What does "Silicon Valley" in America mean?

Silicon valley is the top term that marks high technology at present. Silicon Valley, located in the south of the San Francisco Bay Area, refers to a flat valley from San Francisco to San Jose with a depth of about 100 km and facing the Pacific Ocean. Stanford University is located in the center of Silicon Valley. It is such a small place that the output value of 1998 is equivalent to about a quarter of China's national GDP that year. That is to say, such a small place has topped the output value of about 300 million people, which is really impressive. Since 1970s, Silicon Valley has become the source of high-tech innovation and the most economically dynamic region in the world. In 2000, the GDP of the San Francisco Bay Area metropolitan area where Silicon Valley is located was as high as $458 billion, second only to new york and Los Angeles. Its per capita GDP reached $65,090, about twice the average level of the United States, and it is the country with the highest per capita GDP in the United States. Today, Silicon Valley has become the birthplace of high-tech industrial clusters and the most innovative high-tech industrial zone in the world.

Silicon Valley originated in World War II, but it was basically an agricultural area before the war, and there was no industrial tradition, especially rich in big cherries. Until the 1970s, cherry trees were still everywhere. Its industrial base originates from two famous professors, one is frederick terman, president of Stanford University, and the other is William Shockley, an expert in solid state physics.

Terman first encouraged his students to use electronic technology to start companies and promote regional economic development. For example, the famous Hewlett-Packard Company (electronic visual instrument), Litton Company (military electronic system) and Wan Rui Association (electronic instrument) were all established with the support of Terman. Secondly, he rented the open space of Stanford University to a high-tech company, which strengthened the close relationship between the university and the industry, formed the earliest and most famous Stanford Industrial Park in the world, and laid the embryonic form of industrial development in Silicon Valley. Finally, because Stanford University is far from Washington, it can't get as much funding from MIT. President Terman took a different approach, emphasizing that Stanford University should not only care about and rely on regional industries to obtain projects and development; Colleges and universities should also care about enterprises, assist enterprises, vigorously train regional engineers and technicians, and maintain close ties between teaching and industry, so that both sides can benefit and develop together.

Nobel Prize winner Shockley commercialized his transistor research results and established shockley Transistor Company in Silicon Valley. Two years later, the company disintegrated and eight employees resigned to form Fairchild Semiconductor Company. 1963, Fairchild accepted an order from the US military, and its sales jumped to $654,380.3 billion. By the end of 1970s, most of the semiconductor companies in Silicon Valley were descendants of Fairchild, all of which had the genetic genes of Fairchild technology and management, and were full of vitality and prosperity.

Silicon Valley actually exists. Only in recent years, especially since 1996, it has been particularly prosperous. Of course, the main reason is the popularity of the Internet all over the world. Silicon Valley is changing through constant innovation. In the 1960s, the leading industries in Silicon Valley were semiconductors, processors in the 1970s, software in the 1980s and the Internet in the 1990s. Silicon Valley is changing. Silicon Valley also has ups and downs. For example, the fluctuation of house prices is proof. 199 1 the house you bought, 1995 fell by about 20%, and it has risen again in recent years. Therefore, Silicon Valley is not always growing, and the whole innovation process is a process of metabolism and ups and downs.

The earliest entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley were the two founders of HP. They started from scratch during the Great Depression in the 1930s, developed an oscillator in a garage and founded Hewlett-Packard Company. Hewlett-Packard Company still has the largest number of employees in Silicon Valley. In the history of HP's development, there have been many experiences of changing production, first precision instruments, then computers, printers and so on. Another company that had a great influence on the development of Silicon Valley was Fairchild in 1950s. Entrepreneurs from many famous companies in Silicon Valley come from that company. Interestingly, they left Fairchild because they were dissatisfied with their boss William, who won the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing semiconductors. Shockley-overbearing style. They later started their own business and vowed to establish a new atmosphere.

Expressway 128 High-tech Industrial Zone is located in the west of Boston, USA. Boston and its nearby New England were once highly developed industrial areas in the eastern United States. At the beginning of World War II and the Cold War, R&D centers for radar, telecommunication, industrial control, navigation system and missile control were established with the famous Massachusetts Institute of Technology as the core.

In addition, the traditional industrial organization in New England where 128 Highway is located is a big company, and its early industrial organization is a vertical and self-sufficient closed system, which is what we call a "big and complete" production organization model. This model is conducive to economies of scale, reducing costs, facilitating confidentiality and strengthening control. This model may also be suitable for early industries and markets, but it is not suitable for high-tech industries sensitive to new markets.

