In many ways, the demise of Juicero in September was a microcosm of everything that was wrong with technology in 2017.
Doug Evans, a veteran juice bar proprietor, started the San Francisco-based company four years ago with the lofty goal of changing how people make and consume healthy beverages.
His Wi-Fi-connected Juicero was similar to the Keurig coffee-pod machine, except it used high-tech gears to press packets of fruits and vegetables into juice.
The company attracted more than US$132 million in funding from the likes of Google Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, for a valuation of about $500m. Its employee count grew to more than 230.
But then the problems hit. Juicero’s first machine, released last year, cost a hefty $699 – nearly 10 times that of a basic Keurig. Worse still, a Bloomberg report in the spring showed that simply squeezing its packets by hand rendered the costly machine redundant.
The company promised cheaper devices, but the damage to its reputation was done. After no luck finding an acquirer, Juicero shut down on September 1.
The train wreck is easy to explain in retrospect. A flush-with-money Silicon Valley start-up pushing an expensive product with little evidence that anyone actually wanted or needed it – was any other outcome but failure ever realistic?
This hubristic philosophy of creating something without questioning whether it should be done in the first place, the blueprint for so many recently successful technology companies, seemed to have reached its limits in 2017.
After several decades of runaway growth and the excesses it inspired, tech companies finally butted up against a reckoning that is sure to gain momentum in 2018.
As Juicero showed, companies and entrepreneurs in the hardware space are now facing increased scepticism.
The cosmetics maker L’Oréal and Nokia’s Withings unit learned that hard lesson when they introduced the Kerastase Hair Coach at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show back in January. The $200 Wi-Fi connected hair brush was roundly mocked in the press and on social media. Not surprisingly, its planned mid-year launch still hasn’t happened.
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Read more:
What is Uber? We are getting closer to an answer
Chinese Uber-rival Didi Chuxing gets $4 billion in new funding
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The Hair Coach wasn’t the only dubiously useful device in 2017, but the parade of supposedly “smart” products that marked recent years is now finally – and mercifully – slowing to a trickle.
The reckoning is likely to be harsher for online services. Facebook and Google in particular attracted unprecedented scrutiny from governments and regulators in 2017 in the wake of the US election and last year’s Brexit vote.
In both cases, the tech platforms were accused of exacerbating political divisions through the spread of “fake news”, which will surely go down as one of the terms that defined the year.
Worse still, the companies’ plights deepened as it emerged that they may have sold ads to Russian propagandists during the 2016 US presidential election.
And, as if things weren’t bad enough for Facebook, the company is closing out the year dealing with the revelation that it allowed US employers to show ads to people in specific age categories. Many observers say this type of age discrimination is illegal.
Facebook and Google are heading into 2018 facing multiple inquiries in multiple countries into their core business practices. With both platforms acting and sounding very much like news organisations, it is all but inevitable that regulators will soon begin treating them as such, with all the rules and reporting requirements that will entail.
If Juicero was the microcosm of everything wrong with the tech industry, then Uber was the macrocosm. It’s hard to imagine any company having a worse year than the ride-sharing juggernaut – er, make that taxi firm – just had.
Uber is indeed a taxi company, according to a ruling last week by the European Court of Justice. Despite its insistence to the contrary, Uber will now be subject to the same rules and regulations as any taxi provider in Europe, which raises the inevitable question – why bother?
If Uber is forced to follow the rules and submit to the various costs that regulations entail, its service may no longer be considerably cheaper for consumers to use than regular taxis. How that’s going to square with the huge losses the company is already reportedly incurring is anyone’s guess.
There isn’t enough space here to list all of Uber’s problems in 2017 – a user boycott, sexual harassment allegations, accusations of intellectual property theft, the ousting of several senior leaders among them – but it’s safe the say that its future has never looked so shaky.
With a valuation of $70 billion and an estimated 40 million monthly users, it’s possible that Uber is too big to fail – but it’s also not inconceivable that it could follow Juicero’s fate.
As the epitome of Silicon Valley brashness – its move-fast-and-break-things mantra – Uber could well be made an example of in 2018.
Governments around the world may well demonstrate that there’s a price to pay for just doing or making something without stopping to consider whether it should be done in the first place.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The essentials
What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
When: Friday until March 9
Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City
Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.
Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.
Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
Specs%20
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
In Full Flight: A Story of Africa and Atonement
John Heminway, Knopff
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
Company%20profile
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more from Janine di Giovanni
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
MATCH INFO
Newcastle United 2 (Willems 25', Shelvey 88')
Manchester City 2 (Sterling 22', De Bruyne 82')
