™
A strategic point-of-view & framework that empowers brands & companies to evolve, scale, & stay future-proof in an age of rapid disruption.
Can we consider Hermès to be a “platform” company?
Yes
Closed Ecosystem
Like Apple, Hermès controls every layer — materials, production, distribution, experience.
Access Token Model
A Birkin isn’t a product — it’s a credential granting entry to an exclusive cultural network.
Status Network Effects
Scarcity increases desirability; more demand makes the platform stronger without scaling.
Heritage as Source Code
Nearly 200 years of craft = a proprietary cultural protocol compiled into every object.
Durability
Retention: Products built to last generations — think hardware with infinite support cycles.
Vertical Integration
Tech Stack: In-house artisans, owned tanneries, deliberate inefficiencies preserve quality and control.
Zero Marketing
Dependence: Brand equity grows organically through cultural signaling, not ad spend.
Long-Term Utility
Ownership accrues value over time — not just financially, but socially and symbolically.
Trust as Infrastructure
Every Hermès object is a contract — of quality, origin, and intention — honored without question across time and markets.
How about Kia?
Yes, of course
Shared Tech Stack
Built on Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP platform — a modular EV architecture powering multiple brands and vehicle types (like a software framework for mobility).
Design-Led OS
With a sharp design identity and UX focus, Kia turns vehicles into expressive interfaces — design is no longer skin-deep, it’s interaction-driven.
Over-the-Air Updates
Rolling out OTA capabilities transforms Kia vehicles into upgradable hardware — with software-defined features and continuous improvement.
Mobility-as-a-Service Ready
Kia’s EV lineup and investment in autonomous driving and subscription models signal readiness for fleet-based and on-demand transport platforms.
Brand Reboot as Re-platforming
The 2021 rebrand wasn’t just visual — it was a systems-level upgrade, positioning Kia as a progressive, tech-forward company.
Opposites United = Platform Ethos
The core design philosophy embraces duality — like any strong platform, Kia balances extremes: form/function, tech/human, motion/stillness.
Accessible Innovation
While others chase luxury or hyper-performance, Kia makes advanced tech (like 800V charging) broadly accessible — democratizing next-gen mobility.
Trust through Group Synergy
Backed by Hyundai Motor Group, Kia gains credibility from shared R&D, safety platforms, and infrastructure scale — a trusted platform at mass-market reach.
Was Northvolt a platform company?
No, unfortunately
Monolith, Not Platform
Built massive, vertically integrated gigafactories instead of modular, interoperable systems others could plug into or build upon.
No Ecosystem Strategy
Tried to own the whole stack rather than publish standards, APIs, or chemistry “plug-ins” that could attract partners and third-party innovation.
Heavy CapEx, Zero Network Effects
Scaling meant pouring more concrete and capital, not harvesting data or compounding usage.
Client, Not Community
Secured one-to-one supply deals but never fostered a network of collaborators co-creating value on its tech.
Chemistry Hard-Wired to Hardware
Each chemistry was physically baked into production lines, so formulas were effectively old on arrival. No abstraction layer to swap chemistries quickly or iterate like software.
No FactoryOS
Every gigafactory was a bespoke build, and each machine on the line ran its supplier’s proprietary software. Data was flung into the cloud, but without a unifying operating layer to orchestrate recipes, workflows, analytics, or over-the-air updates, the factories couldn’t learn from one another or evolve at software speed.
Lack of Agile Innovation
R&D cycles were waterfall: any change required retooling hardware, not shipping code. No experimentation architecture, no rapid iteration loop.
Brand = Product, Not Protocol
Positioned itself as a battery vendor, not the energy layer others could build on and extend.
No Developer Mindset
Thought in gigawatt-hours and tonnage, not in SDKs, APIs, and extensibility.