Source: (/s/blog _ 4ccee11kloc-0/008c5.html)-What is Silicon Valley in America? -Compared with 128 _ Autumn Leaves _ Sina Blog

128 highway belongs to a large company under the traditional industrial mode of New England, which has a great influence on emerging small high-tech innovation companies. Once these small companies are based on development, they all imitate the model of traditional big companies. For example, the computer company, Digital Equipment Company (DEC) and Wang An Company of 128, the most popular expressway, all adopted this model. Under the impact of changing market, new technology and short life cycle of new products, it is difficult to turn around. After World War II, 128 was once the center of semiconductor industry and computer, but it was replaced by Silicon Valley. In the development of information network, it is far behind.

University of California, Berkeley, Anna Lee, 1994. AnnaLee Saxenian wrote a book: Regional Advantage: Culture and Competition in Silicon Valley and 128 Region. This book compares the development of high-tech companies around Boston 128 Expressway and Silicon Valley. It is worth noting that there are two famous universities near Boston-Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which are well funded-and Boston is close to new york, the financial and commercial center. Before 1980s, the hi-tech around 128 expressway was far ahead of Silicon Valley. But after the 1980s, Silicon Valley surpassed the former. Even the author himself was surprised by this. Frankly speaking, when she wrote her master's thesis in the 1980s, the initial theme was to discuss why Silicon Valley was going downhill, because the production cost there was getting higher and higher. But it turned out that Silicon Valley's income grew faster. This made her think deeply, and she tried to solve this mystery, so she wrote this book.

Silicon Valley has successfully achieved a smooth transition from defense products to commercial products, unlike the 128 expressway, which has always relied too much on the defense market. At the same time, with the large-scale rise of venture capital in 1970s, venture capital gradually replaced military expenditure and became the main economic source for entrepreneurs. By the 1990s, Silicon Valley has developed into a dynamic science and technology complex group, forming a trinity model of university research, entrepreneurs and military sponsorship.

Judging from the national plan and government investment, the 128 expressway area where MIT and Harvard University are located has received more support than that of Silicon Valley, but the 128 area is far behind. Silicon Valley is the product of system and culture. With a good system and a good entrepreneurial culture atmosphere, Silicon Valley will emerge by itself. Indeed, Silicon Valley is a miracle because it exceeds people's expectations. Frequent talent flow, free entrepreneurial system and very decentralized decision-making process can breed Silicon Valley.

It is precisely because of the lack of traditional industrial history in Silicon Valley, the weak connection with existing economic and political institutions, the more open, close and mutually beneficial cooperation between universities and industries, and the promotion of thousands of small companies full of vitality and innovation, which facilitates novel and vital experiments and forms a brand-new industrial system, making it a completely different high-tech industrial organization on 128 Expressway.

From the situation of Silicon Valley, entrepreneurs have explored a brand-new production mode-industrial network from the law (trend) of technology and market. The characteristics of this industrial network are mainly manifested in two aspects: (1) complete infrastructure; (2) Decentralized and diversified production cooperation network system.

First of all, the basic equipment is complete. Due to the emergence of innovative enterprises and entrepreneurs, entrepreneurs have their own unique skills, and their products can meet the special market demand, but they lack funds, spare parts, interdisciplinary knowledge, production equipment, management and marketing experience and legal knowledge, and so on. In order to meet this demand, after more than 40 years of development, Silicon Valley has formed a socialized industrial network with distinctive features, complete basic equipment and institutions, which can support technological innovation.

Secondly, it is a decentralized and diversified production cooperation network system. These systems can reduce the capital investment of equipment developed by a single manufacturer and personally carry out all vertical processes from research and development to production. Due to the high differentiation of this industrial structure, an industrial biosphere with diverse forms, strong adaptability, flexibility and vitality has been formed. These decentralized and decentralized collaborations are of great significance not only to small innovative companies, but also to the development of large companies.

128 expressway is absolutely different from the industrial network in Silicon Valley. It is a self-sufficient closed organization characterized by large companies, and has not formed an industrial network and various service facilities and institutions to support innovation, so the innovation efficiency and success rate are low.

The development of enterprises and regional industries is restricted by regional environment and culture. American critic Jones pointed out: "Silicon Valley is not so much a region as a spirit." The difference in the development track between Silicon Valley and 128 expressway high-tech industrial zone can also be said to be the result of a cultural difference.

Source: (/s/blog _ 4c4cce11kloc-0/008c5.html)-What is Silicon Valley in America? -Compared with 128 _ Autumn Leaves _ Sina Blog