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In this spin-off of the venerable Acquisitions Incorporated, a group of new franchisees discovers that they've been assigned to a small burg of Red Larch, in a maybe-not-entirely-promising, actually quite out of the way backwater called the Dessarin Valley. Having concluded its run, this archive holds years of games for you to enjoy the story in its entirety.
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Join the entirely legitimate adventuring company Acquisitions Incorporated as they engage in completely legal business! One of the first "actual play" Dungeons & Dragons games, we've been at this since 2008. Is that a good thing? You tell me.
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Need yet ANOTHER D&D podcast? Look to Gold and Glory! Follow Five Fearless Franchisees and the occasional independent contractor as they develop "business" opportunities in the Saltmarsh test market! A Home Brew Acquisitions' Incorporated D&D campaign by just a bunch of regular folks who wanted to play D&D during the Coronavirus Pandemic. Somethin' a little familiar, yet a lot different...sit back, and enjoy the ride!
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Every company has a story. Learn the playbooks that built the world’s greatest companies — and how you can apply them.
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Announcement: Acquired Live at Radio City Music Hall!
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A few weeks ago, we told you that Acquired is doing something in New York City on July 15 with our good friends at J.P. Morgan Payments. Well, the big announcement is finally here: We are doing our 2025 Live Show… at Radio City Music Hall! Radio City is of course the iconic New York City theater that hosts the Rockettes and the Tony Awards, and has…
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What if we told you that the most important company in US healthcare was run from a farm in rural Wisconsin? And that farm contained the world’s largest subterranean auditorium, as well as Disneyland—style replicas of Hogwarts and the Emerald City? What if we told you that the person who started, runs and owns this establishment has legally ensured…
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When you saw this episode pop up in your feed, you either jumped for joy and hit play immediately (in which case you’re not reading this), or you said “Huh. That’s a surprising episode.” Well, if you’re in group two, boy do we have a treat for you! IPL is the fastest-growing, most dynamic and most disruptive force in the sports industry today… and …
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Rolex is a series of paradoxes. They sell obsolete and objectively inferior mechanical devices for 10-1000x the price of their superior digital successors… and demand is stronger than ever in history! Their products are comparable to a Hermès Birkin bag in price, luxury status and waitlist times… yet they produce over 1m units / year (roughly 10x a…
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We flew to Taiwan to interview TSMC Founder Morris Chang in a rare English interview. In fact, the last long-form video interview we could find was 17 years ago at the Computer History Museum… conducted by the one-and-only Jensen Huang! This episode came about after asking ourselves a version of the Jeff Bezos “regret minimization” question: what c…
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We dive into the unbelievable and unlikely history behind the quietest technology giant of them all: the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Founded in 1987 by the then-56 year old Morris Chang, already a legend in the semiconductor industry by virtue of his meteoric rise and fall at Texas Instruments, TSMC today manufactures nearly all the…
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M&M’s, Snickers, Milky Way, Double Mint, Ben’s Rice, Pedigree, Whiskas, VCA, Banfield… all the brands you know, owned by the company you know nothing about: Mars, Incorporated. And Mars itself is 100% owned and deeply intertwined with the Mars family, who are currently the second wealthiest (and perhaps first most secretive!) family in the United S…
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Our Acq Inc live show from PAX Unplugged 2024, featuring DM Jeremy Crawford, and Jasmine Bhullar, Jerry Holkins, Mike Krahulik, Holly Conrad and Anna ProsserBy Penny Arcade Inc.
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IKEA may be the most singular company we’ve ever studied on Acquired. They’re a globally scaled, $50B annual revenue company with no direct competitors — yet have only ~5% market share. They’re one of the largest retailers in the world — yet sell only their own products. They generate a few billion in free cash flow every year — yet have no shareho…
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Meta is a company everyone knows (literally, everyone). But, somehow, it’s also a company that few people feel they actually understand. Their products are used by more humans than any other’s in history — almost half of the entire world’s population daily. But… what is Meta? Why do they do what they do? How do they do what they do? Ask ten people …
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An Arkham Horror Mystery, live from PAX Aus 2024 with GM Kris Straub, and players Jerry Holkins, Ryan Hartman, Jerry Holkins and Mr. John RobertsonBy Penny Arcade Inc.
