4 ms·

Spotify, Klarna, Mistral don't ring a bell?

simianwords 1y ago
Fair but I absolutely still stand by my point. EU is an economy of around 400 million population and has a handful of startups at max. It’s ridiculous to move your company to Netherlands from USA if practicality was priority and not personal ideology.
- diggan 1y ago
  Unless you happen to live in/move to the Netherlands, not the US, just like the owner of this company. In that case it makes not sense to have a US-based company if practically was the priority.
  - simianwords 1y ago
    I agree - but moving to the Netherlands was ideological.
    - diggan 1y ago
      Disagree, it seems much smoother and practical to live in Europe than the US, at least the countries I've lived in (YMMV obviously). Clearer regulations, easier to be available in multiple countries, less political turmoil, less worry about health and better work/life balance are just some of the things I'd prioritize for business purposes. I don't think I'd consider the US for starting a business unless I was forced to. I don't think favoring things like stability and clarity to be "ideological", those are practical concerns for me. Besides, I think the original part of "FOSS community in Europe is much stronger than in America" to ring quite true too, which if you're building a business that is all about FOSS, also makes much more practical sense to be based in Europe than the US.
      - simianwords 1y ago
        >In the United States, capitalism is the secular religion, and my values, in FOSS and otherwise, are incompatible with the American ethos. Here’s what he claims is one of the reasons he moved to Netherlands. You can decide for yourself whether it is ideological or practical. I personally think it is obviously ideological. It has nothing to do with regulations etc
- cess11 1y ago
  Do you seriously believe that in the EU there are only five small companies doing a single-product or single-service undertaking that involves a degree of risk and isn't immediately profitable? If so, why?
  - simianwords 1y ago
    I believe that Europe is not an ideal place to move your operations to from USa for the same reasons it is not ideal to move to Saudi Arabia even if you can find some startups from both countries.
    - LunaSea 1y ago
      Well Europe has a more stable regulatory framework and political scene than the US.
    - cess11 1y ago
      It's extremely hard to achieve naturalisation in Saudi Arabia, it's a really weird example for this reason alone, but also because it's more or less an extension of the US.
- barbazoo 1y ago
  Just because you only know of a handful of startups doesn’t mean there aren’t any. This is a weird hill to die on.

Fair but I absolutely still stand by my point. EU is an economy of around 400 million population and has a handful of startups at max. It’s ridiculous to move your company to Netherlands from USA if practicality was priority and not personal ideology.

diggan 1y ago
Unless you happen to live in/move to the Netherlands, not the US, just like the owner of this company. In that case it makes not sense to have a US-based company if practically was the priority.
- simianwords 1y ago
  I agree - but moving to the Netherlands was ideological.
  - diggan 1y ago
    Disagree, it seems much smoother and practical to live in Europe than the US, at least the countries I've lived in (YMMV obviously). Clearer regulations, easier to be available in multiple countries, less political turmoil, less worry about health and better work/life balance are just some of the things I'd prioritize for business purposes. I don't think I'd consider the US for starting a business unless I was forced to. I don't think favoring things like stability and clarity to be "ideological", those are practical concerns for me. Besides, I think the original part of "FOSS community in Europe is much stronger than in America" to ring quite true too, which if you're building a business that is all about FOSS, also makes much more practical sense to be based in Europe than the US.
    - simianwords 1y ago
      >In the United States, capitalism is the secular religion, and my values, in FOSS and otherwise, are incompatible with the American ethos. Here’s what he claims is one of the reasons he moved to Netherlands. You can decide for yourself whether it is ideological or practical. I personally think it is obviously ideological. It has nothing to do with regulations etc
cess11 1y ago
Do you seriously believe that in the EU there are only five small companies doing a single-product or single-service undertaking that involves a degree of risk and isn't immediately profitable? If so, why?
- simianwords 1y ago
  I believe that Europe is not an ideal place to move your operations to from USa for the same reasons it is not ideal to move to Saudi Arabia even if you can find some startups from both countries.
  - LunaSea 1y ago
    Well Europe has a more stable regulatory framework and political scene than the US.
  - cess11 1y ago
    It's extremely hard to achieve naturalisation in Saudi Arabia, it's a really weird example for this reason alone, but also because it's more or less an extension of the US.
barbazoo 1y ago
Just because you only know of a handful of startups doesn’t mean there aren’t any. This is a weird hill to die on.