From Guest Blogger Fritz Maffry: The Dominance of the Technology Sector

Tech has really taken over…. World’s 5 largest by value: Apple $583B, Alphabet $545B, Microsoft $449B, Facebook $376B, Amazon $371B.

Tech is going through a toughening and prioritizing process right now. An example is Google’s taking very hard look at what they are involved in and making sure the seeds they planted were the right ones for their success in the bigger picture. They are stopping peripheral projects and dialing in for a great competition. Autonomous vehicles are in operation in certain areas now; in other areas advanced trials are underway, for example, there are 12 in San Francisco.

The tech leaders are not treating their priority bets as something interesting to dabble in as they had a few years back; they are recognizing their firm will prosper or be passed up on how they execute on these near term, and that reflects their legacy and future success.

These are the best led companies on the planet, and the competition will be fierce, but there will be winners and losers, and speed is most important now, and getting the complete system correct. This pressure is focusing them indeed, and the winner will be the first trillion dollar market cap, but there may be several.

Re: Cleantech

All of those companies have an interest in cleantech winning; regarding transport and energy, the techs have clear plans to see that realized.  They have no interest in ICE vehicles, coal plants, or being beholden to utilities.  It’s not their shtick.

Also, they represent the values of the generation that is their dominant customer base, which cares greatly about transport, besides being the richest in cash companies.  They are the brands that resonate with their generation, and they represent that carefully, knowing they can fall out of favor quickly if they break that trust.