[fixermark]

You can make fun of it, but there's a reason that Silicon Valley venture capital goes to software engineering (where regulations have generally been lower) while significant disruption in the automotive space is coming from incumbents and one company founded by a guy with a net worth of $18 billion.

[giobox]

This is a hugely simplistic comparison. There's far, far more complexity to why the automotive space sees less "disruption" than just regulations.

You can launch and run a business similar to Facebook from a dorm room.

A car factory? Not so much, regardless of the regulatory issues.

[forapurpose]

> there's a reason that Silicon Valley venture capital goes to software engineering (where regulations have generally been lower) while significant disruption in the automotive space is coming from incumbents and one company founded by a guy with a net worth of $18 billion.

Maybe it's because the auto industry is far more capital-intensive than software. I don't see anyone taking on incumbents in capital-intensive IT businesses, such as cloud services (do you want to compete with Google, Amazon, and Microsoft with your VC money?), or in software, operating systems in entrenched markets (desktop and smartphone).

[oldcynic]

That would be the self same reason the net is starting to attract regulation. Some of that significant disruption basically involves extending a middle finger to the laws and regulations of the country they want to do business in. I might call it taking the piss.

Taking the piss with laws and employment rights such as Deliveroo etc, or taking the piss with user data and personal privacy.

We'll be left with some of the regulation long after many of the disruptors that caused it have burnt out.

[taysic]

Conversely, people have also seen how some laws - like those protecting taxi drivers in this example - did nothing to help consumers. Not all regulations are being missed.

[oldcynic]

From the times I've been to the US I can see how disrupting NYC taxis could be a very good thing indeed. UK taxis? Nope, happy to keep those regulations and want to see them applied to Uber etc.