/Tech1h ago

Anders Sandberg says the dotcom bubble moved less total capital than today's technology surge

Story Overview

Researcher Anders Sandberg highlighted on X that the dotcom bubble era featured broad optimism and bets on any internet-flavored idea yet moved less total capital overall than the current technology expansion, prompting a reply from Yishan that today's larger volumes reflect a bigger economic base while the 1990s carried a higher ratio of hype to substance.

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Original post

Anders Sandberg@anderssandberg#1350inTech

@DanielleFong The dotcom bubble was not as big in terms of massive money being moved around (!) Mentally it was the optimistic "let's throw everything at the wall and see what sticks in this glorious new era!" - people investing in anything with cyber-, www, WAP, or any prefix really.

Danielle Fong 🔆@DanielleFong

people who were paying attention in the 90s, was the internet bubble as big as this? feels like this is earlier in something of even more substantial magnitude, but all of like, a world wiring itself up

12:12 AM · Jul 3, 2026 · 71 Views

Open Question

Raw volumes tell only part of the story

Public records show nominal VC flows reached higher annual peaks recently than in 2000, yet the exchange leaves open whether adjusted totals including public markets or inflation-adjusted figures would shift the comparison.

Industry Shift

Context shapes every bubble narrative

Without a shared benchmark for stupidity-to-progress ratios or precise capital definitions, readers are left weighing qualitative impressions against the documented growth in economic scale between the two periods.

Sentiment

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Cluster Engagement

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Posts from X

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Yishan@yishan

@DanielleFong In terms of sheer economic volume, no. Today is bigger, but it’s because the base is larger. But in terms of “stupidity-to-real-stuff” ratio, it was much bigger. There was tremendous excitement but the vast majority of it was grossly technically ignorant.

Danielle Fong 🔆@DanielleFong

29m8800

REPLIES1

Anders Sandberg@anderssandberg

@DanielleFong I used to have my office next to a stairwell in computing at KTH in Stockholm. We used to joke in the 90s "in the long run we will all be at Ericsson". But now everyone was smilingly starting startups. The mood was palpable - and the bust was equally visible.

Anders Sandberg@anderssandberg

1h3900

Anders Sandberg@anderssandberg

@DanielleFong I think this laid the seed for current Swedish startup culture. It did not really exist before, then got bootstrapped on the big internet investments. The bust forced a lot more realism... But the dreams continued, and we're transmitted to the next generation.

Anders Sandberg@anderssandberg

1h1500