Haven't read the article yet but personally I think the number one reason is culture. Europe is so conservative it is unreal - it still has kings, queens, and a

Haven't read the article yet but personally I think the number one reason is culture. Europe is so conservative it is unreal - it still has kings, queens, and aristocracy ffs. You've got centuries of antiquated customs, old boy networks, and oppression to overcome. America was literally built on the backs of people who had had enough of that restricting nonsense and broke off for a better life. Tech scares the European elite shitless because they don't understand it, it's the complete opposite of what they stand for and it threatens to destroy the tools they use to maintain power. It distributes knowledge among the people rather than concentrating it with the few, it is egalitarian rather than classist, and it favours competence over traditional customs. Europe is not good at innovating because the elites don't want to innovate. They want things to remain as they are. The selfishness is astounding and they can only get away with it because the US military gives them protection. Take away US aid to Ukraine and a substantial portion of Europe would most likely be under Russia control right now and the rest would be engaged in a war for the continent. Europe need to wake up, stop being lazy as fuck, rediscover self sufficiency in energy and security and toss out all the old bullshit that is not fit for the 21st century and holding them back. Otherwise it will end up like the UK currently is, sliding into oblivion because of delusions about its capabilities, its traditions and its standing in the world. One counter point to my tirade above: the US only gets away with what it does because the dollar is the world's reserve currency. They can subsequently fund moonshot start ups in a way that is not possible elsewhere in the world.