"If you're not mortally embarrassed by your initial release," Jared delivers the conventional wisdom to Richard in a bid to encourage him to get Pied Piper into the hands of the public, "You've released too late." Silicon Valley episode 7, "To Build a Better Beta," follows the team's effort to unleash its software on the world, and ends with a mouse-click deployment from which long-time fans of the show can (nerdily) draw some real excitement. Things are (at last!) happening in a show marked by pitfalls, hurdles, and stagnation, but, as the season nears its close, we're beginning to expect big occurrences.

Success in technology, though, is never assured. As Erlich says, now that his VC and incubator company (funded by Big Head) is insolvent, "Shuttering a company in the tech world is almost a rite of passage, like herpes simplex one." The episode follows his travails, too, which culminate in his selling off his perhaps precious Pied Piper shares in order to pay the caterers etc. for his million dollar luau on Alcatraz from last episode.

While following the money, Erlich realizes that Big Head's manager has used some of their funds to pay off his failed past business deals: "Give me back Big Head's fucking money!" Erlich screams at him, eventually taking his case to the DA. She isn't having it. "I see two able-bodied young white men who lucked into more money than most people see in five lifetimes," she says to Erlich and Big Head. "And who, if they hadn't had their millions stolen from them, would have squandered them." It's a nice, real-talk moment that accomplishes what this show does best: Speaking a bit of truth to frivolous power.

The meat of the episode, which after a near-perfect romp last time is sort of a pleasant one-off, centers on the beta release and the friendship woes of the Pied Piper team. “It’s a war of all against all," Gilfoyle, who let us not forget is a Satanist, justifies his lack of friends with whom to share the beta. "The history of humanity is a book written in blood. We’re all just animals in a pit." As Jared responds: “I feel very sad now,”

But by episode's end, we realize what we've always known: While Gilfoyle and Dinesh are constantly at each others' throats, they're each others best friends. "Don't you see?" Jared points the fact out to them. "Fuck you Jared," they say in unison, cementing their similarity.

The beta is, so far, met with glowing reviews from Silicon Valley friends and confidantes. “I don’t want to count our chickens before they’re hatched," says Jared, who at this point has incomparable lines and timing. "I mean, 3 percent of hatchlings are born mutated or dead — but we may have a healthy brood on our hands.”

However, one holdout is Monica. She doesn't love the product, and can't even pin down a specific criticism. But, as she confides in Richard, who craves her approval, she once passed on investing in the popular messaging platform Slack. “Is it email? Is it a chat room?” She doesn't get it, and really no one quite does, but it's a highly-valued company, and she hopes Pied Piper will be, too.

The episode also points to the blasé attitude many in Silicon Valley have toward privacy. We learn through Hooli CEO Gavin Belson that he's monitoring employees' private emails. Later, the Pied Piper team learns Gavin has ahold of their beta, which he's impressed by, because they've added a tracker to the software. To get revenge, they hack him, likely destroying his computer and phone, inflicting untold damage.

Episode 7 moves the plot along and provides some laughs. Jian-Yang, Erlich's tenant, gets one by tormenting him with an obviously fake phone call: “Erlich Bachman, this is your mom. And you are not my baby.” But there's not a huge amount else, just more to look forward to.

Previously: Silicon Valley Ep. 3.6: 'Founder Hounders'