I think Silicon Valley is quite a good refutation of your point, actually -- it was almost entirely founded on DARPA investing in talent. After all, they funded

I think Silicon Valley is quite a good refutation of your point, actually -- it was almost entirely founded on DARPA investing in talent. After all, they funded everything from the first ICs to Chomsky. I don't think mainstream appeal is irrelevant. I just think that if you fund scientists and technologists to do the work they find interesting, they'll produce something more fundamentally interesting and generally useful than if you fund them to make great products. Great products, after all, include things like Minecraft, pet rocks, and fidget spinners.