, Columnist
What Disruption? Tech Has Not Shaken Basic Economics
It was supposed to be the decade of Groupon and Uber. But mostly, people shop and travel just like they used to.
Surprise! People still buy cars.
Photographer: Susana Gonzalez/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
A funny thing happened on the path to disruption. This decade, most of Silicon Valley's big societal claims have turned out to be wrong.
These claims arguably began around the time this cycle's real expansion began, in late 2011. Two scholars' 2011 text, "Race Against the Machine," looked at some of the problems plaguing the U.S. economy -- stagnant wage growth, falling labor force participation and growing inequality -- and chalked them up to the impact of technology and its exponential growth.