Why, exactly? I wondered the same thing--what are these so-called startups that are achieving this, how big a trend is this, is it just a local Silicon Valley thing or is it widespread, etc.? Seems like the author dropped the ball here.

I've read articles about at least two, but sadly can't find them now. They use unlicensed spectrum to deliver low data rates, which is enough for IoT devices.

You reminded me of this: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7771877. (Earlier post of mine, but on topic...)

Thanks, that was one of them :)