How the government built Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley has long been seen as the bread basket of commercial technology but a new book by Margaret O'Mara traces the Valley's roots to major investments by the federal government following World War II. Listen to our conversation with O'Mara as she recounts some of the lessons learned and why the relationship may ebb and flow but it'll never fade away. While the amounts of money in research grants and contract spending was important, the greater impact was on how the government spent those funds that helped foster an environment of innovation and entrepreneurship. Her book explains how the companies and technologies developed but also the people and relationships that drove the tech world forward. Today, we face a different world but what the government needs from the Valley and what the Valley wants from the government have never been more critical to national security and economic growth.