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Acquired LIVE from Chase Center (with Daniel Ek, Emily Chang, Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg)
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Here it is: the complete video of the most unbelievable night of Acquired’s nine-year life… our sold out live show at the Chase Center in San Francisco. We joked during the months (months!) of preparation leading up to this event that it was like planning a wedding for 6,000 Acquired fans, and the guest list included Jamie Dimon, Daniel Ek, Emily C…
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Mark is the iconic founder CEO of our time. At Chase Center on September 10, 2024, he did an unprecedented thing: a live conversation in front of 6,000 people on Meta’s company strategy, sharing stories from early Facebook history, and his thoughts on the future of AI, VR, and AR. Mark was remarkably candid in our discussion, and gave us a window i…
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Our Acq Inc live show from PAX West 2024, featuring DM Chris Perkins, and Jasmine Bhullar, Jerry Holkins, Mike Krahulik, Holly Conrad and Anna ProsserBy Penny Arcade Inc.
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Summer greetings from Acquired! Two items for this “mini-episode”: Tickets are now available for our live show at Chase Center in San Francisco, with special guests including Mark Zuckerberg (!). The show is Tuesday, September 10th, with doors opening at 5 PM for an hour of mingling with other listeners before the show starts at 6 PM. Huge thank yo…
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In 1999, Microsoft became the most valuable company in the world. And in 2019, Microsoft became the most valuable company in the world, again. But… what happened in the twenty years in between? The answer, as we discovered in our research, is probably not what you think. In this episode we explore and analyze the browser wars and the DOJ case, Wind…
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Series Finale. Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holkins, @TychoBrahe Jam Darkmagic, Rockerboy. Played by Mike Krahulik, @cwgabriel Silk Road (SR), Nomad. Played by Jasmine Bhullar, @ThatBronzeGirlNova Arya, Rockerboy / Netrunner. Played by Noura Ibrahim, @nouralogicalDM: Mike Pondsmith, @RTalsorianGames.…
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Battle at last! The band makes their way to the stage; Silk Road and Arman learn more about the forces mustering behind this musical melee.Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holkins, @TychoBrahe Jam Darkmagic, Rockerboy. Played by Mike Krahulik, @cwgabriel Silk Road (SR), Nomad. Played by Jasmine Bhullar, @ThatBronzeGirlNova Arya, Rockerbo…
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They've inquired, acquired, and now retire to their sweet new digs--at least, after a quick trip to the market. But a trip for groceries is interrupted by some gonk-ahh behavior, and the band's sweet gig might not be as much of a sure thing as it used to be.Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holkins, @TychoBrahe Jam Darkmagic, Rockerboy. P…
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Silk's at the helm of the hottest set of wheels she's ever driven--in more ways than one. Can the band, and two new chromed-up canid friends, maintain their hold on their massive new whip? Dare we ask for whom the Tetrabus comes?Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holkins, @TychoBrahe Jam Darkmagic, Rockerboy. Played by Mike Krahulik, @cwga…
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The Band With No Name have escaped safely from their LTB encounter, and secured preem billing at an upcoming show. But when their racks get jacked, they set off to find who else might be playing this scene.Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holkins, @TychoBrahe Jam Darkmagic, Rockerboy. Played by Mike Krahulik, @cwgabriel Silk Road (SR), N…
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Armin Drang may be new to the scene, but he and his band, Neo-Retro (subject to change) the first polymorphic band to hit Night City, are already well-known. Do they have what it takes to take on the music industry of the dark future, or will the headliner LOVETHEBEAST chew them up and spit them out?Arman Drang, Corpo (Fixer). Played by Jerry Holki…
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Starbucks. You’d be hard pressed to name any brand that’s more ubiquitous in the world today. With nearly half a billion global customer purchases per week across its stores and 3rd party retail channels, a significant portion of the human population gets their daily fix in the green and white paper cup. (Including our own Ben Gilbert who famously …
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Acquisitions Incorporated LIVE from PAX East 2024, starring Jeremy Crawford as the DM, Jerry Holkins, Holly Conrad, Jasmine Bhullar and Anna Prosser.By Penny Arcade Inc.
