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Everybody's heard of Uber nowadays, right? It's almost like the word Kleenex. You know, Kleenex means any
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type of tissue. The innovation I'm really excited about is the gig economy and in particularly how algorithmic
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management is changing the world of work. The genesis of the gig economy comes from ancient roots. So when you think
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about the original type of gig work, those are spot labor markets. So those were folks at the dock who were waiting
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for a ship to come in and do work. Similarly, you had women working in their home doing peace rate work on a
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loom and they would sell it to peddlers who came by. That's called the putting out system. So there's a combination of
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the sort of this shortterm spot labor market that then gets coupled with the rise of technology, particularly GPS and
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algorithms that can make these fine grain decisions. The conversation that was happening right before you had Uber
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and all these tech companies coming into pause was the sharing economy. And this
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was the idea that we wouldn't have to buy expensive power tools or lawnmowers anywhere. There'd be some sort of
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communal setup in our neighborhoods where we can sort of borrow these assets and then return them when we didn't need
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them anymore. And then lastly, there is a magic in Silicon Valley and the technical innovation. But this idea of
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moving fast, breaking things. So you have these four things. a spot labor market, sharing economy, algorithmic
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management, and really just the ethos of Silicon Valley coming together that gave
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birth to the gig economy that we know today. When we think about the innovation that
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companies like Uber are doing, they're actually changing labor markets. They allow people who are on the edges, who
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maybe can't find entry into traditional labor market, have a way to earn income on a sort of as needed basis. And you
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know what it's also done for the modern consumer is brought in a very high level
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of convenience. Now I think in the short term there are questions about will these companies
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turn a profit. You know it's really hard when you look at some of the low costs they are offering some of these services
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at will you actually have enough consumer demand? Will you be able to have consumers feel comfortable paying
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more? You know, I think if we're looking at the longer term, as these companies grow, particularly in lower and middle
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inome countries, they need more infrastructure around them. I think that's going to lead companies like Uber
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to sort of create more of these almost like cottage industries around them to be able to help support their core
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businesses. And if that happens, will the gig economy actually end up looking more like traditional industries that we
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know of today or from the '9s or the odds? So that's something that I'm looking for in the long term. Like as
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the gig economy grows, what is it the other organizational scaffolding that has to grow around it to allow it to
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continue to flourish?