The Silicon Valley - Place Of Action

The SF Chronicle writes about the controversies now jolting Silicon Valley and woriies about the fallout of its dented image.

Corporate spying: Hewlett-Packard has revealed that it hired private contractors who impersonated HP directors, journalists and employees to get phone companies to turn over detailed logs of their home phone calls.
Options: More than 100 companies, many in Silicon Valley, are suspected of manipulating option grant dates to enhance the value of stock options awarded to executives and other employees. Dozens of companies - from Silicon Valley startups to household names like Apple Computer - are either under investigation or conducting internal reviews. Many are restating earnings and facing higher tax bills.

As I see it, while issues around options and corporate scandals are quite despicable, fact remains that the silicon valley is the hotbed of technology, applied creativity and the nerve center for tech system progress. Where in the world can one find such a charged up environment - maintaining that edge for quite a while. As an aside, Bangalore/other Indian cities shows some very positive traits - last week a meeting that I addressed in bangalore, saw overflowing crowds and surprisingly,a clear indication of the growing tech ecosystem there. I met with a number of entrepreneurs, some of them working on leading edge areas. I also noticed that the focus was mostly on engineering and product features, not on the next big idea - but things show definite signs of progress therein. The sort of tech related deals that are getting closed for venture/early funding in India are definitely significant. However, for now, I firmly endorse the view about the silicon valley edge, it shall continue to be the springboard of innovation and technological advances for some more time to come. I definitely see that the india and to an extent china may begin to offer credible competition. The valley is also part of the great american ethos where the propensity to try out new things are very high and these feed each other. True,some shameful things are happening there now - but these can change. Time that this energy and momentum in the valley is preserved - in a legalistic way and in a trendsetting manner in all respects - tech advances and corporate behaviour included. This is vital for the global progress.