Episode
#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
Description
What I learned from reading The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution by Gregory Zuckerman The story of the greatest moneymaker of all time [0:01]Simons prefers to move in silence [1:40]Unknown Unknowns > Known Knowns / Wise people always know exactly why something won’t work. That is why I never employ an expert in full bloom. —Henry Ford [2:42]A one word summary of the book: PERSISTENCE [4:15]Simons’ early life / Only the arrogant are self-confident enough to push their creative ideas on others. —Nolan Bushnell [4:44]Advice from his father: Do what you like in life, not what you feel you should do. [6:16]Personality: Jim had a persistent and burning desire to be wealthy [7:20]A seed has been planted + Jim’s existential crisis [9:55]Lessons from codebreaking that Jim applies to his business later [14:08]Jim Simons at 29 years of age: Fired, father of 3 young children, no idea what his future holds [20:00]Jim Simons at 33 years of age: Genius and madness are next-door neighbors [21:44]Jim Simons at 40 years of age: Jim finally makes the jump. Only misfits understand misfits [22:55]Jim’s first trading style [28:00]We all go through times like this: DON’T QUIT! [29:15]Jim Simons at 44 years of age / Jim’s partner doesn’t see the point in developing automated trading system / Giant success followed by giants failures [34:30]Back to being filled with self-doubt [37:15]Our mind loves playing tricks on us [38:00]Jim Simons studied the past to gain an information advantage [41:00]Finally, the new strategy starts working! / Even with wild success people will tell you that you are wrong [46:55]Business is like nature, it doesn’t care if you arrive at the right answer from the wrong reasoning. [52:50]Emperors want empires [57:02]Life advice from an 82 year old Jim Simons [1:02:40]—“I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am interested so my poor wallet suffers. ” — GarethBe like Gareth. Buy a book: All the books featured on Founders Podcast
Chapters
The book is about Jim Simmons, a former codebreaker who founded Renaissance Technologies, a quantitative hedge fund that has generated average annual returns of 66 percent since 1988.
00:00 - 01:40 (01:40)
Summary
The book is about Jim Simmons, a former codebreaker who founded Renaissance Technologies, a quantitative hedge fund that has generated average annual returns of 66 percent since 1988. The book delves into the algorithms and data-driven approach that made the fund so successful, and the reclusive personality of Simmons who did not want the book to be written.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
Experts have a lot of good ideas but they always know why something won't work; this phenomenon is discussed in the context of investing and entrepreneurship.
01:40 - 05:51 (04:11)
Summary
Experts have a lot of good ideas but they always know why something won't work; this phenomenon is discussed in the context of investing and entrepreneurship.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The podcast delves into the mind of a brilliant mathematician and how he used his thought processes to solve complex problems.
05:51 - 12:03 (06:11)
Summary
The podcast delves into the mind of a brilliant mathematician and how he used his thought processes to solve complex problems. It also sheds light on his unwavering persistence and character traits that helped him overcome struggles in life.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The main motivation for most entrepreneurs is to have control over their work and personal lives, with money being seen as a means to buy independence.
12:03 - 19:33 (07:30)
Summary
The main motivation for most entrepreneurs is to have control over their work and personal lives, with money being seen as a means to buy independence. Staying close to the money is a key aspect of success.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The importance of exposing oneself to similar experiences to know that people have gone through it and it's possible to do the same.
19:34 - 25:43 (06:09)
Summary
The importance of exposing oneself to similar experiences to know that people have gone through it and it's possible to do the same. The protests against the National Security Agency 60 years ago due to a lack of original ideas by some of the smart people working there.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
A trader named Jim Simmons uses historical records to build a machine that prints money using mathematical algorithms, charts, and human intuition.
25:43 - 33:07 (07:24)
Summary
A trader named Jim Simmons uses historical records to build a machine that prints money using mathematical algorithms, charts, and human intuition.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
This podcast discusses the journey of a man named Simmons and his pursuit to create an automated system, which ultimately leads to success and wealth, but not without challenges.
33:08 - 40:24 (07:15)
Summary
This podcast discusses the journey of a man named Simmons and his pursuit to create an automated system, which ultimately leads to success and wealth, but not without challenges.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
By studying the past, a system developed in 1989 with only $27 million was able to generate a profit of $100 billion, emphasizing the importance of gaining an information advantage and ignoring skeptical outside voices.
40:24 - 49:01 (08:37)
Summary
By studying the past, a system developed in 1989 with only $27 million was able to generate a profit of $100 billion, emphasizing the importance of gaining an information advantage and ignoring skeptical outside voices.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The speaker discusses how understanding the sequence of books can lead to an understanding of market patterns, likening it to not needing to know why planets orbit the sun.
49:01 - 52:31 (03:30)
Summary
The speaker discusses how understanding the sequence of books can lead to an understanding of market patterns, likening it to not needing to know why planets orbit the sun.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The speaker talks about the controversy surrounding academic theories on financial markets in the early 90s, and the skepticism of some people towards them.
52:31 - 56:21 (03:49)
Summary
The speaker talks about the controversy surrounding academic theories on financial markets in the early 90s, and the skepticism of some people towards them.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The podcast discusses how certain personality traits, such as being restless for success, can lead to massive profits and growth.
56:21 - 1:02:29 (06:08)
Summary
The podcast discusses how certain personality traits, such as being restless for success, can lead to massive profits and growth. It also emphasizes the importance of drawing insights from different domains and applying them to one's own work.
Episode#108 The Man Who Solved The Market: How Jim Simons Launched The Quant Revolution
PodcastFounders
The speaker has a fascination with the early days of the Detroit industry and plans to create a series encompassing four books that focus on this particular aspect.
1:02:29 - 1:07:23 (04:53)
Summary
The speaker has a fascination with the early days of the Detroit industry and plans to create a series encompassing four books that focus on this particular aspect. The speaker does not have a fixed schedule but rather, focuses on his excitement about the current book topic.