Would be founders with groundbreaking ideas have been chilled out of the go it your own way route and instead are taking the safe routes by selling out to the soulless and psychopathic megacorps destroying humanity.
In addition, this article is talking about
1) a global phenomena, not just an American one.
2) a shortage of originality beyond just business. In particular, he points out academic research and institutional education and government programs.
1. It is hard to come up with ideas as a young person, due to the deep knowledge require in each field. I.e. to innovate mean to know the existing ideas and than come up with a new ways. But to master existing ideas , with this amount of literature, takes time. In addition, while you mastering existing knowledge, the underlying knowledge changes by other players.
2. The innovation pipeline is vetted either by company exec, or by VC. Both of them think in financial terms.
3. US Patent system need major overall. The system approve many un original patents, such that it is up to who has more money for legal fights win.
If we are happy with garbage in garbage out as a society that is what we will get and deserve. If we vote for those who fail upwards then we as a society will fail downwards. The prices of all those regulated industries have gone up in real terms and those least or not regulated like software have gone down.
It was government interference in the food and agricultural markets (including subsidies and FDA categorization) that led to bland tomatoes and plastic meat and industrial farming.
America is not running out of ideas, but the cool hunters have looked everywhere, and run out of untapped low fruit.
As for why movies today suck, it's because they're written by children, according to The Critical Drinker, and I strongly agree.
