Spencer and Rob think plenty of startups are actually harmful for society. Spencer explains how companies regularly cause harm by injuring their customers or third parties, or by drawing people and investment away from more useful projects.
So EAs should be more cautious even about ordinary start-ups in comparison to the typical Venture Capitalist.
Also relevant: Speeding up social science 10-fold, how to do research that’s actually useful, & why plenty of startups cause harm (and Spencer’s blog post)
So EAs should be more cautious even about ordinary start-ups in comparison to the typical Venture Capitalist.