Comment by PheonixPharts | Hacker News Reader

Comment by PheonixPharts | Hacker News Reader

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HCP Operating Incomes (in thousands of dollars)

- 1/31/2020: -56,217

- 1/31/2021: -84,009

- 1/31/2022: -289,314

- 1/31/2023: -297,287

This line seems to heading in a direction which is never making profit.

Nearly all of the tech IPOs over the last few years share the same story. These are companies that have never been shown to make a profit, with no clear model how to. Finally these companies need to prove this is possible.

We have an entire generation of C-levels running these sorts of companies that have never worked in a non-tech bubble where money is free.

Based on my own experience in a similar company, "leadership" has absolutely no clue how to make these things happen, but enthusiastically believes they will. Leadership earnestly believes that this about surviving a tough time, and soon everything will be back to low interest rates and free money.

I suspect these small layoffs will continue for a long time and then we'll start seeing more of these companies completely collapse.

The price of software and "tech" is coming down extremely quickly. This combined with as you say, the end of free money is probably a fairly deadly storm for a lot of non-profitable companies.

Open source is involved in nearly every single aspect of the tech world and continues to dominate at an accelerating pace. Now, even commercial "AI" and even Robotics products seems like like they might also be in the crosshairs of the open source movement. This has happened in no time at all.

I've actually seen "spot" from Boston Dynamics clones which aren't as polished but would get the job done and what's incredible is, they're completely open source models and designs which people can start to manufacture from.

Sometimes I wonder if software and other areas of tech aren't far from becoming like other "boring" industries where there is a surplus of skills and workers and less demand. The days of the big money might be slowing down.

Let's see where it goes, but I completely agree with your statement about free money. It was easy to feel valuable and useful when money was free. Many people could be the CEO of a multi-million dollar start up. Now what's left is only those who actually have something to offer at an affordable price point. It will sort out the men from the boys.

> This line seems to heading in a direction which is never making profit

They are growing and the cash burning each year is stabilizing. Isn't that the road to eventual profit?

If their operating income is accurately reflected above, there is no indication they are going in the right direction. There is a period of several years where a company is in innovation mode and they will burn through investment, but there must be an inflection point where Operating Income starts increasing YoY, even if they are still operating at a loss. Hashicorp has gone too far in the wrong direction.

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