Invasive Species
Uber, Grab, and WeWork experienced ecological release - operating in regulatory gray zones, subsidizing with abundant capital, facing naive competitors.
Invasive species exploit ecological release - conditions where normal constraints are absent. But release is temporary. Ecosystems adapt.
An invasive species is an organism introduced to an ecosystem where it has no natural predators, competitors, or diseases, experiencing ecological release - freedom from constraints that limit population in native habitat.
Australia imported 102 cane toads in 1935; by 2020, 200 million spread across northern Australia. Native predators evolved without toad toxin exposure - they attack instinctively and die. Kudzu grows 1 foot per day, smothering everything. Brown tree snakes on Guam drove 10 of 12 bird species extinct within 40 years.
Business Application of Invasive Species
Uber, Grab, and WeWork experienced ecological release - operating in regulatory gray zones, subsidizing with abundant capital, facing naive competitors. Ecological release is temporary: regulators arrive, competitors adapt, resources deplete. The question is how much market share you capture before constraints return. Invasive species either become permanent ecosystem members or get displaced.