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Comment by noddy1w | Hacker News Reader

Great that the gains of american innovation are accruing to mysogynist oil sheiks

At least the Saudis are now diversifying into western markets with their capital. Which they are quickly learning comes with some social and moral constraints that have been largely invisible in the diplomatic/political world.

The finance and tech world doesn't need to compromise for some vague fragile security arrangement in the middle east. But regardless money is money and it will find an immoral taker at some point. The best we can do is keep the pressure on companies to hold their investors accountable.

That said, I'm not a fan of bringing the fanatical political tribalism, which is very popular in the US at the moment, into the tech/business world.

"The finance and tech world doesn't need to compromise for some vague fragile security arrangement in the middle east. "

Once they have investors from there aren't they pretty much beholden to them?

I want to upvote you, but I'm afraid you're mostly dreaming. What companies have refused Saudi money? Maybe a few do, but there's plenty of other takers (talking about startups and hedge funds - it's almost impossible for a publicly traded company to "refuse" an investor I think).

What social and moral constraints exactly? They invest money through SoftBank, reap the dividends, and then spend it on wars and oppression just like before. It's fine to just admit that the tech world has shaky morals. But utterly delusional to think that investing in tech will somehow make Saudis more pliant.

So what is it, those investments are stupid and overvalued and will never make money? Or the Saudis are gaining so much profit from it?

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