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"The Model-T is a piece of shit. I has hard tires that don't absorb the bumps, requires a manual crank, and no cup holders." Seriously, does no one realize pro

by h9283y 9y ago

"The Model-T is a piece of shit. I has hard tires that don't absorb the bumps, requires a manual crank, and no cup holders." Seriously, does no one realize product development is a process? Self-aggrandizing voices like this really turn me off. "Sorry the world didn't do better by you! We'll all really try harder next time, dad."

drcode 9y ago
Well, I think what folks hope for on HN is a certain "meritocracy" for news surrounding advanced technology. Magic Leap has arguably been trying to build buzz around their product with slick marketing and has been gaming the tech press to get unfair attention for their project and syphoning investment money away from other companies in this process. I think it's only fair, in turn, to keep the company accountable to at least a tiny sliver of their original claims.
rburhum 9y ago
I think the issue is that some people think that $2,000,000,000 USD and 8 years should be able to produce a better first product.
- Holomakerbot 9y ago
  2b is a drop in the bucket compared to other companies like Microsoft and Apple. They’re not just building a headset, but the software to run it and funding both 1st and 3rd party content.
  - oldgradstudent 9y ago
    $2.3 billion dollars is an almost incomprehensible amount of money. Amazon raised total of $108 million before its IPO. Google raised less than $50 million before its IPO. Facebook raised $2.3 billion before the IPO, and most of it was after it became a world-wide phenomena.
    - Holomakerbot 9y ago
      None of those companies are building a full stack computing platform.
oldgradstudent 9y ago
The Model-T is a great comparison. It was a commercially successful product, not a prototype under NDA. It also tells you a lot about the state of the industry. Ford Motor Company was founded with an investment of $28,000 in 1903, the equivalent of 34 Model-T cars - say around $2 million now (for a very expensive $50,000 car). It was profitable in very short order, selling several models of cars. The Model-T itself was available for sale in just over 5 years after the company was founded. Ford innovated in production and product design, and made ground breaking products available for the masses. Magic Leap raised $2.3 billion (the equivalent of 46,000 cars) 8 years ago. Total publicly available output: a few promotional videos.
- Holomakerbot 9y ago
  Magic leap did not raise $2.3b 8 years ago. They raised that amount gradually over the course of the last 4 years.

by h9283y 9y ago

drcode 9y ago

Well, I think what folks hope for on HN is a certain "meritocracy" for news surrounding advanced technology. Magic Leap has arguably been trying to build buzz around their product with slick marketing and has been gaming the tech press to get unfair attention for their project and syphoning investment money away from other companies in this process. I think it's only fair, in turn, to keep the company accountable to at least a tiny sliver of their original claims.

rburhum 9y ago

I think the issue is that some people think that $2,000,000,000 USD and 8 years should be able to produce a better first product.

Holomakerbot 9y ago
2b is a drop in the bucket compared to other companies like Microsoft and Apple. They’re not just building a headset, but the software to run it and funding both 1st and 3rd party content.
- oldgradstudent 9y ago
  $2.3 billion dollars is an almost incomprehensible amount of money. Amazon raised total of $108 million before its IPO. Google raised less than $50 million before its IPO. Facebook raised $2.3 billion before the IPO, and most of it was after it became a world-wide phenomena.
  - Holomakerbot 9y ago
    None of those companies are building a full stack computing platform.

oldgradstudent 9y ago

The Model-T is a great comparison. It was a commercially successful product, not a prototype under NDA. It also tells you a lot about the state of the industry. Ford Motor Company was founded with an investment of $28,000 in 1903, the equivalent of 34 Model-T cars - say around $2 million now (for a very expensive $50,000 car). It was profitable in very short order, selling several models of cars. The Model-T itself was available for sale in just over 5 years after the company was founded. Ford innovated in production and product design, and made ground breaking products available for the masses. Magic Leap raised $2.3 billion (the equivalent of 46,000 cars) 8 years ago. Total publicly available output: a few promotional videos.

Holomakerbot 9y ago
Magic leap did not raise $2.3b 8 years ago. They raised that amount gradually over the course of the last 4 years.