Hackathon Accidentally Picks Perfect Metaphor for Its Own Awfulness
Startup Land only says something poignant about itself by accident, and this time is no exception: the grand prize in an upcoming venture capital sponsored hackathon is a chance to degrade yourself in a booth full of money.
The Greylock Partners "Hackfest" will give budding startup tots on the winningest team a chance to bypass the humbling, stress-packed fundraising process, and skip straight to the venal spirit of venture-backed business:
Each team member will get one minute to collect as many Benjamin Franklins as possible in the Hacker Cash-omatic. The money booth is stocked full of cold hard cash, ready for the taking. Once all team members have finished their one minute in the booth, the total cash collected will be split evenly among the group.
Literally, startup people waving their arms as quickly as possible in an attempt to grab free money out of the air. What other realities of the tech sector could be streamlined and replicated via tone-deaf novelty romp? Perhaps a pseudo-meritocracy game of red rover, where just the white boys from Stanford are called over?