Silicon Valley meets Bob Marley

摘要

Men in suits swarmed everywhere, but not one spliff or bong could be seen. Any doubts that the legal marijuana (or cannabis) industry is now a serious business soon disappeared after a few hours at the Arcview Investor Network forum in Denver on June 26th. phDs and Harvard MBAS networked with investment bankers and hedge-fund managers to raise money for businesses covering every aspect of marijuana commerce, from consumer guides to insurance. Some eager punters discussed the secrets of emerging brands, such as those associated with those two legendary singers and weed experts, Willie Nelson (who announced in April that he is launching his own brand) and Bob Marley. Others debated how to make use of hemp, a crop closely related to weed but, unlike it, indisputably legal to buy and sell, and marvelled at all the jobs being created by the new industry.