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‘It’s just a matter of time’: why AI could help Europe create its own Apple or Google
(www.theguardian.com)
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this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2023
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I don’t see it happening. For the same reasons as why European tech startups failed to dominate the last three decades. The European market is culturally too fractured and European startups tend to focus on their own country’s market for too long. The US and China have a gigantic internal market with no language barrier and little cultural differences, companies from there can become big before they even go international.
It’s not a surprise that the European tech startups that do found international success are from small countries that speak English very well. Like Spotify, ASML and Skype. Businesses from there have no choice but to focus on the international market from the start since their internal market is too small.
I’m from the Netherlands and I think I have never used a product from a German or French tech startup even though they are my neighbors. The only German one I know is Wirecard and that was a fraudulent company. German and French startups think their own country’s market is the most important.
I generally agree with you, but I think ASML is a bad example. They're not a startup, they make very specialized equipment for very specialized companies. You can find lots of european companies that are very successful in their sector that you never heard about.
Not a tech example, but don’t forget about BioNTech, the vaccine maker
Are they a startup?
Yes, "BioNTech was founded in 2008 based on research by Uğur Şahin, Özlem Türeci, and Christoph Huber", see Wikipedia.
So a company being founded by someone makes them a startup? I think the word is quite meaningless then.
No, its also the idea to make business from e.g. ones own research results.
Mercedes Benz is a startup?
At least it was in 1883.
I just think that BioNTech is already quite old for a startup (15 years) but I’m not too familiar with the whole business terminology so it’s just my personal opinion.
I share your concern in that point, but I think, in biotechnology things don't work as fast as in IT.
Probably so.
I guess they were at some point
Yes, they are one of few who pioneered mRNA vaccines. From university research to small scale private company.
But I wouldn't count them as a startup now. Due to Corona I would consider them a successful and established business. But before 2020 they most certainly counted as a startup.
I thinky you're right and this also applies to the single market. The tech sector is fragmented not just because of language/culture but because of different regulatory regimes in each country. The EU tries to solve that for member states but even that is stymied by so many competing national interests. The EU can't seem to agree between it being a club of nations or a single state and so we end up with a mix instead - it fails to be the best of either option as a result.
Also it doesn't help that the UK has left the EU nor the attitude in Europe generally allowing international companies to buy up tech companies. Look at ARM - UK based chip manufacturer but bought out by a Japanese company and now being floated on the US stock market.
For me the failure of a European tech giant to emerge is in part due to a failure of the EU. It needs to decide what it wants to be and push in that direction. The half way house to try and keep everyone happy is not working and it is one of the reasons the UK left (it was a close referendum and many factors played into the vote but it's been easier for people to simplify that story to black/white and entirely the UKs fault and based out of narrow issues, so there has been no real look at the many factors that drove that decision and no effort in the EU to look at what it could and should be doing to be better).