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Why is the projected deficit so high? Because of the cost of medicare. Which is basically a combination of demographics and the cost of medical care, with the

Why is the projected deficit so high? Because of the cost of medicare. Which is basically a combination of demographics and the cost of medical care, with the cost of medical care being the driving factor. Doesn't that sound like an arena ripe for disruption by startups? The energy crisis that will inevitably come, doesn't that sound like an arena well suited for startups? There seems to be a tetonic shift right now that a lot of people have a big stake in ignoring. VCs are meant to provide capital to entrepreneurs who need capital. Web apps don't really need capital in the initial stage, everyone knows how easy it is to boostrap your web app these days. That's why angels are growing in prominence - becuase they fit the funding level a lot better. The VC's should be giving their attention to companies that require greater investment - my two examples are healthcare and energy but they are just 2. Solutions to billion and trillion dollar problems yield large returns on a few hundred million dollars. Can you see that coming out of the web sphere? But your average software VC can't really pivot over to those fields, they have expertise in this area, and don't have the skills to evaluate bio-medical and energy startups. So instead of realizing this and packing it up and going home (or at least hiring some new people to evaluate deals) they are just strip mining the web app space until there is nothing left. The guys in those fields don't necessarily have the entrepreneur mentality of a lot of software guys, so they aren't seeking the VCs the same way hackers are.

kscaldef 16y ago
> the cost of medicare.. is basically a combination of demographics and the cost of medical care, with the cost of medical care being the driving factor. Doesn't that sound like an arena ripe for disruption by startups? Honestly, not particularly to me. As far as I can tell, this is a largely social issue. The idea that we might not give the best care possible to someone, that we might let someone die when we could keep them alive, that we might put a dollar figure on a person's life is an anathema to many people. I'm not really sure how a startup is going to disrupt that.
- nodata 16y ago
  I'm not really sure how a startup is going to disrupt that. Well one way would be to convert the dollar amount to something else: show how many lives could be saved if the money were spent differently.
- smithbits 16y ago
  I think the way to disrupt that is to come up with cheaper treatments and cures that are equally effective. Come up with a way to replace dialysis, or just make it a lot cheaper and you'll save a bunch of money. Obviously prevention is by far the cheapest solution, but some financial incentives to come up with cheaper treatments might be helpful.
  - kscaldef 16y ago
    Except that we already spend considerably more than other developed nations for no better care or outcomes.
anamax 16y ago
> The energy crisis that will inevitably come, doesn't that sound like an arena well suited for startups? No. Energy is an area where the "unit" is measured in billions of dollars, and it doesn't make much sense to play with fractional units. Startups and VC funding haven't worked at that scale. Maybe Kleiner can pull it off, but they haven't yet.

kscaldef 16y ago

> the cost of medicare.. is basically a combination of demographics and the cost of medical care, with the cost of medical care being the driving factor. Doesn't that sound like an arena ripe for disruption by startups? Honestly, not particularly to me. As far as I can tell, this is a largely social issue. The idea that we might not give the best care possible to someone, that we might let someone die when we could keep them alive, that we might put a dollar figure on a person's life is an anathema to many people. I'm not really sure how a startup is going to disrupt that.

nodata 16y ago
I'm not really sure how a startup is going to disrupt that. Well one way would be to convert the dollar amount to something else: show how many lives could be saved if the money were spent differently.
smithbits 16y ago
I think the way to disrupt that is to come up with cheaper treatments and cures that are equally effective. Come up with a way to replace dialysis, or just make it a lot cheaper and you'll save a bunch of money. Obviously prevention is by far the cheapest solution, but some financial incentives to come up with cheaper treatments might be helpful.
- kscaldef 16y ago
  Except that we already spend considerably more than other developed nations for no better care or outcomes.

anamax 16y ago

> The energy crisis that will inevitably come, doesn't that sound like an arena well suited for startups? No. Energy is an area where the "unit" is measured in billions of dollars, and it doesn't make much sense to play with fractional units. Startups and VC funding haven't worked at that scale. Maybe Kleiner can pull it off, but they haven't yet.