A whole bunch of stories said the California dream was dead and Silicon Valley was dead. But Silicon Valley was only down, but not out. |
Research and development never stopped, it was going on all the time. The entrepreneurs didn't vanish. The creative people and the scientists did not go away. Yes, employees were lost and profits fell for a while. But the fundamental capacity of the region, the foundation for new technologies, never was impaired. |
The Bay Area is exceptionally innovative and continually reinvents itself. |
The Bay Area is exceptionally innovative and continually reinvents itself. While we have our challenges, it is important to stress that the Bay Area's economy is one of the strongest and most adaptive on the planet. The region has very high productivity, strong large businesses, dynamic small companies, and top-notch talent, not to mention one of the most attractive physical settings and climates in the United States. |
We talk to employers about why they're here and the No. 1 reason is the workforce. We're at risk of losing the talent advantage. The incredibly high cost of living, especially driven by the high cost of housing, is making it harder and harder for people to continue to live and work here, which means it's harder to attract companies than it was. |
We're still very strong, but the Bay Area is now in a pack with a half a dozen very strong regional economies. |
We've got a great economy by world standards, but we are becoming less competitive by the day because of the cost of living. That's perhaps the single greatest threat to our economy. |