Secret History of Silicon Valley
[Recorded: November 20, 2008] Today, Silicon Valley is known around the world as a fount of technology innovation and development fueled by private venture capital and peopled by fabled entrepreneurs. But it wasn't always so. Unbeknownst to even seasoned inhabitants, today's Silicon Valley had its start in government secrecy and wartime urgency. In this lecture, renowned serial entrepreneur Steve Blank presents how the roots of Silicon Valley sprang not from the later development of the silicon semiconductor but instead from the earlier technology duel over the skies of Germany and secret efforts around (and over) the Soviet Union. World War II, the Cold War and one Stanford professor set the stage for the creation and explosive growth of entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley. The world was forever changed when the Defense Department, CIA and the National Security Agency acted like today's venture capitalists funding this first wave of entrepreneurship. Steve Blank shows how these groundbreaking early advances lead up to the high-octane, venture capital fueled Silicon Valley we know today.
Video Rating: 4 / 5
November 13th, 2011 - 18:56
FASCINATING!! Thank you so much for posting this.
November 13th, 2011 - 19:35
@dalxo sorry to butt in but the answer is c , UK announce that the invasion of Poland is like declare war on UK itself , and this announce because of the early known desire of Gr. to occupy Poland. (history lover)
November 13th, 2011 - 19:50
@GaeilgeSpraoi It’s mostly because of your low corporate tax rate so large American tech companies set up their European headquarters there. But yes agree Ireland is ahead of most of Europe in this field.
November 13th, 2011 - 20:42
My country, Ireland is quickly becoming the European Silicon Valley! So many technology firms have established their European HQs in Dublin such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. and Apple’s European HQ is in Cork!
November 13th, 2011 - 21:41
This video is most popular with:
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What?…
I’m 15 years old and today I already watched like 3 hours of these videos while programming with C++ lol
I love this kind of stuff
November 13th, 2011 - 21:56
I just learned where silicon valley was. And this whole time I thought it was Beverly hills since everyone has fake tatas.
November 13th, 2011 - 21:58
Good video. But the spokesman should really read the GERMAN words in GERMAN… NOT in English!!! This is really stupid. Apart from that – great video.
November 13th, 2011 - 22:45
Жду расово верных субтитров или озвучку.
November 13th, 2011 - 23:18
@kehmulke My question to you: When the WW2 started?
a) Signing Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact on 21st August 1929?
b) Signing Munich Pact on 30th September 1938 by UK, France, Italy and Germany?
c) Invasion of Poland by Germany on 1st September 1939?
d) Declarations of war on Germany by France and UK 3rd September 1939?
e) Invasion of Poland by Soviets on 17th September 1939?
f) Invasion of Germany to Czechia on 30th October 1938?
g) Invasion of Hungary to Slovakia on 23rd March 1939?
November 13th, 2011 - 23:27
@kehmulke Munich Pact on 30th September 1938 where France, UK, Italy and Germany without Czechoslovakia agreed on: 1) Germany will occupy Czechia (started in Oct. 1938; 2) Poland will annex part of Czechia; 3) Hungary will annexe 1/3 of Slovakia including the capital; 4) Hungary will annex Carpathian Ruthenia; 5) Rest of Czechia and Slovakia become satellite stale ruled by Germany. After singing Chamberlain declared, that is is act of piece and was amazed by Hitler’s great personality.
November 14th, 2011 - 00:20
@dalxo Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact: On 21 August Stalin received assurance that Germany would approve secret protocols to the proposed non-aggression pact that would place half of Poland (border along the Vistula river), Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Bessarabia in the Soviets’ sphere of influence. That night, Stalin replied that the Soviets were willing to sign the pact, and that he would receive Ribbentrop on 23 August. Wiki map illustrates well what USSR occupied later.
November 14th, 2011 - 00:36
@simoncr19318 So, let’s put facts together: 1.9. Invasion of Poland by Germany; 3.9. France and Germany declares war to Germany; 13.9. Japanese invasion of Manchuria, 17.9. Invasion of Soviet Union. It definitely looks that you are completely wrong. When SU invaded Poland, WW2 was already 17days in full swing including GB and F, and Japan. Get educated please because you are embarrassing yourself.
November 14th, 2011 - 01:32
@simoncr19318 Following your sing-cell brain logic, then WW2 actually started by Great Britain and France when they agreed to split Czechoslovakia in 1938 and let Hitler to march in to Czechoslovakia. I know, it is very difficult to accept hard fact for such simple person as you knowing nothing about history.
November 14th, 2011 - 01:33
@dalxo wow you are retarded, they split poland in half and met in the middle, although it was a bittersweet meeting mostly for propaganda purposes but happened (and yes, im also “a brainwashed yankee” but at least i know my facts which what you apparently need to go back to whatever asshole of the earth source you learned your history from.
November 14th, 2011 - 01:44
If it is written in a book, then it is already obsolete.
November 14th, 2011 - 02:27
@Squeeonline You’re wrong: wikipedia page> World_War_II 1) Now you refer to Soviets. Not seeing difference between Russia and Soviet Union is the same as no difference between current Germany and Nazi Germany. 2) Moreover, WW2 started by Germany on 1.9. -Soviets joined war later. Read carefully source you refer to. If Germany would not attack Poland, Soviet Union would hardly made invasion 3 weeks after German attack.
November 14th, 2011 - 03:26
@dalxo wrong they did. wikipedia page > Soviet_invasion_of_Poland
November 14th, 2011 - 03:40
Russia did not attack Poland together with Germany. Learn history you brainwashed Yankee. So tragic to see that professor at Stanford has less knowledge about history then any average man.
November 14th, 2011 - 04:32
Those of us who actually study the air war in WWII have long long known about this. Read the WWII series “Impact”, put out by the AAF DURING the war, and it shows all of this and much much more, such as the section about IFF. The reason it isn’t shown in movies is because, like now, only the techie geeks would care.
We don’t show this in MOVIES because they are for the GENERAL public who doesn’t understand what happened during the war, let alone understand nuances like the tech war.
November 14th, 2011 - 04:58
Excellent presentation, but please – learn how to use apostrophes!
November 14th, 2011 - 05:03
Der Krieg als Vater aller Dinge – das darf doch nicht wahr sein!
Klar, was das heißt: Wo ist die nächste Kiese – die Wortwahl ist natürlich heiß, denn gemeint ist wohl wo ist der nächste Krieg – aber dann bekommt das ganze eine eigene Logik und man versteht so manches.
November 14th, 2011 - 05:21
As both a former NSF Graduate Fellow at Stanford and thereafter longtime member of the Association of Old Crows (the premier group of electronic warfare specialists) and former CEO of a Silicon Valley defense contractor, I applaud this speaker and highly commend its viewing to anyone interested in the subject.
November 14th, 2011 - 06:15
Thank you so much. I’m gonna go to Stanford Univ. I’m serious.
November 14th, 2011 - 06:44
amazing lecture presentation
November 14th, 2011 - 07:14
people arent so innovative anymore, because it’s peace time.
Very hard to predict when binary technology is getting surpassed as it’s deeply embedded in open society. Sadly its the urge of survival of the fittest.