Note: This post was written in August 2019. WeWork (referenced in the last paragraph) subsequently pulled its IPO in late September 2019, largely because investors came to view it as a property management firm rather than a technology company. I believe what played out with WeWork largely corroborates the thesis of this post.

In my work as a venture capital investor, I often meet companies that position themselves as technology firms but whose core product or business is similar to traditional incumbents. In many cases, they may use technology to deliver their product more efficiently, but they are not selling technology, and often they are not fundamentally innovating the product they are selling. Continue reading →