Did you know that Kanye West only got 22% of royalties for his 6th album Yeezus? In general, musicians and artists only get a fraction of the value they create. NFTs are a perfect way for artists to reach fans directly and get a bigger cut of the profits.

Not all is well though! Stocks are on track for their worst month since April 2020. GDP numbers suggest the US economy actually contracted last quarter. So, the 100 trillion dollar question is are we in a correction? DDI contributor Amit Garg argues that the 30% YoY decline in Series A funding for startups might just be an early indication that yes, the correction is coming, and cash is … prince.

How can fans directly invest in musicians using NFTs? Is there a correction on the horizon? Can economists develop a theory of artificial intelligence explosions? These are just some of the questions probed in this week’s DDIntel.

According to one DDI contributor, Russia’s aggressive, but stalled invasion of Ukraine should give the Chinese government pause about doing the same in Taiwan. ESG investing can be valuable for society and your finances, but be sure to look for red flags. And finally, is it possible that Charlie Munger is too pessimistic for the future? We sure hope so! In this issue of DDIntel, we highlight 6 top DDI articles.

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Social tokens are cutting the middle man from the music business. Music royalties, A&R self-made jobs, NFT collections, and other opportunities arise thanks to the tech revolution happening in front of our eyes. This five minute article by Pavle Marinkovic shows how NFTs are being used by the music industry, and how you can invest in them yourself!

Amit Garg of Tau Ventures argues we are already in a correction based on funding data from startups. In particular, year over year, the average Series A is down 29%, Series B 26%, and Series C 23%!

Moreover, the view at Tau Ventures is that there are three factors contributing to the complex interplay that may lead to a correction: Covid transitioning from pandemic to endemic, the Ukraine crisis, and rising inflation. Check out this brief article to learn more.

The answer is complicated, according to Marc Patterson, Managing Director at BennuPartners.com. The truth is that there are indeed some sectors in which ESG has delivered, and some that it has not. Read this in depth article to weigh the pros and cons for yourself.

In this article, The Moral Economist takes on the challenge of applying economic theory to so called “intelligence explosions” or hypothetical short periods of time where an artificial intelligence becomes exponentially smarter than the entire human race. TME thinks that BCIs might just be core to the theory. Could it spell our doom? Read to find out!

Charlie Munger sees two major obstacles for Gen Z members: inflation combined with soaring real estate prices, and the complexity of investing. But author and entrepreneur Sylvain Saurel doesn’t think all hope is lost.

Check out this fascinating and fun read to see why you shouldn’t be as pessimistic as Charlie.

We conclude this week’s DDIntel with a hopeful opinion piece. Here, U-Ming Lee argues forcefully that Russia’s quagmire in Ukraine shows exactly why China shouldn’t and won’t invade Taiwan. Taiwan has impressive military capabilities and would likely put up quite an unpleasant fight for the CCP. Xi Jinping probably doesn’t want to lose his job.