How The Sharing Economy Has Been Taken Over By Big Business

The sharing economy began as a promise, fairer prices, empowered individuals, and community-driven services. But a decade later, platforms like Uber and Airbnb have shifted from grassroots disruptors to corporate powerhouses. What was meant to democratise access has been overtaken by big money, rising housing costs, and exploitative gig work. 

The sharing economy, once hailed as a revolution in how we live, work, and interact, has taken a turn in recent years that many didn’t quite see coming. Remember the early days of companies like Uber and Airbnb? There was this hopeful feeling in the air. These platforms were supposed to change the game, offering more affordable, flexible, and less corporate-driven alternatives to traditional services. 

They were going to democratise access to resources, whether that meant a ride to the airport or a place to stay. These companies were seen as part of a broader social movement that promised to reduce the stranglehold of big business and empower individuals. But somewhere along the way, things changed.

Today, companies like Uber and Airbnb no longer stand as beacons of a new, egalitarian economic model. Instead, they’re viewed by many as symbols of how the sharing economy has been overtaken by big money, with local services getting crushed under the weight of massive investments and corporate greed.

The original Vision of the Sharing Economy

It all seemed so promising. Uber would give us a way to bypass taxi monopolies, offering a cheaper, more flexible option to get around. Airbnb promised to do the same for accommodation, allowing homeowners to rent out their space to travellers, thereby cutting out the middleman and the corporate hotel chains. The idea was that these platforms would create a more informal, community-driven way of sharing resources, allowing people to monetise things they weren’t fully utilising—like their spare room or their car—and helping others access services more affordably.

And it wasn’t just about saving money. These platforms tapped into a growing desire for more control over our lives and how we spend our time and money. As Airbnb founder Brian Chesky put it in 2013, “We believe that people should be able to share the things they have, whether it’s a spare room, a car, or even a moment in time.” The idea was that anyone could join this global network of sharers and renters, creating a peer-to-peer system that could shift the balance of power away from large corporations.

The Shift: Big Money Takes Over

But today, that idealistic vision seems like a distant memory. What we’re left with is something far more corporate and commercial. The Guardian even pointed out that the lack of government oversight and social movement involvement led to “big money seizing the sharing economy.”

What started as a form of grassroots, community-driven sharing has become a playground for investors and corporations, eager to capitalise on the growing demand for these services. Companies like Uber and Airbnb, once the darlings of the startup world, are now well-funded global giants that operate like any other corporation—chasing profits and market share at all costs. The problem is that the original intent was for small, local businesses to thrive on these platforms, not be outbid and pushed aside by wealthy investors with deep pockets.

This situation is similar to the way that the welfare state was developed in the 20th century, especially in the UK. The state stepped in to protect services like healthcare and education, ensuring that they were shielded from the market forces that could have turned them into profit-driven enterprises. While the welfare state is certainly not without its flaws, it still maintains certain democratic and localised protections, which the sharing economy, by and large, never had.

Instead, the digital platforms that once promised fairness and equal opportunity have been swallowed up by corporate greed. The model that was meant to empower individuals to share their resources has been hijacked by big business, and local communities are feeling the effects.

The Airbnb Dilemma: Local Housing Crisis

Take Airbnb, for example. What was once seen as an affordable alternative to hotels, offering travellers the chance to stay in homes rather than sterile hotel rooms, has now become a platform where large investors buy up multiple properties, turning them into Airbnb rentals. In some cities, entire blocks or neighbourhoods are now filled with empty properties that are only ever rented out on a short-term basis, creating a strain on the local housing market. This leaves residents with fewer affordable rental options and drives up property prices—making it harder for locals to find a place to live. In many cases, the sharing economy has become a force that further exacerbates the very problems it once promised to solve.

While consumers may enjoy the convenience and affordability of using Airbnb, the long-term impact on local communities is becoming harder to ignore. Entire areas are being transformed into tourist zones, where residents are pushed out in favour of higher-paying visitors. This isn’t what the platform was initially designed to do. The model that allowed people to share their homes with others in a meaningful way has been warped into a business model that prioritises profit over people.

Uber and the Gig Economy: Exploiting Drivers

Similarly, Uber’s promise of cheaper, more flexible transportation has been overshadowed by criticism of its treatment of drivers. What was once sold as a peer-to-peer service, where anyone with a car could be a driver, has now become a gig economy job with little to no benefits. Uber drivers often work long hours to make a reasonable wage, but with no job security, no health benefits, and no traditional worker protections. The company’s business model relies on drivers being treated as independent contractors, rather than full employees, which has been a point of contention for years.

Looking further down the road, it’s not hard to imagine a future where Uber does away with drivers altogether, replacing them with self-driving cars. From a business perspective, this makes complete sense. But it’s hard to ignore the fact that it would further reduce the number of jobs available for people who rely on driving for a living. What started as a way for drivers to earn extra income by offering rides to passengers has evolved into a business model that strips workers of their rights, all while reaping the rewards of billions of dollars in valuation.

The Dark Side of the “Sharing” Economy

As we see with Airbnb and Uber, the promise of a more collaborative, sharing-driven economy has often been co-opted by big business in the pursuit of profit. Rather than empowering individuals and communities, these platforms have become mechanisms for large corporations to extract value from everyday people.

In fact, some of the most pressing issues we face today—rising housing costs, job insecurity, and the erosion of worker rights—can be directly linked to the way that platforms like Airbnb and Uber have evolved. What was once seen as a way to share resources more efficiently has instead created new forms of inequality and exploitation.

The Promise of Technology: Will It Repeat the Mistakes?

The rise of new technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), and smart cities brings with it the same promises that the sharing economy once did. These innovations are being sold to us as solutions to some of society’s biggest challenges, from urban overcrowding to energy inefficiency. But without the proper protections in place, there’s a real risk that these technologies could end up in the hands of big business in much the same way the sharing economy did. We need to be wary of being swept up in the hype and make sure that these technologies are used for the greater good, not just to line the pockets of a few powerful players.

Protecting the Future: Learning from the Past

If we’ve learned anything from the rise of the sharing economy, it’s that unchecked capitalism can have harmful effects on our communities. Without the proper oversight and protections, the sharing economy has morphed into something very different from what we envisioned. The only way to prevent this from happening again is to make sure that new technologies and innovations are approached with caution and a commitment to ensuring that the benefits are shared equitably.

We need to ask ourselves some tough questions. Is our society becoming too commercialised? Are we allowing big business to take over platforms that were designed to serve the people? And, most importantly, what steps are we willing to take to protect the democratic values that we hold dear?

The early days of the sharing economy may have seemed like the beginning of something revolutionary. But unless we learn from the past, we may find ourselves falling into the same traps of exploitation and inequality that have plagued the corporate world for centuries. We must be careful not to get caught up in the fantasy that technology will solve all our problems, and instead ensure that it works for everyone, not just the wealthy few.

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