What has made Silicon Valley so productive of new technologies and new firms? How did its pioneering achievements begin--in computer networking, semiconductors, personal computing, and the Internet--and what forces have propelled its unprecedented growth? This collection of nine chapters by contributors from varied disciplines--business, geography, history, regional planning, and sociology--examines the history, development, and entrepreneurial dynamics of Silicon Valley.
Part I, "History," provides context for the Valley's success by exploring its early industrial roots. It traces the development of the electronics industry in Silicon Valley back to the founding of Federal Telegraph in 1908, and discusses the role of defense spending and the relationship with Stanford University in the region's growth. Part II, "Institutions," emphasizes the importance of supporting institutions and practices in helping Valley startups succeed. Four chapters explore the role of law firms in facilitating the formation of new companies, the evolution of the venture capital industry and its role in funding new firms, the importance of labor mobility, and the significance of close interfirm relationships in the success of Silicon Valley companies.
Part III, "General Explanations," presents three different perspectives on the environment that has made Silicon Valley so successful. The first chapter considers Silicon Valley as an ecosystem of interacting institutions, individuals, and a culture that encourages and nurtures entrepreneurship. The second chapter argues that Silicon Valley should not be seen as a region in which relationships are based on civic virtue, but rather one in which trust is based on performance, which makes it uniquely permeable to new ideas and talented individuals. The final chapter contends that institutions specializing in new firm formation are responsible for Silicon Valley's unique ability to foster technological advances.

What are the forces that are driving firms and industries to globalize their operations? This volume explores how specific industries have organized their global operations through case studies of seven manufacturing industries: garments and textiles, automobiles and auto parts, televisions, hard disk drives, flat panel displays, semiconductors, and personal computers. Based on long-term research sponsored by the Sloan Foundation, the chapters provide readers with a nuanced understanding of the complex matrix of factor costs, access to inimitable capabilities, and time-based pressures that influence where firms decide to locate particular segments of the value chain.
The book examines globalization within the context of five factors affecting locational decisions: advances in transportation and communication; the clustering of knowledge assets; the drive to reduce cycle times; the commodification of existing products; and the relative advantages of proximity to customers. The case studies are framed by Paul Deguid's Preface on the significance of power in value chains and Bruce Kogut's conclusion on the importance of knowledge in locational decisions. Together, the chapters reveal a remarkable diversity of responses across industries to these forces, and suggest that any understanding of globalization must appreciate this diversity.
This volume is ideal for both MBA and undergraduate students studying the location of economic activities by multinational firms.

"Public Universities and Regional Growth" examines evolutions in research and innovation at six University of California campuses. Each chapter presents a deep, historical analysis that traces the dynamic interaction between particular campuses and regional firms in industries that range from biotechnology, scientific instruments, and semiconductors, to software, wine, and wireless technologies.
The book provides a uniquely comprehensive and cohesive look at the University of California's complex relationships with regional entrepreneurs. As a leading public institution, the UC is an examplar for other institutions of higher education at a time when the potential and value of these universities is under scrutiny. Any yet, by recent accounts, public research universities performed nearly 70% of all academic research and approximately 60% of federally funded R&D in the United States. Thoughtful and distinctive, "Public Universities and Regional Growth" illustrates the potential for universities to drive knowledge-based growth while revealing the California system as a uniquely powerful engine for innovation across its home state.

Not long ago, American manufacturing was in sharp decline. The Big Three carmakers closed dozens of plants, mostly in Michigan and other surrounding states, eliminating more than 250,000 jobs. Another quarter of a million workers lost their jobs in related industries. Now United States manufacturing is making a comeback--thanks, in part, to the transplanting of Japanese corporations of over 25 billion dollars worth of heavy industry and 100,000 jobs. The Japanese companies are making long-term commitments where United States business leaders had seemed to give up hope. The success of these ventures is the result of the sweeping revolution in the organization of technology, work, and production that lies at the heart of the Japanese model of production. This book explores the rise of this Japanese model and provides a detailed examination of the processes which have brought about its transfer to the United States. It presents new and original data on the extent of Japanese investment in both United States heavy industry and high technology and provides an empirically-grounded discussion of the reasons why this has occurred. The authors focus on the transfer of basic elements of Japanese production organization and develop a broad conceptual theme contrasting the Japanese model of production organization with that of United States Fordism. With a wealth of illustrations and straightforward examples, this work will appeal to those interested in urban and regional economics, industrial organization, labor relations, and economic geography.

The miracle growth of the Chinese economy has decreased from a compound annual growth rate of 10% to less than 7% in 2015. The two engines of growth - export on a scale never before witnessed and massive infrastructure investments - are reaching the point of diminishing returns. This poses the central question which is explored in this book - can China escape the middle-income trap? Assuming current political arrangements remain unchanged and that it does not or cannot adopt Western sociopolitical economic regimes, can China develop an indigenous growth model centered on innovation? This compilation gathers leading Chinese and other international scholars to consider the daunting challenges and complexities of building an innovation-driven Chinese growth model. Providing several comprehensive perspectives, it examines key areas such as the institutional system, technology, sociocultural forces and national policy. The analyses and their conclusions range from strong optimism to deep pessimism about China's future.

