Why are are consumer founders focused on building social apps for teens? Because the ‘k-factor’, a measure of virality, diminishes as the target age group increases.

Adults tend to be more pessimistic, more resistant to the new and untested. They’re set in their ways. Creating a social app for the adult audience today would likely require extensive capital and reliance on paid advertisement to gain traction.

In many respects, I see a parallel between this process and the current dynamics playing out in the software categories that have network effects.

A critical aspect of some successful software companies like Salesforce is the network effects they’ve managed to establish, creating a colossal ecosystem around their products. It’s a self-perpetuating cycle: the more users they have, the more valuable their service becomes, attracting even more users. This is a formidable barrier to entry for competitors. Simply having a superior product is not sufficient to break into the CRM market today.

That’s because the majority of the B2B software landscape is made of “adult companies”. They are more resistant to change and their sales cycle could kill an early stage startup.

In contrast, the open source world is bustling with a new generation. They are a majority of junior developers, brimming with optimism, and eager to experiment with new ideas. A significant portion hails from emerging countries such as India and Pakistan.

This demographic will be key to break the network effects built over years. They are ready to challenge the status quo, and their enthusiasm and creativity will be the key to push new innovative solutions.

Just as Facebook found its initial success among college students, the future of software may well lie in the hands of these young, enthusiastic open source developers from around the world. Their optimism, creativity, and willingness to experiment are the fuel that will drive the software industry forward.