning the standings could easily
change very quickly.
The next race in the eNASCAR Heat Pro League takes place on
Wednesday, May 29, with the action being broadcast on the NASCAR
Facebook page and the 704Games Twitch livestream.
Indian government is reportedly
planning a national policy for skilling and reskilling of the nation’s
youth in advanced technologies such as machine learning, artificial
intelligence, and internet of things (IoT).
“Reskilling and upskilling is big on
the incoming government’s agenda. There will be renewed focus on
reskilling,†a government official told ET.
The idea behind such a policy is to create a workforce that can tap
into new emerging opportunities and help prevent technological shocks to
the country’s technological infrastructure.
“We would like to ensure that
individuals have access to economic opportunities by remaining
competitive in the new world of work and that businesses have access to
the talent they need for the jobs of the future,†the official added.
The government is said to have
identified six sectors for which a dedicated reskilling curriculum will
be developed based on sector’s demand. These selected sectors might
include financial services, Information technology, manufacturing, ecommerce, logistics, healthcare, and telecommunications.
The official also noted that
government might incentivise youth to undergo reskilling programmes and
might also introduce a dedicated annual allocation for this.
Earlier this year, IIT Kanpur professor had told Inc42 that
“Blockchain and data science are the most sought skills in jobs today.
However, over 99% of the Indian universities and conventional institutes
don’t have blockchain in their curriculum.â€
ADVERTISEMENT
“Although there is increased
awareness, the educational curriculum in our universities at large does
not fulfil the job demands.†he added.
Post the launch of 2019 interim finance budget, edtech startups have also emphasised on the need to focus on job-oriented reskilling
in education. Ishan Gupta, MD of edtech startup Udacity India had said
at the time, reskilling has become a necessity for people to hold
gainful employment in the face of the automation revolution.
According to World Economic Forum, over half of the workers in India will need reskilling by 2022, to meet the future talent demands.
Narendra Modi government has launched
Skill India initiative in 2015. The programme had aimed to train more
than 400 Mn people in different skills by 2022. However till June 2018,
only 40 Mn people were trained, wherein 25 Mn people were trained under
the skill development and entrepreneurship ministry. In the 2019
election manifesto, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had proposed the use of deeptech to aid the development of the agricultural sector.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:19 AM on Monday, May 27th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
The Growing Use Cases of Blockchain in Cannabis
Blockchain might relieve some of the pain felt by marijuana-related enterprises.
Governments are struggling through growing pains with this emerging industry, and blockchain may hold the answer.
In fact, as American industries go, its 250,000+ employees
far surpassed the 52,300 coal miners in the USA in 2018. That number is
expected to grow to 330,000 by 2022, and cannabis lobbyist group the Marijuana Policy Project reports nearly every state has some sort of pro-marijuana legislation at some stage of approval moving toward the 2020 election.
TruTrace CEO Robert Galarza took some time out from Consensus and Blockchain Week to discuss how his company’s StrainSecure platform is leveraging blockchain to resolve the most pressing issues facing the modern cannabis industry.
The company currently operates in
California and Canada, two of the most advanced cannabis cultures in the
world. California contains Humboldt County, home to the Emerald Triangle, which is known worldwide as the Aalsmeer Flower Auction of pot. Canada joins Uruguay as the only two sovereign states in the world where cannabis is recreationally legal.
Both governments are struggling through growing pains with this emerging industry, and blockchain may hold the answer.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:45 PM on Sunday, May 26th, 2019
SPONSOR: Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc.
(TSX-V: EGLX) Uniting gaming communities with 80 owned and affiliated
websites, currently reaching over 75 million monthly visitors. The
company exceeded 2018 target with $11.0 million in revenue. Learn More
EGLX: TSX-V ———————————-
Mike Tyson jumps into esports with investment in Fade 2 Karma
Throughout his boxing career, former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson knocked out 44 opponents.
Now, 14 years after retiring from boxing, Tyson wants to get another knockout, this time in esports.
Jacob Wolf
Throughout his boxing career, former world heavyweight champion Mike
Tyson knocked out 44 opponents. Now, 14 years after retiring from
boxing, Tyson wants to get another knockout, this time in esports.
On Thursday, Tyson announced a strategic investment in Fade 2 Karma, a
professional esports team best known for its time in Hearthstone.
As a result, Fade 2 Karma will construct a new streaming facility
near Los Angeles in El Segundo, California, the home base of Tyson
Ranch, a marijuana company owned by Tyson.
The new facility, called “The Ranch House,” will include private
livestreaming rooms, a performance stage for tournaments, content
production and a rooftop party deck. Connected to the facility will be a
new entertainment production studio, operated by Fade 2 Karma.
On Wednesday, Tyson joined many of the Fade 2 Karma professional
Hearthstone players for a livestreaming session broadcasted on Alexandra
“Alliestrasza” Macpherson’s Twitch channel. It was the first time the
former pro boxer competed in Hearthstone, although he said he had played
other games, including Call of Duty, in the past.
“It was pretty awesome. I had the opportunity to really engage with
some millennials, which I never really actually do,” Tyson told ESPN on
Thursday. “This is the first time, and I thought it was pretty awesome.
We played Hearthstone. I really sucked real bad. You have to start
somewhere. I played games before, so I’m going to start over and see
what happens from here.”
