Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:52:26 GMT

lightfighter@infosec.exchange — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:52:26 GMT

@KerryMitchell From the article, there are employees as well.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:25:45 GMT

kerrymitchell@mastodon.social — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:25:45 GMT

@Lightfighter These people aren’t employees though, they’re “founders”.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:16:55 GMT

lightfighter@infosec.exchange — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:16:55 GMT

@KerryMitchell When you lose your job, not only do you lose your money, your Healthcare, but you also become homeless. That's pretty much the way company towns worked. I'm sure there are plenty of differences as well.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:13:20 GMT

kerrymitchell@mastodon.social — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:13:20 GMT

@Lightfighter Well… my impression is that even if a bit of money is coming from wealthy tech bros, these people are doing this to themselves. It’s not a company town in the old sense. These people seem like idealistic communalists who would have been Shakers or Hutterites or something along those lines in the past, but today’s gods are tech and money.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:03:04 GMT

lightfighter@infosec.exchange — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:03:04 GMT

@KerryMitchell Techbros reinvent serfs? Company towns.

Reply to Down in Texas there’s a place called Proto-Town that is a newly established community built along the lines of a business incubator. on Sat, 25 Apr 2026 14:51:06 GMT

kerrymitchell@mastodon.social — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 14:51:06 GMT

In the WSJ it’s described in a way that sounds almost like a religious farm community, but the belief system is startup culture: “[Proto-Town] serves as a business commune for young tech founders and other entrepreneurs who all live and work there. Founders and employees live together in the house or nearby trailer parks they call man camps. Workers at the dozen firms on site often eat meals as a group. Many work on their startups from morning to night.”