san francisco has a strange gravity, attracting people who want to build the future, and also those who want to be seen building the future. the result is a city that can feel incredibly performative, especially within the startup bubble.

a lot of “founders” aren’t actually building much. instead, they’re posting, going from one event to the other,... See more

Aesthetic warmth, values coherence, institutional vibe. These are now functioning as primary signals for where elite talent goes (and more importantly, stays), and by extension, which companies breakaway and which don’t.

One of the reasons that angel investing in the Bay Area was such a status symbol is that it was fairly exclusive.