Comment by simgt
10 hours ago
Interesting how all the examples at the top are in the form of "It started here, now it's worth $xB". At least we've stopped pretending it was for anything else but money, and the power that comes with it.
10 hours ago
Interesting how all the examples at the top are in the form of "It started here, now it's worth $xB". At least we've stopped pretending it was for anything else but money, and the power that comes with it.
what alternative metric are you proposing?
Was there ever pretending? It was always face value from "seed" to "rounds" to "exit" - all words describing money movement.
In my memory, the original vibe of Ycombinator was more like "achieve fuck-you money in your twenties" than today's unicorn chase.
True, it was always greed veiled with an illusion of passion
Here is my insight: VALUATION is not the same as VALUE CREATION.
Put another way, the ability to accumulate resources, is not a reliable indicator of the "good" being created in the world.
When the quantitative metric of "Money" is used a a proxy for value creation, it creates serious and dangerous side effects.
This is a fundamental failure mode of modern capitalism.
Capitalism requires ethical discipline. Without it, we get runaway resource accumulation, that rationalises actions and strategies (externalisation, extraction, optimisation-at-all-costs) which cause more harm than good.
The techno-optimists (See e/acc/Marc Andreessen)[0], frame progress as intrinsically good.
I believe a more prudent approach is needed, one that is wise and looks at business from the perspective of:
STEWARDSHIP & BALANCE,
rather than
RESOURCE ACCUMULATION & PROGRESS.
While I do not disagree with all he says, and do not think technological progress is bad, you will notice there is no mention of ethics in the entire manifesto other than as an "enemy".
Philosopher Charles Taylor argues that a defining feature of modernity is the rise of what he calls “disengaged reason” [1]:
This idea is captured bluntly in this video (paraphrasing)[2]:
In a sense, a lot of people in the modern world treat money itself as "The Sacred"
This is not to say I am arguing that money, profit and competition are morally wrong, but rather the way it is packaged. It is often elevated to the ultimate end (telos), rather than the means.
The fundamental category error is making the assumption that:
VALUATION (or Money in the bank) = Value Creation (For The Greater Good)
As you have rightly pointed out, the "It started here, now it's worth $xB" is an indication of this worldview, where the telos itself is "MONEY"
[0] https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/
[1] https://www.academia.edu/26548899/Disciplinarity_and_Islamic...
[2] https://youtu.be/B5FtHagng8c?t=249
Vulture culture: always was, always will be.
At least we got some decent side discussions in the small spaces during the interim