Unlike bitcoins, wework hasn't bought energy and unlike google, they haven't employed many engineers. Actually, they have subsidized engineers by renting out their offices below market value. So it's quite possible that they haven't burned too much energy and time of scarce resources.
I was replying to this comment:
>What frustrates me to no end is that instead of those billions going towards capital intensive startups that are actual moonshots, it was funneled into some bullshit real estate ponzi scheme.
OP was worried about the money and my point is that the money is still there for the moonshots. Now instead of having to convince Softbank or the Saudis, who want to see huge profits, it should actually be easier to get the money. It is spread out and chances are that some of the new owners value human progress over profits.
If you start a business of digging holes and you manage to get seed funding of $1000, and you pay two persons $500 to dig a hole and to fill up the other hole afterwards, you end up with nothing. But the two persons have $500 each.
For the economy, the money isn't gone. Hopefully the new owners of that money use it to invest in better ventures.
All that was lost was time and energy, but not money.
The money isn't gone. Some bank has Rebekah's billion on its books and can lent it to whoever needs it. Many people have sold their real estate at a profit and now have the money to invest in startups.
The bottleneck are the people who can organize the vertical integrated healthcare system or the higher education. Whoever can organize such an endeavor can convince an angel investor to build a prototype and then expand by getting the VC money.
I am convinced that history will repeat itself and Apple will become obsolete again because the PC of chat will eat their Mac Chat lunches.
If their market share depends on peer pressure there will be nothing that sustains them once that pressure is gone.