Most major digital and tech breakthroughs in the last couple of decades – from computers to internet to smartphones to online platforms like Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook, Netflix etc – started in the US. What makes the country so strong in this area? Of course they have the biggest economy, but regions like Europe, East Asia etc still have a larger population than US and are as good as the US in PISA rankings (so it’s not like they are less educated etc).
So how come so many of these tech innovations come from the US, and not from somewhere else?
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A lot of the worlds top universities are here, plus brain gain.
Money brings the designers to the US. Most of them originated in other countries.
Good place to live so smart people want to work here usually
Having a large, comparatively affluent domestic market sure helps.
The US has invented pretty much everything since WW2. It’s huge, it’s rich, it has the best capital markets, it has the best universities, it has the best regulatory system for innovation and entrepreneurship, it has some of the lowest taxes, it didn’t spend the 50s rebuilding itself after being bombed into oblivion, etc.
Our military industrial complex and research institutions/universities have been prioritizing computer stuff for decades.
The US, historically, has some of the best universities which actively recruit the best students from around the world who often times end up sticking around after college. Also, like you said, we have the largest economy. So if a service launches, like amazon, there are more customers with money to sell to to allow the business to boom. Where as if amazon started in south africa, there would not have been as many. customers with money to make the business grow. Just my thoughts, I’m sure someone will come in and angrily tell me I’m wrong somehow..
Decades of investment in research from military to space exploration to universities. And then once that all sets in and creates industries, it tends to be difficult to move. Look at all of the various “Silicon Valley Two” attempts that have largely under-delivered because Silicon Valley already exists.
This isn’t to say the rest of the world doesn’t contribute. But for better or for worse, non-US creations tend to get swallowed up by US companies. Facebook/Meta purchased WhatsApp, Skype was acquired by Microsoft, etc…
Lots of massive research universities that draw the brightest from all over the world
Investors are willing to throw money at crazy ideas, and every now and then one of them hits. That and the US market is big enough by itself to build scale quickly before launching world wide.
The US invested heavily in the tech industry in like the 1980s and thats really helped develop a strong industry
There are a lot of reasons
– head start: while half the world was rebuilding during ww2, the US was full force innovating and developing
– many of the top ranked universities are located in the US. This attracts a large amount of the best talent around the world
– deregulation/ lack of government oversight in many businesses. The old saying is Europe says whether you can do something. The US tells you if you can’t
– we are a wealthy nation with 350m people who all speak the same language and have disposable income to buy these innovations
– private investment in R and D is massive
– work culture
– we are way more tolerant of risk taking than much of the world and are very forgiving of riskier both socially and legally
Based on the way US corporate structure, tax, and regulations work, it is very easy for a small group of people — or even one individual — to start a business, accept large amounts of investment cash, and pay almost no taxes until they have become “profitable”. And you can even become a publicly traded company on stock exchanges without first needing to become profitable. This has created a whole world of venture capital funding for what amount to speculative ventures, some of which sometimes produce something of value for end users. But many of which don’t ever do that, because that’s only a small component of what is required to start such a venture. And there’s little oversight of the speculative side of things.
Regulations that are more business friendly, and a general entrepreneurial outlook.
In many other countries if you try something outside the box and fail you are pretty much done.
Here we look at people trying to succeed at something “new” with respect, even if they don’t get it right first time out of the gate.
A lot of it has to do with freedom. That’s not some kind of vague platitude. Allow me to explain. In America you can do whatever you want, there’s no centralized economic planing so if you want to go be an inventor then you can go off and do that. The guy who invented the slinky was an engineer during WWII who saw how metal shavings coiled and decided to make that into a toy, no one was telling him he had to remain an engineer. You can go off and invent some new widget without having to worry about make anyone happy.
This is especially evident in the arts. China, Russia and to a lesser degree, Europe will never have the cultural horsepower America does. If you make a movie it doesn’t have to be approved by the government, you can just make it. If you want to paint paintings there’s no arts committee that needs to see it first. That’s why we have works of art and artists like The Godfather, Migrant Mother, NWA, Hamilton, Jackson Pollack, Georgia O’Keefe, Rhapsody in Blue, John DeLorean, Star Wars, Elvis…none of them had to get approval from the government or be afraid that their work would be hidden by the powers that be.
