As for the accelerant factor, no doubt working for Alibaba carries
considerable value in China and in other parts of the developing world.
But in the West? Not so much. Indeed, it may even prove a stigma—
which means that as it moves into the Western markets, Alibaba may
find recruiting great talent difficult, and its intellectual capital
substandard.
Alibaba’s relationship with the Chinese government carries with it
the risk that any number of foreign actors, including U.S. and
European governments, might see Alibaba through a geopolitical lens
and register their concern in the form of regulatory hurdles,
investigations, and other roadblocks. These need not be political to be
problematic—Jack Ma recently acknowledged that the SEC was
investigating Alibaba for various reporting matters related to the
firm’s complex, multicompany structure. Ma said that “Alibaba’s
business model does not have any references in the U.S., so it’s not just
a matter of one or two days for the U.S. to understand Alibaba’s
business model.”^14 That’s not exactly heartening.
Finally, data privacy concerns are likely to be a constant thorn for
Alibaba as it goes global, limiting its ability to leverage another T
Algorithm element, AI.
In sum, the parent brand “China” provides an unwelcome halo of
“We may not be cool, but we are corrupt.” In high school, the “Bad
Boy” who was also lame did not get laid.
Tesla
History is littered with the skeletons of entrepreneurs who challenged
big auto—they make movies about them (think Tucker). But right now,
it looks as if the movie about Elon Musk involves a dope outfit and a
brooding Gwyneth Paltrow.
Tesla faces challenges, but it has accomplished more than any
other start-up automobile company in our lifetime, and looks well
positioned to solidify its position as the market leader in electric-
powered cars. Although it remains mostly a luxury product for Silicon
Valley bros, its combination of design (no more Hobbit electric cars),
innovation in digital control, and massive investment in infrastructure