The 'Rot Economy': How Big Tech's Obsession with Growth is Failing Users

Sophia Steele

Sophia Steele

March 05, 2025 · 3 min read
The 'Rot Economy': How Big Tech's Obsession with Growth is Failing Users

The internet's shift from a user-first experience to one designed to maximize engagement, ad revenue, and subscriptions has led to a proliferation of annoying ads, useless chatbots, and poor user experiences. This phenomenon, dubbed the "rot economy" by Ed Zitron, CEO of EZPR and host of the Better Offline podcast, is the result of a tech industry obsessed with growth at the expense of user value.

Zitron argues that major companies have become "fat and lazy" and "overconfident," prioritizing quarter-to-quarter growth over long-term product quality. This has created opportunities for startups to challenge incumbents across various industries, from social media to enterprise and productivity software.

In social media, for instance, users are defecting from platforms like Facebook and Instagram due to poor user experiences and political maneuverings. Decentralized alternatives like Bluesky, Mastodon, and Pixelfed are emerging as popular alternatives, offering users more control and privacy.

Enterprise and productivity software is another area ripe for disruption. Zitron criticizes companies like Microsoft, Salesforce, Dropbox, and Zoom for prioritizing short-term gains over product quality, leading to subpar products and services. He points to Google Docs as an example of growing corporate overreach, where users are forced to adopt AI features they may not need.

Zitron believes that consumers will play a significant role in this shift, as they become increasingly aware of the self-serving "laziness" of incumbent tech giants. He predicts a real shift in consumer behavior, away from these companies and towards startups that prioritize user experience and value.

Search is another area where startups are already challenging Google's dominance. DuckDuckGo, Perplexity, Diem, Marginalia Search, OpenSearch, Kagi, and Brave Search are just a few examples of alternatives that offer better search experiences, often with a focus on privacy and relevance.

Email is also an area where startups can make a significant impact. Zitron notes that most inboxes are cluttered with spam and disorganized due to clunky UX from giants like Outlook, Gmail, and Yahoo. End-to-end encrypted email services like Proton, Tutanota, and Skiff, as well as user-experience-focused alternatives like Superhuman, Hey, and Shortwave, are emerging as potential disruptors.

Zitron's vision for a better tech industry goes beyond just digital products. He sees opportunities for startups to take on Amazon's shipping and logistics business by creating a coalition of smaller companies, and for new real estate technologies to replace the "fat and happy" Zillows of the world.

Ultimately, Zitron's call to action is for startups to focus on building products that don't suck, prioritizing user experience and value over growth at all costs. By doing so, they can challenge the incumbent tech giants and create a better internet for everyone.

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