A culture that values risk taking and entrepreneurship, top universities all over the country, massive venture capital and funding and a large domestic market to name a few.
The US encourages people to innovate.
I’ve heard, though cannot verify, that the US attitude about failure in general but startups/business specifically drives greater innovation. E.G. in Japan, you spend 3 years on a startup and it goes under, you’re not getting local funding and you may even have a hard time going back into established companies. Same scenario in the US and now you can brag to investors about the experience and how you’re smarter for it. The stigma for failure here is pretty low.
Similarly, the lack of labor protection laws make it easier for startups to move fast and change course as they go. No workers councils to go through. Not good in a lot of ways, but good for speed and innovation.
Plus, and this may not be true going forward, the US gets a disproportionate share of talent from other countries. Soft power, less overt racism, certain work visas, etc. We’re actively trying to squander this advantage, but a lot of our founders are immigrants or children of immigrants.
It’s the Silicon Valley startup culture and the huge pots of money that it has drawn in. It’s the one place in the world where you can take an idea, put it into a proper business plan in certain industries and have people throw money in your direction to try to realize that idea. I don’t think there’s anything like it anywhere else.
The USA also has a ton of natural resources so they can actually make whatever they can dream up.
Because America is the greatest nation on this earth, I’m a Brit and I don’t mind saying this.
Lots of reasons, some good some bad.
* Huge market for gadgets/software/etc compared to any other country. This means higher profits and potentially higher pay, attracting more talent.
* On the consumer side, there is a culture of worshipping what’s new, little reverence for the past or “being green and keeping what you have”.
* On the production side, there is a lot of “hustle culture” and the idea that working hard for somebody else is somehow a virtue. There are few employee protections, and fewer vacation days than any other first world country.
Somebody asks some version of this question and it’s the same answer every time m. Whether you’re focusing specifically on computer’s and tech or all innovation in general: we’re a huge country rich in resources and wealth. Our business and regulatory environment is MASSIVELY more favorable to taking risks, innovation, entrepreneurialism, and growth of new things. Our business culture is one that prioritizes innovation, efficiency, improvement and celebrates successful risk. This is night and day different from the European business environment that prioritizes avoiding rocking the boat and taking long vacations.
It’s the same answer every time.
We have an appetite for risk, we tolerate failures and see it as part of finding success, we tolerate the wealth gained by the people who make these companies, we have a large capital market to fund them, we also attract the absolute best of the best talent that every country has to offer. The top engineering and computer science university students from all over the world aspire to come here work for our top tech companies, and also start their own companies that have a chance to be giant.
We are also totally willing to allow a new technology to completely disrupt our society. This is something that most civilizations have an extreme aversion to. If some new technology will eliminate 5% or 10% of jobs, even if over decades it makes society wealthier, we will tend to do it.
We have an ecosystem that seems chaotic to the outside world, especially to the Europeans who have an extreme aversion to chaos. But from this chaos comes creation.
One thing I haven’t seen here…you’re allowed to fail and try again. That does not exist in much of Europe.
>East Asia etc still have a larger population than US and are as good as the US in PISA rankings (so it’s not like they are less educated etc).
You can have all the people you want but if you don’t have the money you can’t do anything. The US is the center of the global economy, for good or ill.
Capitalism. Russia has had some great inventions that haven’t gone anywhere because there isn’t money in it for the inventor.
Because free market capitalism works.
There are just fewer barriers to entry in the United States than other places. Although, unfortunately, our advantage here seems to be slowly coming to an end.
A culture and legal system that tolerates risk taking and a structured process for dealing with bankruptcy so you can try again.
1) A decently nice amenities SFH lifestyle is massively easier to achieve in USA.
2) company willing to pay top dollars to talents.
3) USA is the most diverse country in the entire world. Many people trying to make fun of USA, that’s mainly because they are jealous of this. I am first gen immigrant, I am able to easily find authentic restaurant around my city. Other countries theorize it, but USA already did it, they talk about the result of it. It aint always rainbows and unicorns, but they are already living it, not pretend to be one. It makes American Dream felt so achievable.