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Microsoft. After nearly a decade of Acquired episodes, we are finally ready to tackle the most valuable company ever created. The company that put a computer on every desk and in every home. The company that invented the software business model. The company that so thoroughly and completely dominated every conceivable competitor that the United Sta…
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Renaissance Technologies is the best performing investment firm of all time. And yet no one at RenTec would consider themselves an “investor”, at least in any traditional sense of the word. It’d rather be more accurate to call them scientists — scientists who’ve discovered a system of math, computers and artificial intelligence that has evolved int…
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In luxury, there’s Hermès… and there’s everyone else. Stewarded by one French family over six generations, Hermès sells the absolute pinnacle of the French luxury dream. Loyal clients will wait years simply for the opportunity to buy one of the company’s flagship Birkin or Kelly bags. Unlike every other luxury brand, Hermès: Doesn’t increase supply…
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Campaign 2 - E3 - Raiders and Recollections (Part A)
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1:40:16
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Laden with trade goods for their mission south, our Intrepid Interns set sail down the River Erigon to the border outpost of Tor Anwyn, but strange encounters awaits them, in more ways than one…Onwards! To Gold and Glory!By SeaSkyMoon
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Campaign 2 - E2 - Provisions and Pressed Juices (Part B)
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Having secured expedited logistics and premium trade goods, our Intrepid interns return to Bumbleberry’s for some well deserved R&R. Trisk attempts to make amendments to the contract. Sage samples a bevvy of bachelors, and Isborn goes on a date with Imperial Councillor Halona Autumnscar. And then…things get weird. Onwards! To Gold and Glory!…
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Last year Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company behind Ozempic and Wegovy, overtook LVMH to become Europe’s most valuable company. And the pull for Acquired to finally tackle healthcare (18% of US GDP!) became too strong for us to resist. While we didn’t know much about Novo Nordisk before diving in, our first thought was, “wow, seems lik…
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C2 - E2 - Provisions and Pressed Juices (Part A)
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Having bested gladiator mercenaries at the temple of Vedric, our intrepid interns prepare for their trade mission south of the empire, and attempt to secure provisions and transport for their overmountain trek. Sage signs a contract. Isborn tests his animal friendship abilities, and…the party is split! Onwards! To Gold and Glory!…
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Campaign 2 - E1 - Beginnings and Butter Pastries (Part B)
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1:13:34
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Having commissioned a trade prototype pipe for smoking halfling weed, our fearless franchisees continue preparing for their trade mission, and set about securing additional funding for their upcoming journey. The team visits the temple of Holy Vedric, god of profit, risk, and…gambling? Onwards! To Gold and Glory!…
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Campaign 2 - E1 - Beginnings and Butter Pastries
1:35:10
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Fresh off their first successful heist for corporate adventuring firm Gold and Glory, Inc, our heroes land what promises to be a lucrative new contract for market research and franchise expansion to the Grey Marches, in lands south of the Empire. The team samples some butter pastries, and commission some new merchandise…the first episode of Campaig…
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Ben has some big news. Actually, double big news! On what has become a holiday tradition here at Acquired, we cozy up to the fire to do our annual review of the show “in public”. We reflect on what can only be described as an absolutely mind-blowing 2023 (LVMH! Jensen! Costco! Charlie! Half a million plus listeners!) and look ahead to some big thin…
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Acquisitions Incorporated: The Series 2 reaches its conclusion live at PAX Unplugged 2023!By Penny Arcade Inc.
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To paraphrase Visa founder Dee Hock, how many of you know Visa? Great, all of you. Now, how many of you know how it started? Or, for that matter, who started it? Who runs and governs it? Where is it headquartered? What’s its business model? For the 11th largest market cap company in the world, Visa’s history and strategy is almost shockingly unknow…
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Brimstone, fire, and smoke surround our heroes as dreams and nightmares both come true. Starring: Jeremy Crawford as the DM, Jerry Holkins as Omin Dran, Mike Krahulik as Jim Darkmajiq, Jasmine Bhullar as Certainty Dran, Anna Prosser as Evelyn Marthain, and WWE Superstar Xavier Woods as Bobbie Zimmeruski…
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Jim Darkmajiq's history is revealed, and his future is called into question. Starring: Chris Perkins as the DM, Jerry Holkins as Omin Dran, Mike Krahulik as Jim Darkmajiq, Jasmine Bhullar as Certainty Dran, Anna Prosser as Evelyn Marthain, and WWE Superstar Xavier Woods as Bobbie ZimmeruskiBy Penny Arcade Inc.
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