Monday, March 26, 2018

Tech Study Critical Of Region's Fragmentation, Geography

A new study, released by the Alliance for Southern California Innovation, has surprisingly come out highly critical of the region's fragmentation and "lack of a compelling geographic center", saying those factors are keeping the region from emerging as a "tech hub as robust as Silicon Valley". The Alliance was created by former California gubernatorial candidate and California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. Poizner said, in a statement, that Southern California is "so spread-out, making it hard to navigate" , although he did say Southern California is a "region of extreme innovation". The Alliance says it is holding two events--one in Silicon Valley at the Computer History Museum, and another at UCLA--which will feature Southern California "thought-leaders" and technology and life sciences innovators, to try to connect them with investors and serial entrepreneurs from around the state and country. Poizner's group cited "demonstrated potential" in SoCal in the tech industry, citing SpaceX, Snap, and Cornerstone OnDemand, expansion of Google, Yahoo! and Facebook in Silicon Beach, and the relocations of such Silicon Valley tech executives as Meg Whitman and Peter Thiel to the region.

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