Why Europe is behind USA in creating tech companies?

[fourfathom]

In my last company our "futurology" was limited to perhaps a 1 or 2-year timeframe.  We designed our system using some key components that we believed would be available in quantity at an acceptable price -- not now, but when we needed them for volume production.  We tracked and often worked with vendors in that space (example: 10 Gbit/s lasers and detectors for single-mode fiber).   We used expensive prototypes during development when necessary, but when it was time for customer shipments the initial component price/availability targets had been hit, or were at least within sight.  This technology required no scientific breakthroughs, just hard work, and the evolving communications network meant that there would be a strong demand for these components.

This approach has risks but potential big payoffs when you can leapfrog your competition by a full generation, and this is exactly what our Venture funders were looking for.  We ended up redefining our market segment and got the big payoff.

[coppercone2]

In my last company our "futurology" was limited to perhaps a 1 or 2-year timeframe.  We designed our system using some key components that we believed would be available in quantity at an acceptable price -- not now, but when we needed them for volume production.  We tracked and often worked with vendors in that space (example: 10 Gbit/s lasers and detectors for single-mode fiber).   We used expensive prototypes during development when necessary, but when it was time for customer shipments the initial component price/availability targets had been hit, or were at least within sight.  This technology required no scientific breakthroughs, just hard work, and the evolving communications network meant that there would be a strong demand for these components.

This approach has risks but potential big payoffs when you can leapfrog your competition by a full generation, and this is exactly what our Venture funders were looking for.  We ended up redefining our market segment and got the big payoff.

It sounds like you were doing it at a reasonable forecast level. The government however, decides to do things like 20 year predictions for secrets, or something like that, based on the same sort of reasoning.

Kind of like what malcolm was explaining in jurassic park.. in the long term its a fluke to get anything correct.

[Wilson__]

it was time for customer shipments the initial component price/availability targets had been hit.  This technology required no scientific breakthroughs, just hard work

leapfrog your competition by a full generation

Well said.  The A phone has been doing this since, kind of, 20 years ago.  Making their product kind of 0.5 size and 2x functions. So, they can demand end-user 2x price and 10x or more profit per device (as reported by iFixIt on their component cost). 

until recent 5 to 8 years that the mass manufacturers catch up