4) people like to make fun of American, saying they are so stupid buying stupid shits. But that’s how the economy works. Example: Chinese people in China buying gold instead of stupid ass toys. The circulation is low. They are too smart, but becomes a hoarder and not putting enough money back into the economy.
5) American education system is exceptionally flexible and accessible. You get dumbass complaining they took major student debt on some Ferrari tiered school, but that’s not the only education available in USA. People who choose cheaper alternatives often find success in life and again they earn money and buy stupid shits that keeps the wheel going around, instead of paying interest on student debts.
6) American education system is easy enough to focus on the dream instead of the scores. Seriously, who the fuck cares you know all the countries flags or locations? Each time I saw those TikTok videos, I just rolls my eyes.
It’s a lot of things, and it isn’t that the US has a monopoly on any of the factors. It just happens to have elements of all of them, some in great abundance, which can make certain business events more likely to happen.
* Massive educated workforce, including world-class universities.
* It’s just one country. Crossing a state border is a non-issue to pursue opportunities or move goods. Seriously, we don’t have checkpoints or anything, the most you’ll see is just a sign welcoming travelers, and maybe the speed limits changes by 5 miles per hour if you’re on a highway. And while there are some state laws to take into consideration, most policies are continuous across the U.S., and every state is Constitutionally-required to recognize contracts that originated in another state.
* Lots of areas with concentrated wealth, so more investment opportunities for new businesses and products.
* Business-friendly laws. Commerce is generally very well-protected and there are few regulations around hiring and firing workers.
* Culturally, the people are often raised with a belief that if you work hard, you can break into a higher socio-economic status. This is largely untrue, but it does motivate some into the “hustle culture.” Entrepreneurial pursuits are praised, and successful financial risk-taking is celebrated. This encourages new businesses to sprout and existing business to keep expanding and innovating.
* The US has massive developed infrastructure. Need to move products from ports to the factory or vice versa? Need to bring in cheap human capital from one suburb to work under the manager who lives in a wealthier suburb to the same central office in downtown? These kinds of roadways are in abundance. We complain about how bad it all is while we’re also reliant on it. This is in addition to infrastructure around utilities. While some of this stuff needs upgraded (seriously, it can be terrible in some cases), there isn’t exactly a fear that we need to collect rain water for when our pipes fall apart!
* The US also has a strong domestic market. If you’re selling a consumer product, Americans are often going to be a big part of that market.
* Truly massive stock market. If you go public, it’s very possible to open up a river of money to fund future expansion and development.
* Political stability. Sure, there’s serious division, but we aren’t in a civil war, seeing combat-level structural violence, etc. The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land and, while there are disagreements on how to apply it in specific circumstances, it’s extremely difficult to actually amend the thing, preventing large structural instabilities that you didn’t already see coming over the course of several years.
* Similarly, the U.S. is not under any external military threat. Massive ocean on both sides patrolled by the world’s largest blue water navy, skies guarded by the world’s largest air force, and the only countries with land borders stay on peaceful terms with us (and one of them is also one of our NATO allies). There’s no worry that somebody’s going to bomb our infrastructure or create a border zone within the U.S. In addition, the U.S. is massive and some areas have a very well-armed population, giving any would-be occupier that much more friction to trying anything. And within that massive size is a huge wealth of mineral resources and arable land, making the military a little less reliant on stable imports to keep its needs met in the case of an attack. And if that wasn’t enough, the US has bilateral military treaties and allies around the world (NATO and the MMNAs (E.G., Israel, Brazil, Bahrain, Argentina, etc), ANZUS, OAS, Japan, the Phillipines, South Korea, and if I want to propose a silly theoretical, Morocco), so much of the developed world is going to dogpile.
* The US provides financial aid and military support around the world, increasing its soft power in negotiations. As such, it’s easier to find trade deals, stable partnerships, etc. for working a global supply chain, and trade sanctions are highly unlikely.
* Related to the previous point, the US Dollar is the primary reserve currency of the planet. This gives significant economic flexibility and influence in the world that many other countries simply can’t compete with.
We have far less regulation and far less taxes.
We have a culture of trying again if you fail. Failure isn’t looked at as something to be ashamed of, it’s looked at as something to overcome.
Freedom
Communists can’t innovate, only steal.