"I wonder if it's the message that if you're not building a product that will build a unicorn company, then it's not interesting that's part of the general malaise"

This. You realize that like 99% of people just have some boring job being a cog in a wheel, right? I met a janitor once who was really passionate about saving the planet. His impact was limited to purchasing 'green' soap.

Not trying to be preachy, just wanted to put things in perspective. And see eludwigs comment above :) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12879025