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Tech people have been spoiled for so long they have forgotten what regulation in business is even like. Start a multi billion dollar tech company? You’ll deal w

Tech people have been spoiled for so long they have forgotten what regulation in business is even like. Start a multi billion dollar tech company? You’ll deal with some regulation when selling into certain industries, or if you decide to roll your own credit card processing, but overall it’s minimal, unless your tech is specifically to streamline a regulated industry. Try to start a restaurant, raise cattle, farm food, or any other business that non-tech people can understand? I hope you have a lot of capital for regulatory compliance staff and government pleasing!

QAPereo 9y ago
Once you kill a few people with your tech, they’ll demand the same regulations. It’s just that much consumer tech is crap that frankly couldn’t do the intended job, never mind hurt someone. You can compromise then identities of millions of people, but it’s just a PR thing for now. Try that same hacker ethos with an automated vehicle, or a medical device though. In time, as tech starts to live up to its promise, you’ll find your red tape. Sure, there are some bad regulations, but a lot are the result of someone dying or nearly dying. When the equivalent of a countrywide E. Coli outbreak is a techie problem, the rest will rapidly follow.
- nucleardog 9y ago
  See, for example, IEC 62304 and the EU and US regulations that require compliance with it. That standard is generally considered to have arisen out of the deaths caused by the Therac-25 device and its faulty software and design.
Gys 9y ago
That is only because tech is still new with new concepts: privacy, data safety, net-neutrality. All other industries are old. Regulation takes time and will at some point catch up. Then startups will face the same problems as small business everywhere: to start a new company is almost impossible. Unless you are already big. Regulation is a very effective barrier for new entries. It helps the market leaders because they can spend time to research, bend, adapt to the law.

QAPereo 9y ago

Once you kill a few people with your tech, they’ll demand the same regulations. It’s just that much consumer tech is crap that frankly couldn’t do the intended job, never mind hurt someone. You can compromise then identities of millions of people, but it’s just a PR thing for now. Try that same hacker ethos with an automated vehicle, or a medical device though. In time, as tech starts to live up to its promise, you’ll find your red tape. Sure, there are some bad regulations, but a lot are the result of someone dying or nearly dying. When the equivalent of a countrywide E. Coli outbreak is a techie problem, the rest will rapidly follow.

nucleardog 9y ago
See, for example, IEC 62304 and the EU and US regulations that require compliance with it. That standard is generally considered to have arisen out of the deaths caused by the Therac-25 device and its faulty software and design.

Gys 9y ago

That is only because tech is still new with new concepts: privacy, data safety, net-neutrality. All other industries are old. Regulation takes time and will at some point catch up. Then startups will face the same problems as small business everywhere: to start a new company is almost impossible. Unless you are already big. Regulation is a very effective barrier for new entries. It helps the market leaders because they can spend time to research, bend, adapt to the law.