3 ms·

This is such high fallutin BS. Innovation is driven by demand. Yes - creating click ads is not as satisfying as [insert sexy innovation from developing countrie

• david927 10y ago
  Don't take it personally; he's not saying you're wrong to make a living. He clearly says he understands that the companies of Silicon Valley want to make money -- there's no judgement about that. But the author is also clear about the distinction: there's technical innovation, planting seeds, and business execution, harvesting the fruit. Planting seeds is expensive but you get paid back (hopefully) when it bears fruit. Xerox PARC created technical innovation, and Apple and Microsoft made billions harvesting its fruit. The author is simply bringing up what others, like Alan Kay of PARC, bring up regularly: that we are running out of fruit and no one is working on investing in planting trees. Silicon Valley of the 70's was not about anything demand-driven. True innovation is too far ahead that people don't know yet that they will want it. Silicon Valley at that time made true technical innovation. Since then it's become all about business execution of making money off of that innovation, and yes that's very demand-driven. Again, there is nothing wrong with that. But at the same time, you should be able to understand if he (and others) might be disappointed by that turn.