i must wonder how many here realize what the aspirations of an ipo or even a corporate investment mean in this age. so many of us are working for what we disdain - without even realizing it. yet we are the same people that can make the most difference - if we see our responsibilities in a future determined by technological opportunity.
Am I the only one who feels that if I'd put in the blood, sweat and tears to build a company to the point where it could be IPO'd I'd be more likely to gouge my eye out with a rusty spoon that open it to the sharks, sociopaths, speculators and manipulators of wall st and the open market?
>Normally, it is a company with more opportunity than capital.
Although this was of course the original rational for IPOs, this looks more and more like a historical footnote these days. Now that so many IPOs are late-stage it's hard to see them as anything other than liquidity events for founders and investors and employees.
Yeah I lean toward this view as well. The point of an IPO is to raise capital. But when you do this, unless you own 51% of the company or there is a small group of like-minded individuals that own 51% of the company, you can wind up losing control and instead of doing things Wall Street doesn't like, you're going to have to focus on profitability and pleasing shareholders.
On a more serious note, I agree most with your point around digging oneself out of complacency and moving towards a better future — if not for you, for someone else.
I would like to buy shares too, but not if an IPO would mean SpaceX changing into something substantially different and less good than they are now. I don't know that there has to be an inherent conflict between meeting shareholder expectations and being a positive influence on the world, but empirically it seems that few companies are able to do the latter at the same level post-IPO.
I would put it differently: an IPO is what most tech startups aim for or are pressured into.
I'm a founder and have talked with few people (albeit I'm not looking for money) and you could clearly see disappointment in money-bringing people hearing you want to stay private.
A large generation of the non-investing class in the tech sector has been convinced to covet IPOs and consider them as the ultimate form of validation and success.
This non-investing class derives entertainment from seeing the lottery tickets they missed out on.
There are a few other personalities here too, such as a wealthy and now older tech sector that likes to see market trends.
But a drought of IPOs makes this of public interest.
Selling the company: that's not a rare event. An IPO: that's like becoming an actor with the intent of being the next Tom Cruise. There are many, many buyers out there, hardly just Google. If you make something that people need (not merely what they think they want, but what they need) then you will be able to sell.
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