Like 25 years ago I was writing software for financial traders back when trading was mostly done in open-outcry pits. What we had was very skilled human experts, so our systems were all basically supportive. Some larger rival, famous for their technology, thought they could do better by giving traders Newton-esque handheld computers that would receive new information via infrared networking. Then you didn't need smart traders, just monkeys who would do what the computer told them. Everybody was very impressed with all this high-tech gadgetry.

But one day we hit a period with high volatility, lots of price crashing and spiking. The handheld systems and the servers that drove them were too laggy to keep up, so the monkeys would get taken advantage of both on the way up and on the way down. It was a very expensive lesson for the execs who put too much reliance on the tech and not enough on the expert humans.

It seems so wild to me that not only are people making the same mistake, but at a much, much larger scale. Half a billion dollars lost. So far!

Won't be the last time

According to Forbes, Zillow has been buying homes since 2018:

> In April 2018, the company entered the fledgling on-demand home buying market (often referred to as ibuying) with a service called Zillow Offers. Prospective sellers in 11 markets (and growing) can go to the Zillow listing for their own home and ask for an offer. Within two days they’ll be sent a price derived from the Zestimate and other algorithms. Two local experts also provide input on each house, and if the seller likes the initial offer, a Zillow employee comes to inspect the property. (If a home is in poor condition the offer may be withdrawn or lowered.)

https://www.forbes.com/sites/samanthasharf/2019/07/01/rich-b...