The city argument is they need the data for several purposes, for example aggregate information for demand projections (Uber's own data shows it slows down Manhattan traffic 9 percent) as well as entity-specific information to track compliance with applicable laws and licensing (criminal record, etc.).
Airbnb and Uber are correct when they say they need to keep some information confidential. Cities have terrible records when it comes to this. Indeed, if you look across the pond to the UK, where the HMRC is building the next Big Brother all in the name of tax collection, one can only shudder when looking at their track record of securing large quantities of data.
While the issues of economic unfairness and trust are both important, indeed weighty enough to merit much more substantive discussion, the issue that Nick Grossman is debating in the article is regulatory oversight. The same issue is expanded on in a recent a16z podcast.
There's a lot of focus on $12K that I think is a red herring. This isn't a substitute for seed funding, it's not masquerading as a full-fledged accelerator, it's a chance to borrow some of the momentum of an organization that seems to have a pretty remarkable record at moonshots.
I've been working out of Denver and Vegas for several years now and the timing of this couldn't be better. After all, why iterate on the same dimension over and over and not try something new? I turn 50 on July 27. I've been working on fun projects for pretty much all of my adult life and I have better things to do than worry about things I can't control.
Airbnb and Uber are correct when they say they need to keep some information confidential. Cities have terrible records when it comes to this. Indeed, if you look across the pond to the UK, where the HMRC is building the next Big Brother all in the name of tax collection, one can only shudder when looking at their track record of securing large quantities of data.