<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chancellor\u2019s plans for economic growth announced on 29 January are to be welcomed. It is good news for the Oxford \u2013 Cambridge Arc, and Manchester too. But let\u2019s not forget that there are many other tech hotspots around the country in need of financing and government support, including Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, Wrexham and ourselves here in Reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We should not be seeking to recreate Silicon Valley, USA with \u201cEurope\u2019s Silicon Valley\u201d as per the Government\u2019s headline. There is only one Silicon Valley, it is unique. Indeed academics have concluded that it is difficult to replicate the unique culture and ecosystem of Silicon Valley elsewhere (Isenberg, 2010). Rosenberg (2002, p7) states that \u201cNo country can provide its technology sector with the same big, wealthy and unitary domestic market for technology as America. No society can perfectly mimic the interpersonal relations, the attitudes towards work, enterprise and innovation, or the exact mix or scale of talent that exists in California. Even the most enthusiastic technophile governments haven\u2019t put into place laws, regulations or a tax regime that allows for a wholesale copying of Silicon Valley practice\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In my own research into VC investment practices in UK, Europe and USA (Arundale, 2020) UK VCs that I interviewed commented: \u201cThe investments, the CEOs and their teams are just surrounded by a phenomenal ecosystem (in Silicon Valley). The connections are just phenomenal: connected advisers, connected partners. The Valley is just unique\u201d and \u201cThe raw calibre, plenty of IQ, plenty of great engineers, great ideas, all of that is just as good (in Europe), it\u2019s just that it\u2019s so distributed that you don\u2019t get the cluster effect, that you get in the Valley.\u201d <\/em>Perhaps this is why technology clusters in UK have largely dropped their Silicon nick names; we don\u2019t often hear of Silicon Roundabout (City of London), Silicon Fen (Cambridge), Silicon Spires (Oxford), Silicon Corridor (Thames Valley) or Cwm Silicon (Newport) any more. We have recently formed the Reading Tech Cluster \u2013 connecting Thames Valley Berkshire. Our aim is to better connect <\/strong>the tech and digital sectors in Reading and the surrounding area to increase productivity per capita and strengthen business and social communities. We want to attract investment in local tech and digital businesses from investors globally and the public sector. Our mission is to facilitate any connection, at any time, which a tech start up or scale up in Berkshire may need. We will measure our success in terms of the number of VC deals made, the number of spinouts created and the number of unicorns headquartered in Berkshire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who knows in due course there may well be collaboration opportunities with the Oxford-Cambridge Arc. Reading and Oxford \u2013 Cambridge are natural complements, with our shared focus on innovation, talent development and investment opportunities. By connecting our strengths, we can create a unified, globally competitive ecosystem that attracts investment, drives business growth, and accelerates technological innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Article in Reading Chronicle on 5 Feb 2025: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here in Reading we have all the ingredients for a successful tech ecosystem with the University of Reading and Henley Business School providing research, innovation and talented graduates, a pool of tech talent from big tech companies, networking events, tech meetups, incubators, easy access to investors with local VC firms and Henley Business Angels, professional service firms and business networks and excellent transport links : rail and road connections to London and Heathrow. Perhaps this is why Reading is home to the UK\u2019s largest cluster of digital businesses outside London, it hosts 20% of the South of England’s top 100 privately owned independent tech companies, ranked by turnover and is cited as one of the best locations for AI businesses, in fact No3 after Cambridge and Bristol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n