Highlights of the Week (June 10, 2022)

There are some clichés in private company reporting that you hear over and over again. The term "ripe for disruption" irks me the most. A quick Google search of recent news coverage shows that everything from compliance training to supply chain logistics to European breakfast cereal is getting "disrupted." The definition of the word evokes a more rebellious streak than its synonyms "innovative" or "groundbreaking." What bothers me in particular is its overuse; there is nothing rebellious about breakfast cereal.

A Harvard Business School professor first coined the term used in tech to describe the "process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors." Cell phones are a prime example, displacing the landline operators. The word gets misused when it describes a product or service that simply iterates on an existing market's projected wants or needs instead of referring to products or services that create a new market. In other words, sometimes cereal is just cereal. 

Here are the week's top stories from PrivCo:

• Speaking of disruptors, we looked at Uber's rise to fame and the next generation of rides: the robotaxi. The inaugural fares for this subset of taxi are tallying up on city streets in Phoenix and, you guessed it, San Francisco. Learn more.

• Lala Land, Tinseltown, SoCal's Silicon Valley? We discussed the booming industry of startups in the country's third most-funded city. Find out which Los Angeles companies are making their debut here.

• All these headlines about a recession are making me nervous, and I'm not alone. People, companies, and investors are preparing for the worst. It makes you wonder if the headlines and anxiety contribute to a deeper recession. We examined this phenomenon. 

• That scene where an inmate gets to make one phone call from jail? It turns out someone has to pay for that call. We looked at the business of jail telecommunications and the heated debate at the FCC over sky-high prices. Read more.