DocuSign, a company that allows users to sign PDFs electronically, replaced United Airlines in the Nasdaq 100 index this week, a move chock full of symbolism as so-called "stay-at-home stocks" have rallied amid the pandemic.
Shares of DocuSign are up about 120 percent year-to-date, though CEO Dan Springer told Cheddar that he's trying not to think about the stock price as he focuses on broadening the company's portfolio.
"We were off to a great start this year before the pandemic," Spring said. While the effects of COVID-19 recently propelled companies like Zoom and Slack, they also "accelerated" DocuSign's growth trajectory.
To wit: in Q1 of 2019, the company added 3,000 net new customers. In Q1 of 2020, it more than tripled that. DocuSign is also seeing significant growth with its existing customer base, Springer said, pointing to a metric known as "dollar net retention," similar to same-store sales in retail. DocuSign's dollar net retention is up 119 percent this quarter, he said, meaning existing customers are spending nearly 20 percent more on DocuSign products and services.
Springer sees a major growth opportunity in what he calls the "agreement cloud" -- the unsexy, but potentially lucrative business of preparing documents and forms for signature, and then managing them once they're signed.
"That really is the future for this company," Springer said. "It's the next big cloud opportunity."
With its induction into the Nasdaq 100 -- considered a tech industry benchmark -- DocuSign will take its place in the index next to heavyweights like Alphabet, Apple, and Facebook just two years after the company went public.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
U.S. sports betting is booming as NFL and college football fuel massive activity. BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt breaks down trends, growth, and what’s next.
President Donald Trump says a deal struck by Netflix last week to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share. The Republican president says he will be involved in the decision about whether federal regulators should approve the deal. Trump commented Sunday when he was asked about the deal as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. The $72 billion deal would bring together two of the biggest players in television and film and potentially reshape the entertainment industry.
Disney's changes to a program for disabled visitors are facing challenges in federal court and through a shareholder proposal. The Disability Access Service program, which allows disabled visitors to skip long lines, was overhauled last year. Disney now mostly limits the program to those with developmental disabilities like autism who have difficulty waiting in lines. The changes have sparked criticism from some disability advocates. A shareholder proposal submitted by disability advocates calls for an independent review of Disney's disability policies. Disney plans to block this proposal, claiming it's misleading. It's the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while stopping past abuses by some theme park guests.
With a merger this big, creators, studios, and theaters all face uncertain futures. Here’s what experts are worried about and what good could come from it.
With disengagement rising and hybrid work shifting, 'Everybody Matters' author Bob Chapman explains why treating people well could define the future of work.
We sat down with Ali Furman, U.S. Consumer Markets Industry Leader at consulting firm PwC to ask what trends she garnered from the initial data this year.
