adrift in the Sea of Code… by John Pasmore

Not just code, but really all of it: Apps, sites, devices, and an avalanche of content. And I like the idea of code and I like technology generally. But at some point it seems like more for more’s sake. As a society we are pouring millions of dollars and engineering into how to serve better advertising, how to make a better phone, and how to create digitally the community we used to have before we all got so busy answering emails and checking Facebook.

I’ve spent a good deal of time in ad supported business, and generally like advertising — from the creatives to getting it in front of an audience. But the idea of an ad following me around, waiting for me to demonstrate “purchase intent” seems a little creepy. I’m a content guy. I think if advertiser x makes good stuff, and then tells a good story, I will circle back for that experience. That’s where I think the effort should be, on telling the brand’s story and aggregating the people that care into a reachable audience. And, yeah that could be via cookies, but hopefully something friendlier — more human.

And I do think we have bigger fish to fry. I know that we have some finite number of engineers and PhD’s driving invention, so the question becomes, “what do we want to apply that big but not infinite resource against”. Sure we can spend some of it on making Facebook smarter, much of it on the Black Box that is the military, and the “market” should then theoretically point resources in the right direction, towards the right projects. But the market is not that efficient.

Given the long leads and high risk in bio-technology and possible modest results in creating tech that somehow improves the lot of those with less, I think the market is chasing all things social. And. it’s hard not to as those businesses can scale quickly and there is liquidity in the category. But maybe we can point a little more smartness towards health of us and the planet. Would hate for the FB party to come to end because we weren’t invested enough to see that giant asteroid careening in our direction, or next H2N2 variant that would have taken a few more lab techs to detect.