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Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

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Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#131

Post by onethought »

baby wrote: post #94
onethought wrote: post #6

Isn't another growing/bigger centre for technology innovation now in China/Taiwan? Are we just pretending that Silicon Valley is still Mecca?

I was in both BJ and Taipei and I didn’t see that. BJ has Chinese players for sure, but that’s it, while Taipei still feels like a small player that’s comparable to berlin / chiangmai

Taiwan home to TMSC (amoung others) currently (with apples help admittedly) putting intel to shame.

Edit: Looking for Tech in PK is like looking for tech in D.C China’s “bay area” is in Guangdong in the GZ, SZ, DS triangle.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#132

Post by m_mueller »

temporalparts wrote: post #127
nmfisher wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There's a reason why we have never seen a world leading tech company come out from anywhere except the US. Probably the most ignorant comment I've ever seen on HN.

Instead of calling OP ignorant, can you help us with world-leading tech companies that are not in the US? I can think of Tencent from China in terms of company valuation, but my impression is that Tencent's dominance is confined to China instead of the world.

I’ll bite: Leadership in chip manufacturing is firmly in TSMC’s hands. Chip design is dominated by ARM and Qualcomm. Display tech by Samsung and LG.

Today, if you have an idea for a new gadget and you need fast prototyping, you’re far better off setting up shop in Shenzen than San Jose.

I’ll give you one thing: When it comes to software, by far SV has still the most influence. But when you include the whole tech space I think one should differentiate.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#133

Post by perl4ever »

Apocryphon wrote: post #53
caslon wrote: post #14

High-profile entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, venture capitalists like Peter Thiel and Keith Rabois, and big companies like Oracle and HP Enterprise are all leaving California. Oh wow! Larry Ellison, that one guy who lies about his cars putting literal lives at risk , a figurative vampire (infuses literal blood of young people into himself) and his thrall, and a company that hasn't been relevant since the 1970s all are…

The article neither tells anyone to leave SV nor is it talking about SV as a geographical area but rather the modern state of the tech industry, if you and so many others like you have actually bothered to read to the end of the very first paragraph. > Is this the end of Silicon Valley as we know it? Perhaps. But other challenges to Silicon Valley’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora.

I read, or skimmed, all the way to the end, and I don't think it gets any better.

One particular super up-to-date cliché that annoys me is where it goes on about "casino capitalism". So today we're not attacking "Wall Street's short term thinking"? When you're against risk taking and conservatism, all you're saying is "people shouldn't make mistakes, blaargh". You're right, they shouldn't. It's been noted.

I don't think the whole thing says anything worthwhile at all, or contains any non-clichéd thought, so I think people who didn't read it should be excused.

All I want from a "thoughtful" article is some thought that is new and could be right or wrong. "Not even wrong" gets all the clicks.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#134

Post by onethought »

rapsey wrote: post #66
onethought wrote: post #6

Isn't another growing/bigger centre for technology innovation now in China/Taiwan? Are we just pretending that Silicon Valley is still Mecca?

For software it sure is Mecca and nothing else comes close.

Except in China. Which is my point.

For every Uber there is a Didi. Microsoft there is a Tencent...

Etc. but they don’t play at US scale, they play at China scale.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#135

Post by astrange »

baby wrote: post #120
shinkim0914 wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, it’s still risky. But at least you’re still understood because of the pervasive startup culture in SV. Everyone in SV can relate to startups. I think what’s tough outside of SV is that people don’t relate to startups. People might think you’re just weird.

Who cares if your investors are from sv but you’re based elsewhere?

The investors care. Traditionally they wouldn't fund anyone who wasn't in easy reach.

It's also easier to hire employees since they're all in SV.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#136

Post by QuesnayJr »

baby wrote: post #120
shinkim0914 wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, it’s still risky. But at least you’re still understood because of the pervasive startup culture in SV. Everyone in SV can relate to startups. I think what’s tough outside of SV is that people don’t relate to startups. People might think you’re just weird.

Who cares if your investors are from sv but you’re based elsewhere?

There's a strong distance effect, where investors will invest more easily companies located near them. It could be that this will change after a year of experience with doing everything online, but it's been true historically.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#137

Post by astrange »

WalterGR wrote: post #124
opportune wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably most people I work with in their 30s or 40s are multimillionaires.

Yeah? On paper, 401k, or elsewhere? Where have they worked and for how long? Because in my experience, the “everyone who works at a FAANG is a multi-millionaire” meme is 100% bullshit. Especially when I read things like https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26336029

What company uses the scale in this comment? (IC5 IC6 IC7 etc)

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#138

Post by drawkbox »

shinkim0914 wrote: post #26

There is no place like Silicon Valley where taking a career risk to quit a job and start a company is normalized, understood, and encouraged.

Additionally, California is one of the only states that doesn't recognize non-competes [1], that is key for innovation and competitors coming up including small/medium competitors. This part is always overlooked.

> A few states, such as California, Montana, North Dakota, and Oklahoma, totally ban non-compete agreements for employees, or prohibit all non-compete agreements except in limited circumstances. [1]

There is also a massive augmented wave coming that is heavily underestimated and will change everything. The future is heavily content creation in new phases of technology which are huge. Overall, it is better to have a virtual economy that uses less resources than a physical one.

The new markets are definitely remote and that is how you communicate with most people now even in the same building, so being physically in California isn't as needed. Though the policies of not recognizing non-competes needs to go nationwide. Non-competes are anti-innovation, anti-worker, anti-business, anti-competition and only help the bigs.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-compete_clause#United_Stat...

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#139

Post by astrange »

qqqwerty wrote: post #122
baby wrote: post #45

I’m one of them. Left San Francisco due to the shitty weather, high crime, high rent, not much to do there, everybody is absorbed by their work, etc. I’ve been travelling and I’m currently wondering if I should come back or not...

Perhaps you are part of the problem? Maybe leaving would be best for both you and SF. I was born and raised in the area, and have watched as friends and family are forced out due to rising costs. These are folks who legitimately loved the area and were actively involved in their communities. And they get replaced by people who seem to only care about big paychecks and spend more time complaining about the area than a…

People are not leaving SF because tech employees are coming in. If nobody moved in, the economy would just get worse, housing wouldn't get any more available.

The problem is that your parents go to every community meeting and get all the housing projects shut down to prevent "greedy developers". That's been happening consistently since the 70s.

Re: Other challenges to SV’s preeminence are more fundamental than the tech diaspora

#140

Post by astrange »

opportune wrote: post #72
pottertheotter wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a lot more to Silicon Valley than San Francisco. It's just as expensive with a lot of people absorbed in their work, but does away with the bad weather and crime. I've never understood why so many tech companies over the last decade went up to SF. Before that most were down the peninsula and in San Jose. I'd pick the lower peninsula over SF no question.

The South Bay is either boring or very expensive. SF still feels very genuine and has a lot more going on compared to Sunnyvale. Not to say there is no reason to live there, but it seems to mostly attract families who like suburban living

South Bay has much better restaurants than most suburbs, if you like food, and it's not hard to get out to nature. Weather's better than SF and it's a lot cleaner. But if you want nightlife there isn't any, no.
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