An interesting wide-ranging interview with Economist Badri Gopalakrishnan from Infinite Sum Modeling
- Technological progress tends to be retarded by policy
- Does technology or policy drive innovation?
- How policy can negatively affect innovation
- Technology is powerful but is only part of the picture
- Policy always lags technological progress – but it doesn’t need to be so
- Startups don’t have to fight policy
- They should work with policymakers and competitors
- Would Uber’s path have been smoother if they worked with the taxi unions?
- Economic models drive most pricing everywhere
- Blockchain and Farming – gap on how to apply technologies
- Emotions typically overtake reality when it comes to technological progress
- Permissionless innovation is still valid, but it can be done better
- Disruptive technologies never come from policy, but it can drive policy if it grabs share fast enough
- Constant battles between disruptive innovation and policy – can these work together?
- Startups should also be a thinktank – to deeply understand the implications of a startups business prior to creating an adversarial relationship with existing players in the space
- AI startups could provide mitigation plans for possible future job loss
- How to move to a collaborative environment from an adversarial environment
- Global trade and China – differentiate the people from the state – the regime is challenging and authoritarian
- China: IP issues and supply chain issues – startups without resources should probably stay away
- Free trade may drop into blocks – 3D printers will likely eliminate the requirement to manufacture in other countries
- 3D printing and robotics manufacturing will change the shape of trade worldwide
- If there is no skill upgrading, then we may need to implement UBI
- What do you do with the “unemployables” – outside of the high tech folks, we still need personal service folks
- UBI is definitely coming – its happening in many places already – India has already experimented with UBI
- Countries will likely become more protectionist – more free trade BUT more reciprocity