Scale Ruins Everything

Given that we've been throwing cash at every conceivable idea for the last ten plus years, yet when speaking of unicorns we still have to refer back to airbnb and uber, seems like we're well past "peak unicorn" and well into the "horse with a mild concussion" era.

It's also disconcerting how much their success seems to hinge on using technology as a lever to break laws or social expectations, as opposed to technology as something that itself empowers humans to be more productive.

Getting a taxi in my college town in 2005 was agony. Make a phone call from a loud bar and shout at some guy who can barely tell what you're saying that you want a taxi and then maybe if you're lucky they show up in an hour and cost 3 times as much as you expected (and that's on a good night!) vs. "press a button, get a ride" (and have a feedback mechanism for horrible drivers or gross cars, etc.).

Uber has issues but honestly it's night and day compared to what taxis were like. And they decrease DUI's.

For what it's worth, around here you call an ordinary taxi exactly the same way: Press a button, get a ride. Been like that for a long time.

With their specific app?

In the last 2 weeks I've used the Uber app in Washington, New York, Miami and Stoke (UK). One app, 4 cities, 2 continents.

The app covers all the various taxi companies around here. It's not international.

That's one problem. I typically need a taxi when I'm in a remote city a long way form home. Uber gives me a common app that works from Sydney to San Francisco. I'm not going to land in Chicago and work out which of the myriad of apps I need to get.

Now if it was instead a website, sure, much easier. No need to create accounts etc, just visit "chicagotaxi.com", perhaps shown on a sign at the airport/station/etc, then book and pay with applepay/googlepay.

But installing some application, signing up, having my data stolen, all to be told "no taxis available", is the reality of a local app.

> I'm not going to land in Chicago and work out which of the myriad of apps I need to get.

But big airports have a taxi line. You stand in it, and you get a taxi.

I flew into Washington DC last week, and it was faster to stand in the taxi line than to call an Uber and wait for it to arrive. On the other hand, it was faster to get an Uber back to the airport when I left than it was to catch a taxi.

And of course, certain cities have decent transit systems. Both Chicago and DC (and hundred of other cities) have transit fare cards you can put in the wallet app on your phone. Some, like DC don't even need an account or download. Just add money with the payment card already stored in your phone and go. The experience is better than Uber - assuming the transit system is any good.