Tyson said that he first got interested in the esports industry via
his son, who is both a gamer and a fan of professional esports
competitions. From there, Tyson tasked his team at the Tyson Ranch to
find an opportunity that made sense — with Fade 2 Karma, he said,
emerging as an option that felt like the perfect fit. He said he
believes the future of the esports industry will be gigantic.
Fade 2 Karma was founded by German Hearthstone and Magic: The
Gathering player Tim “Theude” Bergmann in July 2015. Since then, the
team has expanded to include competitive Hearthstone players and
streamers from all around the world, including the likes of the United
Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, Israel and the United States.
Outside of esports, Tyson is developing the Tyson Ranch Resort, a
420-acre entertainment complex, luxury glamping resort and cannabis
research and design facility in Desert Hot Springs, California, about a
two-hour drive east from Los Angeles. Tyson, his business partners and
California City mayor Jennifer Wood attended a groundbreaking ceremony
for the site in December.
In other ventures, Tyson completed a one-man show residency in Las
Vegas for his “Undisputed Truth: Round 2” in late 2017. Tyson said he is
interested in potentially doing another one-man show project in the
future, but for now, he is focusing on Tyson Ranch.
Tyson joins a growing list of celebrity athletes who have invested in
esports in the past five years. Some, including Rick Fox, who won three
NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers in the early 2000s, and Golden State Warriors forward Jonas Jerebko,
have taken an active role in their organizations — being involved in
strategy, planning and execution. Other celebs, such as former New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez and musicians Jennifer Lopez and Drake, have taken passive roles.
Overall, the industry continues to become a new frontier for
investors looking to capitalize on the future of sports. In 2019, the
industry is projected to eclipse $1 billion in annual revenue, according
to a report by analytics firm Newzoo.
Technology continues widespread disruption of education industry
EdTech (education technology) is the latest and greatest innovation to hit the academic field, and it is changing the industry from the inside out, from every possible angle.
In short, it is a complete digital revitalisation.
The entire world has faced its many challenges in the form of technological evolution and advanced digitalisation. For example, education is
an inherently traditional faction all around, but the weight of global
evolution in the gravitational shift towards complete digitalisation
around the world, has forced education to rethink its approach, to
rewire itself to realign with the way of the modern world. It took some
time (and a lot of apprehension on the academic industry’s part), but we
are finally beginning to see the start of technological disruption in
the education industry.
EdTech (education
technology) is the latest and greatest innovation to hit the academic
field, and it is changing the industry from the inside out, from every
possible angle. In short, it is a complete digital revitalisation.
Education today is more efficient, more easily accessible, and faster
than ever. It has not been an easy road, and there are still challenges
that lurk around hidden bends in the road, but this is the beginning of
an exciting journey for education and its future in the wake of
widespread digitalisation and technological advancement.
Breaking down geographical barriers in global academics
One of the most
consistently ongoing problems in traditional education has always been
the lack of inclusivity in terms of access to education in general.
Traditional academic institutions operated mostly (if not solely) on the
basis of students having to have access to the campuses, as well as the
time to dedicate to the studies that those campuses were obviously
there to serve for. EdTech has introduced online learning, a modern
function in education that allows students to study from anywhere in the
world – all they need is a stable internet connection and a reliable
device to use to complete their studies. That is the power of EdTech in
vivid, brilliantly vibrant motion.
Taking EdTech to all-new heights
EdTech is so exciting because it opens students and educators alike
to a whole new frontier in learning and teaching, making it easier than
ever for everyone to have complete and exciting reach. Not only is
learning itself available online now as well as traditionally, but so
are the learning materials and the course information. Students can
literally do it all, from anywhere in the world, on their own time and
their own terms. Additionally, EdTech is bringing in personalised
learning on an unprecedented scale, making it easier than ever for
students to absorb content at their own pace. This ensures no student is
left behind, or forgotten, in what can be a chaotic environment for
anyone.
Finally, EdTech
introduces a whole new facet to the education industry for potential
career trajectory later in life. A new faction in education inevitably
introduces new jobs, and the generations currently experiencing EdTech
will have a strong grasp on its potential and its depth by the time it
comes to their own career decisions. These days, students can study a
whole new league of course offerings, as well as traditional courses, as
part of their own professional trajectory. Whether that means studying
courses in PGP in AI and Machine Learning,
or going to arts schools to obtain a degree in the arts, modern
learners can have it all, thanks to EdTech development and further
advancement.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:00 PM on Sunday, May 26th, 2019
SPONSOR: Tartisan Nickel (TN:CSE)Â Kenbridge Property has a measured and indicated resource of 7.14 million tonnes at 0.62% nickel, 0.33% copper. Tartisan also has interests in Peru, including a 20 percent equity stake in Eloro Resources and 2 percent NSR in their La Victoria property. Click her for more information
Nickel Prices Could “Go Through The Roof”; Watch For Signs – Expert
In the next five to ten years, the electric vehicle (EV) revolution will likely dominate the nickel space and will be sending prices much higher…
Guest(s): Alex Laugharne Principal Consultant, CRU Group
Laugharne said that nickel sulfide producers and the metallurgical laterite producers, who are most closely linked to EVs, are undergoing technological changes that may leave a supply gap in the nickel market.
“I think you’re seeing a lot of people being hesitant to invest in
new supply in the space because of this potential latent capacity. If
they do encounter technical difficulties, may fail to materialize, and
in that scenario, we may end up with a real crunch that could cause
nickel prices, and in particular, nickel sulfide prices, or pure nickel
prices to go through the roof,†he told Kitco News on the sidelines of
the Mines and Money New York conference.
