Mike Maples, a Silicon Valley venture capitalists with longtime ties to Austin, came out swinging against voters' decision to require new rules for ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft.
Credit: Bloomberg
Credit: Bloomberg
Maples wrote in a Medium post that "the ordinance that the City Council passed breaks the business model of the TNCs (transportation network companies). It was intellectually bankupt. It was wrong then. It's wrong now. It will never be right. It will NEVER work."
Maples, who has invested in Lyft, previously warned that his investment firm, Floodgate, would no longer invest in on-demand companies in Austin because local government is "too hostile."
Since first speaking out about Austin regulations, Maples has said his concerns go well beyond the City Council's limits on short-term rentals and ride-hailing services.
"There are a lot of new exciting technologies - the Internet of things, drones, telemedicine - and Austin has some natural advantages. But if things get outlawed before they get off the ground, all the innovation is going to happen somewhere else."
Maples is one of several speakers scheduled to appear at a Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce startup awards event tonight. He will be on stage with Joe Liemandt, founder and CEO of Trilogy, to speak about current events and issues facing the city.
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