My take is that society has different tribes of elites: You have old-school aristocracy and royalty, ultra-rich businesspeople, celebrity entertainers, politicians, artists, and top scientists. Each tribe is fascinated by, and envious of the different cachet and influence of the others. But the nature of the capitalist system means that it is the ultra-rich who pull the strings, and so they organise events like this in order to rub up against these other types.
In the past, the rich were most interested in rubbing up against the aristocracy, in the hope of acquiring by association the social capital associated with inherited nobility, and eventually becoming aristocrats themselves. Then, as the status of the aristocracy diminished during the 20th century, the rich became more interested associating with celebrities, as their associated glamour was something exotic and interesting.
In the 21st century, celebrity and fame has been demystified and become somewhat vulgar. So, now you have a subset of the very rich who are instead interested in associating with scientists, futurologists and researchers, as their air of intellectual achievement and specialised knowledge offers a new type of cachet that they wish to associate themselves with.
Me reacting poorly is probably elitist in itself - from my perspective the organization of this "party" makes Bezos somewhat of a poser if you will. I guess I'll have to do a bit of reflecting on this, so that I can have a more mature reaction.
It's a small scale version of what the guys at Davos have been doing for decades, only with tech toys instead of politicians - an expression of the power shift from politics to tech giants.
This is an insightful observation. Thanks!
I think that feeling is called jealousy.
Envy = You have that thing and I want that thing.
Jealousy = I have this thing and I want you not to have this thing.
"jealous: feeling or showing an envious resentment of someone or their achievements, possessions, or perceived advantages."
"Synonyms: envy, covetousness"
It is mostly incorrectly used by people to depict envy. Also it became also a cool factor. "Your trip to Jamaica makes me jealous". Huh ? Envy is about "a feeling of discontented or resentful longing aroused by someone else's possessions, qualities, or luck."
So you are actually envious. So stop being resentful at someone's luck or connections :)
Jealousy: "I am sure X is trying to steal my boyfriend/girlfriend away from me."
Yet it's true that the article has zero informative content, as millionaires are throwing parties every day, and it reads like a piece of PR or advertising.