The wealthy don't advance society and don't help the average guy out"

I'm curious what you think the world would be like, without rich people. On a basic level, how do you expect innovation to move forward? You think startups will get government funding? You think the poor will fund them? Plenty of reasons to poop on some rich people, but make no mistake about it, almost every single major convenience you have in your life is because someone with means funded the original idea. Someone who had enough money to bet on a high risk high reward idea