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Chatbots, home IoT, and to some extent VR all strike me as things Silicon Valley wants to be "the next big thing" but are not and likely will not be because few people want them.

I absolutely despise chat and voice for any kind of trivial task. I want a UI. Chat and chat bots are annoying. Voice in any form if infuriating. Having to actually call a number on the phone for any reason always sends me into a minor little rage. "Oh, you have to f'ing call for it... sigh." Why would I want more of this kind of experience? Maybe a few people do but I can't see it being a Big Thing(tm).

I really do not want an Internet-connected fridge, stove, light switch, or microwave. When I buy such things I look for non-IoT-encrusted versions since those are going to be more reliable and are not going to be conscripted into a botnet or spy on me. IoT features in these kinds of products deliver nothing of value to me. I also really do not want DRMed food. That includes newer Keurigs. There is a healthy vintage Keurig market on eBay for a reason.

VR still seems like a fad or a niche product for certain subsets of gamers. There's some market for it but it's no "E-Commerce," "Social," or "Mobile."

It's sort of funny to see the SV investment culture producing so many solutions in search of problems after hearing that same culture lecture against this practice for decades. "Do the market research first!" "MVP MVP!" etc. They're not following their own advice.