
Why China still can’t create the next Texas Instruments - cpeterso
http://www.eetimes.com/electronics-news/4395702/7-reasons-why-China-can-t-make-a-TI---yet
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billswift
This article demonstrates a problem I have seen with many companies over
decades. Even TI didn't become what it became overnight. But everyone thinks
they can instantly grow to become the next economic giant instantly.

That kind of thing can only happen when opening a new field, and even then it
isn't a sure thing. And it helps to have a faddish consumer product, like a
lot of the big startup successes of the past decade, though there is no real
evidence yet of their long term success (Twitter, Facebook, Airbnb, and so
on).

Anyone that is going to compete against established companies, in a difficult,
technical field like chip design, is going to face a slow, grueling climb, if
they manage to climb at all.

~~~
ChrisNorstrom
Thanks to news and media people have a false sense of "Overnight success".
Which isn't realistic and in most cases possible. There is "overnight
popularity", but not "overnight success".

I think that's what's throwing entrepreneurs off. Our failure to realize that:

1) Big things have small beginnings.

2) All things take time.

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julianpye
TI is an enormous risk-taker and has performed huge strategic game-changing
shifts over the years, just like Motorola who it used to compete directly with
and which became an entirely different company, too. TI used to have a typical
'hire and fire' reputation, which actually is what allowed it to perform these
shifts - going so far as to abandon relatively new and incredibly expensive
fabs and their workforces when needed. This type of MO is not compatible with
the way how China finances, plans and operates its businesses.

~~~
hga
Good point. A very good MIT Press book on this topic (I _think_ it's this one:
[http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&...](http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=7309)
but the cover is different; I'd say its still relevant if you don't have a
good background in the topic), noted as of 1980 that TI managed to be
successful through 4 or so generations of semiconductor technology starting
with germanium transistors (following would be silicon ones, one or more
generations of ICs including the ubiquitous first widespread TTL family; since
then microprocessors and now specialized types of those).

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mik4el
This article is really kind of racist. Any country has a problem to create the
next Texas Instruments, we're in a new paradgim. What we do know about China
is that it, together with Africa, will be a hotspot for real growth (e.g
improving life expectancy, standard of living and urbanization). Stop the
China-bashing please, sometimes it's called for (e.g. human rights) but mostly
it's just racist.

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daliusd
I actually doubt that you have read this article at all. Please read it first.

~~~
mik4el
I have read it. Unfortunately I think it's the same prejudices again and
again. Will China produce a company of TI's stature? - Probably not. Will any
country produce a company of TI's stature? - Probably not. My comment was
based on that, there is no need to always portray China a sub-par on
innovation and technology. They're young in this field compared to the US but
they're moving so fast that they continue to outrun industrialized countries
in area after area. More biased and prejudiced articles will only make it
easier for them to outrun everyonelse. That was my point, don't underestimate
China because western journalists never get bored of the same message.

~~~
PakG1
I think you're putting meaning into the OP that doesn't exist. I feel like we
didn't read the same article.

1\. The article covered a panel discussion by Chinese executives.

2\. The subheadings may have been a bit in poor taste (and I'd say that making
such a statement is a big stretch), but the content was mostly quotes. Very
little analysis, only quotes that spoke for themselves.

3\. The _only_ item that even comes close to talking about cultural mindsets
is item #4, and that statement is also a stretch.

It seemed to be a frank assessment from Chinese executives of what their
weaknesses/shortcomings were, and why it's difficult to overcome those
weaknesses/shortcomings. I saw nothing in there about culture, race, or
anything like that. Again, only item #4 comes even close, and even that is a
stretch. That's just a normal prisoner's dilemma situation.

I think the current top-voted comment read it correctly. The top-voted comment
talks about secular reasons for corporate failure and difficulty, market
forces, etc. That's what I read from the article also.

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mik4el
I'm overreacting saying the article is rascist, I got that now. :)

But I strongly believe the article portrays the Chinese in the traditional way
as a land of copies and cheap stuff, when it's a country full of people
dreaming to build the next TI.

~~~
ap22213
I don't know much about China, sadly. Mostly, that's because of the language
barrier.

I'm assuming that you know a lot about China. So, maybe you could link to some
alternative views of China that are different from what we get from the
western media. Like what's the startup scene like in China? What are the hot
cities? Etc. I'm interested in it all.

~~~
mik4el
Interested in china, dm me at twitter: @mik4el4ndersson

