If Microsoft hadn't been pulled back from absolute dominance in the early 00s by the justice department I think the tech ecosystem could easily have waned and b

If Microsoft hadn't been pulled back from absolute dominance in the early 00s by the justice department I think the tech ecosystem could easily have waned and become a shadow of what it ended up being. The end of the gold rush doesn't require us to run out of ways to innovate - all it requires is that enough market power is consolidated in one place that competition from non-billionaires can be squashed like a bug. Then there's no point for anybody to innovate any more. Remember the auto industry used to have garage-started startups too. A long time ago. Start an innovative new tire company now and you'll either be bought for a pittance or copied by one of the big 3. They are also your main customers. It isn't a hopeful play. There aren't too many VCs looking for small auto industry startups to fund. There aren't too many auto startups in detroit. How many things can you build for customers these days in tech that don't end up living on one of 4 megalithic platforms? It's not like the auto industry yet but it is headed in that direction.