I don't think that's what the author is saying. If anything, I think the point is that the "revolutionary" nature of most hip companies (not necessarily from SV

I don't think that's what the author is saying. If anything, I think the point is that the "revolutionary" nature of most hip companies (not necessarily from SV) is really not revolutionary at all. Cutting edge progress in tech doesn't happen nearly as much as the general public perceives, but they believe it is because the slick marketing, subscription service for mundane products, adding an LCD touch screen to an existing product feels like technological progress, but really isn't. The few real leaps in technology that actually are unique and applicable outside of selling some product or service aren't visible to the end user. When Netflix caught on everyone thought "wow, technology!" Only some of us in the tech world realize that the idea of streaming movies and TV to your house isn't the amazing breakthrough they made -- it's the infrastructure behind making it work, and the layperson doesn't give a shit about that.