The miracle growth of the Chinese economy has decreased from a compound annual growth rate of 10% to less than 7% in 2015. The two engines of growth - export on a scale never before witnessed and massive infrastructure investments - are reaching the point of diminishing returns. This poses the central question which is explored in this book - can China escape the middle-income trap? Assuming current political arrangements remain unchanged and that it does not or cannot adopt Western sociopolitical economic regimes, can China develop an indigenous growth model centered on innovation? This compilation gathers leading Chinese and other international scholars to consider the daunting challenges and complexities of building an innovation-driven Chinese growth model. Providing several comprehensive perspectives, it examines key areas such as the institutional system, technology, sociocultural forces and national policy. The analyses and their conclusions range from strong optimism to deep pessimism about China's future.

"Public Universities and Regional Growth" examines evolutions in research and innovation at six University of California campuses. Each chapter presents a deep, historical analysis that traces the dynamic interaction between particular campuses and regional firms in industries that range from biotechnology, scientific instruments, and semiconductors, to software, wine, and wireless technologies.
The book provides a uniquely comprehensive and cohesive look at the University of California's complex relationships with regional entrepreneurs. As a leading public institution, the UC is an examplar for other institutions of higher education at a time when the potential and value of these universities is under scrutiny. Any yet, by recent accounts, public research universities performed nearly 70% of all academic research and approximately 60% of federally funded R&D in the United States. Thoughtful and distinctive, "Public Universities and Regional Growth" illustrates the potential for universities to drive knowledge-based growth while revealing the California system as a uniquely powerful engine for innovation across its home state.

What are the forces that are driving firms and industries to globalize their operations? This volume explores how specific industries have organized their global operations through case studies of seven manufacturing industries: garments and textiles, automobiles and auto parts, televisions, hard disk drives, flat panel displays, semiconductors, and personal computers. Based on long-term research sponsored by the Sloan Foundation, the chapters provide readers with a nuanced understanding of the complex matrix of factor costs, access to inimitable capabilities, and time-based pressures that influence where firms decide to locate particular segments of the value chain.
The book examines globalization within the context of five factors affecting locational decisions: advances in transportation and communication; the clustering of knowledge assets; the drive to reduce cycle times; the commodification of existing products; and the relative advantages of proximity to customers. The case studies are framed by Paul Deguid's Preface on the significance of power in value chains and Bruce Kogut's conclusion on the importance of knowledge in locational decisions. Together, the chapters reveal a remarkable diversity of responses across industries to these forces, and suggest that any understanding of globalization must appreciate this diversity.
This volume is ideal for both MBA and undergraduate students studying the location of economic activities by multinational firms.

In the first serious history of the biotechnology industry, Martin Kenney examines its growth and structure, describes the role of university departments of basic and applied biology, and shows how the relationship undermines the educational role of the university. "Kenney's work is the first major effort to provide a detailed analysis of the birth of the new industrial field of biotechnology and its impact on universities. . . . Kenney's book abounds in rich description and valuable conjectures. It also provides important insights into the structural and institutional aspects of the biotechnological revolution. It is informed by an extensive literature including reports form the financial community, university-industry contracts, trade journals, personal interviews, and company prospectuses."-Sheldon Krimsky, American Scientist "A fine description of a vital new field. It deserves wide readership."-David Silbert and Duncan Newhauser, New England Journal of Medicine "The author raises important questions about whether the character of this university-industrial complex adequately allows for the kind of public discussion and participation necessary to insure consideration of social, economic, and moral issues in the development of this important new technology."-Harvard Educational Review "Bears upon questions of fundamental importance to science, academia, and society and provides valuable documentation of the magnitude of the actions already taken and the multitude of participants involved."-Robert L. Sinsheimer, Nature

A robot can build a car. But a robot cannot buy a car ... The explosion in the development of computer- and robot-based manufacturing is seeing the rapid expansion of laborless production systems. Such systems create enormous instability, both for the overall world economy where money previously paid in wages is now invested in labor-saving technology and therefore cannot be spent on goods, and for workers whose jobs are being de-skilled or are simply disappearing. Bringing together contributions from workers employed in the new electronics and information industries with theorists in economics, politics and science, Cutting Edge provides an up-to-the-minute analysis of the complex relations between technology and work. Individual essays look at topics including the cyclical nature of a technologically driven economy, the privatization of knowledge which new information industries demand, the convergence of different economic sectors under the impact of digitalization, and the strategies which trade unionists and governments might deploy to protect jobs and living standards. Technology has the potential to end material scarcity and lay the foundations for higher forms of human fulfillment. But under existing power structures, it is more likely to exacerbate the poverty and misery under which most people live. Cutting Edge weighs that balance and, in helping us to understand how technology interacts with the production of goods and services, tips it in the direction of a more equal and creative world.