Quick, what do Twitter, Uber, and MakerBot all have in common? No, they aren't the most recent recommendations in Motley Fool Rule Breakers. But if that's what you guessed, you're close (sort of). No, what these three companies have in common is that they are all holdings of Bezos Expeditions. As in Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com (AMZN 0.87%), one of the biggest Rule Breakers out there.
That's a really big clock
Bezos Expeditions is Jeff Bezos' own investment vehicle. It's his opportunity to do everything from invest in tech start-ups to recover pieces of Apollo 11 rockets to build a 10,000-year clock. And judging from its holdings today, Bezos Expeditions is certainly placing plenty of bets on the future.
Second screen
At some point I'm sure we'll all be able to invest directly in Twitter if we want. All indicators lead us to believe that there is an IPO for the king of 140 characters sooner or later. But for now, Amazon shareholders can take solace in knowing that our jockey was smart enough to get some money in on that game early on (at least as early as 2008).
Kind of like a cab, but pleasant
I can forgive you if you've never heard of Uber. It's well beyond just a cab service. Their slogan "Everyone's Private Driver" is spot-on. My wife and I used the service one night to go to dinner in Washington, D.C. I downloaded the app to my iPhone, set up my profile, and from there it was a matter of a click of a button and our driver was there ready for us, in a nice car with everything from bottled water to mints and publications for its passengers to read. They've even taken tipping out of the equation; truly a pleasant (and affordable) experience from start to finish.
In 3-D
MakerBot has been in the news lately thanks to reports that Stratasys (NASDAQ: SSYS) may be interested in acquiring the desktop 3-D printing specialist. How that actually will play out is anyone's guess at this point. Will Stratasys buy MakerBot? Or will Amazon buy it? Could all this press compel competitor 3D Systems (NYSE: DDD) to make an offer for MakerBot? Possibly. 3D Systems sure is familiar with the process, having booked 22 deals since 2011. But one thing is for sure: We are in the early innings of the 3-D printing movement ,and Bezos Expeditions had the wherewithal to get into the game before many.
What this means for investors in Amazon.com
These are just three examples of a number of investments Bezos Expeditions has made. In fact, according to the site, there are at least 24 such companies it has money behind today. Of course, they aren't all going to be winners, but some will be. And it further lends to the notion that investors in Amazon.com aren't just investing in an "overvalued" e-commerce play. No, it's far deeper than that. It's just as much a bet on a man who appears hell-bent on making a dent in the universe. And so far, I think he's pulling it off quite nicely.
