[warent]

This here is the real danger. Many people choose to reinvent the wheel and end up finding out that their approach was actually horribly flawed compared to what already existed, or they turned out not to have the resources to see it through. It takes a brilliant person with a lot of luck to make this work in an advantageous way.

Two great examples come to mind right away, both from Elon Musk. SpaceX was founded on first principles and now he's been able to undercut competitors by an order of magnitude. Conversely, his attempt approaching car manufacturing from first principles in the gigafactory has proven to be a complete disaster.

[Aloha]

I think the older and more competitive a space is, the less likely a first principles approach will bring success.

[ojilles]

Perhaps it’s not the age per se, but the amount of players over time. (Number of car manufacturers >> space companies).

[Aloha]

That was my general point (without making the wording too complex)

[Qwertious]

>Conversely, his attempt approaching car manufacturing from first principles in the gigafactory has proven to be a complete disaster.

Nonsense. What is that based on?

[leesec]

>Conversely, his attempt approaching car manufacturing from first principles in the gigafactory has proven to be a complete disaster.

Lol yes, manufacturing one of the best selling cars in the country was a great disaster.