
Creating the Next Silicon Valley - The Chilean Experiment - ebun
http://steveblank.com/2011/01/04/creating-the-next-silicon-valley-%E2%80%93-the-chilean-experiment/
======
DanielBMarkham
When I look at systems of people the first thing I look at is failure: how
does the system/individual fail, what sort of feedback loop is there, and how
are changes made?

So Steve's statement about the culture not accepting failure was a red flag.
His statement that the government was the prime investor was another red flag.
(Governments are notorious for not admitting failure. To do so would challenge
the their authority and ability) And once he said that bankruptcy laws there
were draconian? The red alert started going off. It's simply non-doable.

It's a shame. I love the scenery, and the people are terrific. But a million
small failures make a great success, and if you can't fail easily, quickly,
and learn from it? You're never going to develop much of anything.

~~~
mdda
To me the right solution is to have an 'umbrella company' - that startups can
live under. By law, they'd be divisions (so bankruptcy law would never get
involved). But, internal to the umbrella company, there would be a culture of
experimentation & iteration.

Like rejection therapy, the 'umbrella' employees could be encouraged to fail
often : Not enough failure implies not enough risk-taking / innovation.

~~~
euroclydon
How does that solve the problem of not being able to unilaterally write off a
debt obligation?

~~~
mdda
If you're having to rely on the ability to walk away from a commitment (to a
supplier, say), then that needs to be built into the contract initially.

In California (say), where the culture is 'built for failure', the contracts
already embed that optionality - meaning that the pricing already has the
possibility of default built in. Negotiating the same flexibility elsewhere
should just increase the pricing. Just as offering gold-plated guarantees in
California should reduce the pricing.

------
shawnee_
_What needs work >> Venture Capital_

 _Given the interesting things going on in the engineering labs I visited and
the startups I met, one would have thought the place would have been crawling
with VC’s fighting over deals. Instead it felt like the government – through
CORFO - was doing most of the risk capital investing._

Not ideal, but better than nothing. Capitalism can get the most solid footing
as a sustainable economic system when there is minimal government involvement.
Need wealth to create and fuel more wealth.

~~~
zeemonkee
Didn't much of Silicon Valley's early investment come from the US government,
such as the military ?

~~~
anamax
The US Govt bought things, but it didn't tell folks what to build (for other
people).

Govts like to pick winners. So do companies, but with companies, only one has
to hit for society to win.

------
daniel-cussen
I've spoken to people in the mining industry and Chile does produce technology
used in mining. It even exports some of this tech, such as explosives.

------
do
What is the Chilean government doing to bring over already established,
innovative companies?

It seems that one good way to inject innovation is to introduce companies that
can employ young, entrepreneurial Chileans and set examples they can follow in
future ventures.

------
mikeryan
Dear god, stop trying to replicate Silicon Valley elsewhere.

Create a newer, better ecosystem for entrepreneurs. You're pretty much
destined to fail if you try to replicate SV. Move the goal posts to something
else.

~~~
meterplech
You are right of course, but you should remember that when governments try to
spur innovation and entrepreneurship they have to sell the idea to their
constituents and to their talented people. It helps to at least have a great
cluster to describe to people what innovation could mean. A sort of crazy end
goal to consider. But yes, for most direct comparisons smaller countries
should like Steve Blank said be looking at Israel, Singapore and Finland.

Honestly, I think the most challenging thing will be to change Chile's
cultural fear of failure. That is probably the single best asset that Israeli
culture has in spurring innovation. It is just considered the norm.

------
statsuno
Based on the critiques below, Chile should revise its bankruptcy laws, mandate
more government procurement from startups and SMEs, encourage partnering with
Silicon Valley and other high-tech regions, set up a Silicon Valley incubator
like the Nordic countries are doing now, and encourage more university
research collaboration with high-growth nations.

------
euroclydon
Well it's clear what the opportunity is in Chile right now... Teaching
entrepreneurship! If you've got a business idea to target that, they'll be
lining up to pay you money.

