From the perspective of historian Jeannette Estruth, Silicon Valley is not only an independent project but also the participation of the US Government to create an important bridge.
Origin of World War II : According to historian Jeannette Estruth, during World War II and the following years, the number of universities studying the Cold War period was booming. The two well-known universities, UC Berkeley and Stanford, also participate in a range of geography, chemical weapons, reconnaissance and computer science research.
With the US presence in the Pacific War, the West Coast became an important center for shipbuilding, transportation and materials and food. People, money, resources are gathered here and paving the way for the technology boom. A large number of houses were subsequently built by those who decided to stay behind.
The crisis of Stanford University and the birth of a series of technology laboratories : After the war, Stanford University experienced a severe budget crisis. The founder of Leland Stanford even had to mortgage all the school’s land around the Palo Alto area.
However, Stanford University still has the right to lease and the government saw an opportunity to make money by renting university land. The main target audience is recent graduates who are thinking of starting a business or using a lab. This has led to the dense density of technology companies around Stanford University today.
San Jose Airport Expansion : The expansion of San Jose airport in the 1980s made the idea of a modern Silicon Valley possible. Worried about being left behind by Japan, the United States wants to build a central area to help create business relationships between the regions. This is an important premise for Silicon Valley to be born and connect with Asia.
Previously, San Jose Airport only had enough capacity to accommodate small airplanes in the area. After being upgraded, the airport has enough capacity for giant commercial aircraft from Asia. This has led to a boom in visitors and the amount of money invested in the area. San Jose has since become a symbol of America’s prosperity in technology.
Portrait of “8 Traitors”: In 1956, Nobel laureate William Shockley recruited a group of students and young doctors with the goal of developing and manufacturing new semiconductor devices. However, because of tyranny, the top 8 employees of the company left Shockley to form a new company. Shockley is angry and calls all traitors.
In 1957, a group of “8 traitors” including Sheldon Roberts, Eugene Kleiner, Jean Hoerni, Gordon Moore, Jay Last, Victor Grenich, Julius Blank, and Robert Noyce formed a new company called Fairchild Semiconductor. Thanks to these eight characters, transistor and integrated circuit products were born. Thanks to exclusive products from Fairchild Semiconductor, Intel and AMD were later born and began to take over Silicon Valley.
Facebook’s historic hearing : CEO Mark Zuckerberg ‘s 2018 US Congress testimony marked a new era of accountability. Zuckerberg was questioned about Russian interference in the US election and the scandal involving Cambridge Analytica’s data mining.
The historian Estruth said she was surprised when the hearing took place. According to Estruth, this could be a harbinger of a new phase in which the government will closely monitor major technology companies.
