3 ms·

The drivers are going to be removed from the equation no matter what though.

thearn4 10y ago
I do believe that this is true, but I can't help but also believe that the timelines that the tech community has in mind are absolutely too optimistic. I think like many promising innovations (AI, VR, etc.) it will have periods of rapid innovation followed by contraction and lull, repeated many times until general adoption is realized.
- jon_richards 10y ago
  You're going to have a few palm pilots before you have an iphone.
erikpukinskis 10y ago
The drivers will get removed from the "bring me from X to Y and leave me alone" equation, but drivers who can do slightly more complex things while driving around (pick up flowers here, then get my son from Judo practice, and practice his French with him in the car) will be a huge market, bigger than the current rideshare market, and a better moneymaker for drivers. Uber just needs to think of themselves as a mobile staffing company and they'll be fine. Unfortunately, staffing is a market where "Move fast and be an asshole" isn't a great philosophy so they'll need a bit of a temperament change to survive.
- rtkwe 10y ago
  > pick up flowers here, then get my son from Judo practice, and practice his French with him in the car This would basically turn them into a private driver service and finding qualified staff would be a pain for anyone wanting a french tutor for the drive. Ignoring that as an off the wall example though they'll still hit a pretty hard wall with trust. Even if the fear is unfounded trying to get a huge number of people to sign up for random (to them) people to pick up and drive around their kids is running into a lot of child abduction/abuse fears that run kind of deep in the US.
  - erikpukinskis 10y ago
    > finding qualified staff would be a pain for anyone wanting a french tutor for the drive Why? Just filter on the "Speaks French" tag.
    - rtkwe 10y ago
      The supply would still be extremely limited outside a few markets where French is a primary or main secondary language. Also unless you're paying extra for the French speakers the chances the small pool will be already booked with normal jobs is pretty high.
      - erikpukinskis 10y ago
        I'm not saying Uber should become a service for French tutors. I'm saying every Uber driver has a unique value-add and in a large market there will be plenty of customers for those additional skills. Are you trying to argue that there is zero use for a person with a car who speaks French in a city like San Francisco? I really don't understand what you're trying to convince me.

I do believe that this is true, but I can't help but also believe that the timelines that the tech community has in mind are absolutely too optimistic. I think like many promising innovations (AI, VR, etc.) it will have periods of rapid innovation followed by contraction and lull, repeated many times until general adoption is realized.

jon_richards 10y ago
You're going to have a few palm pilots before you have an iphone.

erikpukinskis 10y ago

The drivers will get removed from the "bring me from X to Y and leave me alone" equation, but drivers who can do slightly more complex things while driving around (pick up flowers here, then get my son from Judo practice, and practice his French with him in the car) will be a huge market, bigger than the current rideshare market, and a better moneymaker for drivers. Uber just needs to think of themselves as a mobile staffing company and they'll be fine. Unfortunately, staffing is a market where "Move fast and be an asshole" isn't a great philosophy so they'll need a bit of a temperament change to survive.

rtkwe 10y ago
> pick up flowers here, then get my son from Judo practice, and practice his French with him in the car This would basically turn them into a private driver service and finding qualified staff would be a pain for anyone wanting a french tutor for the drive. Ignoring that as an off the wall example though they'll still hit a pretty hard wall with trust. Even if the fear is unfounded trying to get a huge number of people to sign up for random (to them) people to pick up and drive around their kids is running into a lot of child abduction/abuse fears that run kind of deep in the US.
- erikpukinskis 10y ago
  > finding qualified staff would be a pain for anyone wanting a french tutor for the drive Why? Just filter on the "Speaks French" tag.
  - rtkwe 10y ago
    The supply would still be extremely limited outside a few markets where French is a primary or main secondary language. Also unless you're paying extra for the French speakers the chances the small pool will be already booked with normal jobs is pretty high.
    - erikpukinskis 10y ago
      I'm not saying Uber should become a service for French tutors. I'm saying every Uber driver has a unique value-add and in a large market there will be plenty of customers for those additional skills. Are you trying to argue that there is zero use for a person with a car who speaks French in a city like San Francisco? I really don't understand what you're trying to convince me.