Tech innovation is shaking and shaping the Las Vegas machine

Are the technological leaps on display a threat to the foundations of the Las Vegas economy? Through a particular lens, Daniel Rothberg says the answer is yes. "With power concentrated in entrenched industries, and the deal-makers ruling from the top on down, disruption can be especially thorny," writes Daniel Rothberg for The Las Vegas Sun. " Intensifying the challenge for new tech is the fact that Las Vegas is defined by brick-and-mortar businesses. The machine runs on tourism standard-bearers: resorts in the center of the action, not Airbnbs on the suburban periphery; and tossing cards on the felt of a casino table, not an iPhone screen. Even if a spark starts on a dating app, the goal is to meet on a club’s dance floor." Read Rothberg's thoughts on taxis vs. ride sharing, hospitality minus humans, and more here.