The @archpaper says "cheeky" outlets like @trdny compare Katerra to WeWork, I say, it's worse. Let me explain. Thread/ https://www.archpaper.com/2021/01/softbank-bails-out-katerra-and-takes-majority-stake/

As @archpaper correctly reports, the entire Katerra miracle was the silicon valley mindset, verve and pluck. It was going to be "showtime" when SandHill Road, fronted Joe the plumber. That's why they "launched" Katerra, as if they were the second coming of Steve Jobs.

But literally everything they touched that was necessary to be taken seriously as "a builder" was in fact, "a clown show". There was no technology. They curated a line of bathroom fixtures for the love of the loo, how is @Kohler supposed to not fall on the floor laughing?

Highly Curated faucet collections, some dull quasi academic jargon, and lots of use of the word, "disruption". The total lack of experience was the source of the magic, but the only thing they did, with regards to construction was vastly underperform the COMPETITION.

At least WeWork was built on some original brand of Crazy, a sui generis brand of "WE" since, this amazing new thing was new, you could be excused for believing, but Katerra, was saying something very specific: cost savings thru scale & superior mastery of technology.

The specific plan was that the former Belushi Band of Flextronics, given enough MONEY could do what the backwards building industry never could do. Hold my beer.

So what is left? Certainly not the Belushi Band. They are all gone. Back to their millionaire existence leaving nothing. Ozymandias.

Now we have a Norwegian petroleum engineer, and a bunch of general contractors who were rebadged as Katerra, some Architecture firms, and no Silicon Valley geniuses to do what they've done before in the electronics business. A Curated Line of Faucets.

I've never met a Norwegian Petroleum Engineer I didn't like, but FFS a competent #Jantelagen Norwegian doesn't use words like "disruption", ever been to Norway? Hasn't been disrupted, will never be disrupted.

A Norwegian Petroleum Engineer is the total opposite of Steve Jobs. If you gave a Norwegian Petroleum Engineer a billion dollars, he'd buy a small red building in a Fjord and be delighted if you never called him. This isn't what the Vision Fund is supposed to be?