Why not? Simple reason… I get the feeling that many of the people at Metalab that I have met are aggressive anti-making-money at worst and disinterested in being told that Austria is actually a fantastic place to start a business. I think a lot of people complain because it gives them an excuse.
I don't think my talk would be welcome, or I would be given the cold shoulder, so I don't put myself through it.
Some people I've met (like Paul Böhm, which IIRC is the founder of MetaLab) seem very much pro-startup, but it could be that my experience is not representative of the norm, as I am hardly a regular member.
In fact Paul may be one of the reasons why "startups", as a subject, is such a tender one in the Metalab scene. You can talk about "startups" for years without actually starting one.
It seems that there is a particular brand of arrogance required of anyone trying to get something new done in the world of The Mob Mind, and that Mob Mind may well already be on its way to agitation in the Metalab scene, with regards to startups .. However, that arrogance persists in the Metalab scene, in the form of others, in the wings, preparing their new ideas for delivery.
Paul is no longer in Austria - he moved to the States, following that grand hacker dream of success in Silicon Valley .. but as far as I know, he was Mr. Startup, indeed..
Well, you're wrong. There are tons of people in the Metalab scene who are into making money, and who want to get their startups rolling .. otherwise why else would there be so many startup meetings there in the first place?
>I don't think my talk would be welcome, or I would be given the cold shoulder, so I don't put myself through it.
I'm wrong? I've got into this conversation - about how the business climate here is actually excellent - at MetaLab, with MetaLab members, after viennajs more than once, and they sure didn't want to hear it.
And as for preaching to the choir, no. If I were only interested in preaching to the choir, why would I bother to create a fairly controversial conference?
After all, the "accepted" startup model is building, growing huge, and hoping for an acquisition, rather than charging.
But preaching to people who really don't want to hear it - that's another story, and a total waste of time.
No, you're wrong about Metalab - there are plenty of people in the Metalab scene who would respond to your ideas if you were to make the effort to present them .. metalab is a hotbed of new-startup activity and some of the hackers there are really trying to make money, rather than just get it from their parents, as so many "smart kids in Vienna" do these days ..
What you might be interpreting as disinterest in the subject of startups is more like to be a disinterest in the means by which you are preaching to the converted .. sure you're not just getting a negative personal response and broadly generalizing it to avoid discomfort?
I didn't say they were disinterested in startups, I said they were disinterested in talking about charging money for products and how the business climate in Austria is actually superior to that in the US.
Not everyone - but enough that I wouldn't bother trying to force my unwelcome ideas on people by giving a talk.
And yes, I'm positive it's not "a negative personal response." The people I have connected with clearly enjoy my company.
I don't think my talk would be welcome, or I would be given the cold shoulder, so I don't put myself through it.