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Tech in this context means the tech sector of the economy. Yes there are software engineers working at a bank or government office, but they aren't tech [compan

by paxys 2y ago

Tech in this context means the tech sector of the economy. Yes there are software engineers working at a bank or government office, but they aren't tech [company] employees, hence not counted in this statistic.

thfuran 2y ago
I work at a company whose only product is software, but it's about twenty years old and has a few hundred employees. It's a tech company that isn't a startup and isn't "big tech".
- paxys 2y ago
  Ok, so you are a tech employee. What's your issue?
  - tourmalinetaco 2y ago
    Obviously, they the article misrepresents the proportions of tech employees, and thus them, and fails to mention that 80%+ of the tech economy is outside of SF.
jakeinspace 2y ago
I don’t even understand what the term "tech sector" really means. It seems to be exclusively companies that sell or provide a software (platform) as their main product, plus chip/electronics manufacturers, but excludes defense contractors, aerospace (minus spacex maybe), automotive (minus Tesla maybe), biotech/pharma, and finance (aside from "fintech" startups). The word tech really got co-opted.
- Retric 2y ago
  It’s just ties back to silicon valley. Does the sector inherently require a processor/transistor? Cars no Aircraft no Pills no Banks no Self-driving car yes Software yes Fintech yes Tablet yes Sure modern cars use lots of processors, but the Model T didn’t. It may seem a little vague around where the line between industries is, but at the extreme things line up quite well.
- snowpid 2y ago
  It's really a good distinction where SV is good and where is not (so other first world countries don't have tech by definition)
- paxys 2y ago
  That's really for wall street analysts to decide. Maybe they flip a coin, I can't say.
  - lolinder 2y ago
    So, if I'm understanding what you're saying: The article is referring to a sector of the economy that is essentially undefinable and using statistics they somehow derived about that undefinable sector to argue that San Francisco is the center of said undefinable sector. Do I have that right? (If so, this is not reassuring me that their cited statistics are in any way meaningful.)
    - paxys 2y ago
      You can use any definition you want and argue semantics all day long. The conclusion is still going to be that Silicon Valley is the center of the global tech industry and where most talent is concentrated and where most new innovation is happening.
      - lolinder 2y ago
        If you create special definitions for "global tech industry" and "talent" and "innovation" specifically in order to arrive at that result, absolutely! Meanwhile, those of us in the 90% of US developers and 99% of worldwide developers will keep on innovating and building new stuff regardless of the semantic games you want to play to keep your Bay-centric worldview.

by paxys 2y ago

thfuran 2y ago

I work at a company whose only product is software, but it's about twenty years old and has a few hundred employees. It's a tech company that isn't a startup and isn't "big tech".

paxys 2y ago
Ok, so you are a tech employee. What's your issue?
- tourmalinetaco 2y ago
  Obviously, they the article misrepresents the proportions of tech employees, and thus them, and fails to mention that 80%+ of the tech economy is outside of SF.

jakeinspace 2y ago

I don’t even understand what the term "tech sector" really means. It seems to be exclusively companies that sell or provide a software (platform) as their main product, plus chip/electronics manufacturers, but excludes defense contractors, aerospace (minus spacex maybe), automotive (minus Tesla maybe), biotech/pharma, and finance (aside from "fintech" startups). The word tech really got co-opted.

Retric 2y ago
It’s just ties back to silicon valley. Does the sector inherently require a processor/transistor? Cars no Aircraft no Pills no Banks no Self-driving car yes Software yes Fintech yes Tablet yes Sure modern cars use lots of processors, but the Model T didn’t. It may seem a little vague around where the line between industries is, but at the extreme things line up quite well.
snowpid 2y ago
It's really a good distinction where SV is good and where is not (so other first world countries don't have tech by definition)
paxys 2y ago
That's really for wall street analysts to decide. Maybe they flip a coin, I can't say.
- lolinder 2y ago
  So, if I'm understanding what you're saying: The article is referring to a sector of the economy that is essentially undefinable and using statistics they somehow derived about that undefinable sector to argue that San Francisco is the center of said undefinable sector. Do I have that right? (If so, this is not reassuring me that their cited statistics are in any way meaningful.)
  - paxys 2y ago
    You can use any definition you want and argue semantics all day long. The conclusion is still going to be that Silicon Valley is the center of the global tech industry and where most talent is concentrated and where most new innovation is happening.
    - lolinder 2y ago
      If you create special definitions for "global tech industry" and "talent" and "innovation" specifically in order to arrive at that result, absolutely! Meanwhile, those of us in the 90% of US developers and 99% of worldwide developers will keep on innovating and building new stuff regardless of the semantic games you want to play to keep your Bay-centric worldview.