Some things are too precious to last in this brutal world, and Washboard, a startup that mailed you quarters to do your laundry, is one of them. It is, against all odds and after only a week in business ("business"), shutting down.

Young male founders must all be drinking the same Soylent. Either that or they have a hard time multitasking because these bros can't seem to disrupt anything besides doing your laundry. The latest entrant is Washboard, a subscription service for quarters. The $20 (of quarters) monthly plan will cost you $26.99.

The revolutionizing powers of the tech industry haven't just been summoned as a middleman between you and local restaurants. No, Silicon Valley has also marshaled its intellectual superiority to put apps between you and local laundromats. New York magazine recently traveled to California to investigate this democratic tide (of delivery).

Silicon Valley alchemy doesn't just create dazzling new things—it dazzles us into thinking mundane old ideas are new again. Take the idea of hauling away someone's dirty clothes: at LA startup Washio, you're actually a "kickass laundry ninja." What a difference a smartphone makes.

The marketplace of ideas! Survival of the fittest... company! Clash of corporations, let the best business reap all! San Francisco's latest attempt to smother a trivial problem with an overabundance of technology is here: Prim, another techie service for idle people who don't like laundry.