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> "We want our entrepreneurs starting businesses and then staying here," said Lurie. "That means streamlining permitting, making it easier to start a restaurant

> "We want our entrepreneurs starting businesses and then staying here," said Lurie. "That means streamlining permitting, making it easier to start a restaurant, a bar, or a startup." I really wish the emphasis was on high-tech manufacturing startups, and the degree of automation isn't really that important. Prototype shops, specialty manufacturing, etc. should all be encouraged.

toomuchtodo 2y ago
SF is not the place for that, from a shipping and logistics perspective (imho). Memphis, TN or Louisville, KY is where you’d want to be (FedEx and UPS primary hubs, respectively). This enables having output in the hands of consumers or partners in <24 hours from completion.
- mvdtnz 2y ago
  Manufacturers don't need direct shipping access to consumers.
  - toomuchtodo 2y ago
    I am an investor in an advanced manufacturing enterprise for spray nozzles (think beverage, ag, fuel applications). Time to end user is a consideration in the business the org does, based on my conversations with account managers. I admit how relevant this is is going to be a function of customer requirements and expectations, particularly around prototyping feedback loop (edit: a part being manufactured using an advanced CNC machine at ~4pm central time can be in the hands of a customer by 8am the next day, for example).
  - dangus 2y ago
    Why not have that? If you manufacture in the Midwest you have a labor force and education institute already oriented toward manufacturing, you have shipping proximity, low wages, and low cost of land and materials. What are you getting out of the Bay Area in comparison? SF’s bigger problem is convincing software tech companies (which are far more profitable than advanced manufacturing) to stay rather than leaving for lower cost talent-concentrated areas like Austin, the east coast, the Carolinas, and even offshoring into Costa Rica, Poland, and other hotspots for software talent. If you hire an entry level software engineer in Ohio or Indiana you can pay them five figures and they’ll buy a single family home for $300,000 or maybe even less.
- mitthrowaway2 2y ago
  I think it's important for tech entrepreneurs to be able to interact with the manufacturing process, in order to: a) understand how to design their products to leverage manufacturing processes, and b) develop technologies that improve manufacturing itself. So either that means more manufacturing in San Francisco, or more tech startups in Louisville.
  - Apocryphon 2y ago
    Wouldn’t Fresno or elsewhere in the Central Valley also work for in-California?
  - toomuchtodo 2y ago
    > or more tech startups in Louisville. Strongly agree, the Midwest is the future of advanced manufacturing, not California. Rivian is in Normal, IL, and expanding currently [1] for example. If we're going to spend the next 5-10 years building China's equivalent supply chain, the Midwest is a better location imho (cost of living, land costs, logistics, etc). If you were an investor, where would you build? Very wealthy people couldn't get California Forever built [2], and that was mostly non industrial residential/commercial development. [1] Rivian: Building for R2 - Expanding our manufacturing footprint in Illinois - https://stories.rivian.com/r2-expansion-03-2025 https://stories.rivian.com/r2-expansion-03-2025 [2] HN Search: California Forever - https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&query=california%20forever&sort=byDate&type=story https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&qu...
robocat 2y ago
> manufacturing startups Oxymoron? VC money chases high growth, high margin businesses. How would a manufacturing business fit the VC funded model? Aside: article with an interesting take on VC -- unfortunately however with an extremely long-winded intro. https://pivotal.substack.com/p/making-markets-in-time https://pivotal.substack.com/p/making-markets-in-time

toomuchtodo 2y ago

SF is not the place for that, from a shipping and logistics perspective (imho). Memphis, TN or Louisville, KY is where you’d want to be (FedEx and UPS primary hubs, respectively). This enables having output in the hands of consumers or partners in <24 hours from completion.

mvdtnz 2y ago
Manufacturers don't need direct shipping access to consumers.
- toomuchtodo 2y ago
  I am an investor in an advanced manufacturing enterprise for spray nozzles (think beverage, ag, fuel applications). Time to end user is a consideration in the business the org does, based on my conversations with account managers. I admit how relevant this is is going to be a function of customer requirements and expectations, particularly around prototyping feedback loop (edit: a part being manufactured using an advanced CNC machine at ~4pm central time can be in the hands of a customer by 8am the next day, for example).
- dangus 2y ago
  Why not have that? If you manufacture in the Midwest you have a labor force and education institute already oriented toward manufacturing, you have shipping proximity, low wages, and low cost of land and materials. What are you getting out of the Bay Area in comparison? SF’s bigger problem is convincing software tech companies (which are far more profitable than advanced manufacturing) to stay rather than leaving for lower cost talent-concentrated areas like Austin, the east coast, the Carolinas, and even offshoring into Costa Rica, Poland, and other hotspots for software talent. If you hire an entry level software engineer in Ohio or Indiana you can pay them five figures and they’ll buy a single family home for $300,000 or maybe even less.
mitthrowaway2 2y ago
I think it's important for tech entrepreneurs to be able to interact with the manufacturing process, in order to: a) understand how to design their products to leverage manufacturing processes, and b) develop technologies that improve manufacturing itself. So either that means more manufacturing in San Francisco, or more tech startups in Louisville.
- Apocryphon 2y ago
  Wouldn’t Fresno or elsewhere in the Central Valley also work for in-California?
- toomuchtodo 2y ago
  > or more tech startups in Louisville. Strongly agree, the Midwest is the future of advanced manufacturing, not California. Rivian is in Normal, IL, and expanding currently [1] for example. If we're going to spend the next 5-10 years building China's equivalent supply chain, the Midwest is a better location imho (cost of living, land costs, logistics, etc). If you were an investor, where would you build? Very wealthy people couldn't get California Forever built [2], and that was mostly non industrial residential/commercial development. [1] Rivian: Building for R2 - Expanding our manufacturing footprint in Illinois - https://stories.rivian.com/r2-expansion-03-2025 https://stories.rivian.com/r2-expansion-03-2025 [2] HN Search: California Forever - https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&query=california%20forever&sort=byDate&type=story https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&qu...

robocat 2y ago

> manufacturing startups Oxymoron? VC money chases high growth, high margin businesses. How would a manufacturing business fit the VC funded model? Aside: article with an interesting take on VC -- unfortunately however with an extremely long-winded intro. https://pivotal.substack.com/p/making-markets-in-time https://pivotal.substack.com/p/making-markets-in-time