4 ms·

I agree with this point. One can view this is as an extension of the current trend towards platform/infrastructure outsourcing. If AI and ML are deemed essentia

I agree with this point. One can view this is as an extension of the current trend towards platform/infrastructure outsourcing. If AI and ML are deemed essential to future apps, we should be just as comfortable consuming it via a PaaS as we are with leveraging other parts of a cloud infrastructure. A valid concern, as pointed out, is when the large platform providers begin moving into domain-specific markets, leveraging their scale and closing out start-ups/small business. However, I believe nimbler startups will always be able to carve out a successful niche as long as they are closer to the customers.

phil21 9y ago
> However, I believe nimbler startups will always be able to carve out a successful niche as long as they are closer to the customers. The difference is where the majority of the "idle wealth" is created. Sure, there will be great business doing consulting work leveraging cloud providers - you can make a good business simply consulting on such things. However in the end you're simply enriching a large company. Whenever an "amazon cloud consultant" transitions a closet of servers to AWS - they made a bit of money, but the large bulk of the value of that customer is now in a giant corporation's hands vs. being spread out how it was traditionally (either in house, or via much smaller infrastructure providers that generally competed on service without much lock-in). The lack of competition in the web space is astounding to me, and will be incredibly damaging to innovation. How quickly people forget why decentralization used to be considered such an important goal. Yet it appears the entire industry is rushing head long into this model.
dlwdlw 9y ago
One thing though is that although 1:1 specialized and individual service is always superior, the providers arent well paid. This means that startups, though better than large companies in a certain respect, can no longer become rich because they no longer are capable of creating a barrier to entry. A butler provides good service to you individually yes, but he can also be replaced fairly easily. (Relearning your quirks and stuff) Startups then return to what they are in any other countries. Just a way to make a living rather than the potential path to riches it is in the bay area. As a side effect you get smaller elites controlling more of the pie. That has other implications as well.

phil21 9y ago

> However, I believe nimbler startups will always be able to carve out a successful niche as long as they are closer to the customers. The difference is where the majority of the "idle wealth" is created. Sure, there will be great business doing consulting work leveraging cloud providers - you can make a good business simply consulting on such things. However in the end you're simply enriching a large company. Whenever an "amazon cloud consultant" transitions a closet of servers to AWS - they made a bit of money, but the large bulk of the value of that customer is now in a giant corporation's hands vs. being spread out how it was traditionally (either in house, or via much smaller infrastructure providers that generally competed on service without much lock-in). The lack of competition in the web space is astounding to me, and will be incredibly damaging to innovation. How quickly people forget why decentralization used to be considered such an important goal. Yet it appears the entire industry is rushing head long into this model.

dlwdlw 9y ago

One thing though is that although 1:1 specialized and individual service is always superior, the providers arent well paid. This means that startups, though better than large companies in a certain respect, can no longer become rich because they no longer are capable of creating a barrier to entry. A butler provides good service to you individually yes, but he can also be replaced fairly easily. (Relearning your quirks and stuff) Startups then return to what they are in any other countries. Just a way to make a living rather than the potential path to riches it is in the bay area. As a side effect you get smaller elites controlling more of the pie. That has other implications as well.