Silicon Valley
One of the best things about people living abroad is the the fact that they are super friendly and like talking a lot and last month the guy who drove us from San Francisco International Airport to our destination in Santa Clara was no different. He literally spoke for 35 out of the 40 minutes it took us to cover the journey. He told us about the weather, the direction, his cell phone provider, his truck and also why San Francisco was the best city in the world. However, for me the most important knowledge he imparted, that day, was explaining how the Bay Area came to be known as the 'Silicon Valley'.
It started some 10 minutes into our ride when we passed a board that said 'University Drive'. Before I asked him he started to explain, "If we take the next exit and drive to out right for about 3 miles, we will hit Stanford University. Everything South of this place till San Jose is now Silicon Valley"
Apparently, it all started back during World War II when the US Air Force built a small airport near Sunnyvale, which is now used by NASA. A lot of big hi-tech companies of that time set up their base around this airfield to win contracts. Post the war, the place quietened down and the companies continued to operate from the very same offices since it was pretty cheap.
The scenario changed again some 2 or 3 decades later when the PC revolution came around. A lot of entrepreneurial activity started to emerge from the shores of Standford and Berkeley and all this fueled a demand for cheap resources which was available in abundance in the Bay Area. The 12 small cities which were, till now, nothing but village type settlements suddenly saw a lot of IT, Software and Chip design companies spring up and before they realized, the Bay Area came to be known as the 'Silicon Valley' of the United States.
So, in summary, there are 4 primary reasons why Silicon Valley came into being here:
1. Good pool of graduates and research coming out of Stanford and Berkeley Universities.
2. A large abundance of people already working here with the big tech companies of world-war era.
3. Cheap land resources atleast when it all started some 2 decades ago.
4. Amazing weather.
This was quite a remarkable and believable theory, however, I couldn't help but apply the same principles to Namma Bengaluru to see if the same principles apply to our very own Silicon Valley.
1. Good Universities - We have some amazing institutes like IISc, IIM and a host of other privately held Engineering and Management colleges, so tick to this point.
2. Big tech companies of yesteryear - Yes. Just as in Bay Area, Bengaluru too has a small airfield run by AirForce and this is surrounded by the likes of HAL, DRDO and ISRO so tick to this one too.
3. Cheap Land Resources - Once again as of 5 to 6 years back a definite yes. However, with the current rise in property prices it is facing stiff competition from Noida, Hyderabad and even Mysore to a certain extent.
4. Amazing weather - Agree to a large degree though I would not be able to justify the recent rise in temperatures to close to 37 deg C!
Whatever the case, I do sincerely hope that Bengaluru is able to retain this coveted title for a long long time to come....
Apparently, it all started back during World War II when the US Air Force built a small airport near Sunnyvale, which is now used by NASA. A lot of big hi-tech companies of that time set up their base around this airfield to win contracts. Post the war, the place quietened down and the companies continued to operate from the very same offices since it was pretty cheap.
The scenario changed again some 2 or 3 decades later when the PC revolution came around. A lot of entrepreneurial activity started to emerge from the shores of Standford and Berkeley and all this fueled a demand for cheap resources which was available in abundance in the Bay Area. The 12 small cities which were, till now, nothing but village type settlements suddenly saw a lot of IT, Software and Chip design companies spring up and before they realized, the Bay Area came to be known as the 'Silicon Valley' of the United States.
So, in summary, there are 4 primary reasons why Silicon Valley came into being here:
1. Good pool of graduates and research coming out of Stanford and Berkeley Universities.
2. A large abundance of people already working here with the big tech companies of world-war era.
3. Cheap land resources atleast when it all started some 2 decades ago.
4. Amazing weather.
This was quite a remarkable and believable theory, however, I couldn't help but apply the same principles to Namma Bengaluru to see if the same principles apply to our very own Silicon Valley.
1. Good Universities - We have some amazing institutes like IISc, IIM and a host of other privately held Engineering and Management colleges, so tick to this point.
2. Big tech companies of yesteryear - Yes. Just as in Bay Area, Bengaluru too has a small airfield run by AirForce and this is surrounded by the likes of HAL, DRDO and ISRO so tick to this one too.
3. Cheap Land Resources - Once again as of 5 to 6 years back a definite yes. However, with the current rise in property prices it is facing stiff competition from Noida, Hyderabad and even Mysore to a certain extent.
4. Amazing weather - Agree to a large degree though I would not be able to justify the recent rise in temperatures to close to 37 deg C!
Whatever the case, I do sincerely hope that Bengaluru is able to retain this coveted title for a long long time to come....
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