IT in San Francisco

 
 

Vocabulary

base	network	base of operation
giant	goal (2)	competition
charm	fascination	with regard
scene	firm (2)	starting point
local	provider	apparently
stall	evaluate	reasonable
rent	amazing	entrepreneur
techie	low profile	concentration
boon	match (3)	burgeoning
trendy	replicate	present (3)
ideal	ground (2)	movement (2)
plug	newcomer	unplugged (2)
latte	investor	negotiation
staff	interact	operation (2)
supply	executive	short supply
stage	highlight	presentation
startup	founder	venture capitalist
Hippy	capitalist	unmatched
guess	thing (2)	depends on
focus	venture

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Video

 

Transcript

San Francisco in the US is growing increasingly popular among IT firms as a base of operations. It’s even beginning to provide some competition to nearby Silicon Valley, home to internet giants like Google and Facebook.

San Francisco was one of the most popular cities to visit in the US. Over 800,000 people live here, and many IT startups have discovered its charms.

Myles Weissleder knows the IT scene.

Myles Weissleder, Fascination: San Francisco: “The developers are leaving the Valley for San Francisco because the city has so much more to offer with regard to culture and food and the arts that they’re just not finding down in Silicon Valley.”

The starting point for most newcomers is the trendy South Market district, which locals call “Soma”.

Zynga, the world’s largest social game provider, is based here.

And Yelp is here as well. The online review website lets users evaluate stalls and restaurants. Six hundred Yelp employees live in the city. Office rents here are reasonable — up to 40% cheaper than in Silicon Valley. And the entrepreneurial energy is also a big draw.

Eric Singley, Qualification: Also knows Chicago: “There’s an amazing concentration of tech talent, and entrepreneurialism here that I think is unmatched anywhere else in the country. It’s why I came out to San Francisco.

I like to tell people coming to San Francisco as a techie guy is like an actor going to Los Angeles.”

San Francisco’s co-working spaces are another boon for the city’s burgeoning entrepreneurs: a new business moves into this building nearly every week. A desk here costs only about 400 Euros a month, a price that includes a coffee machine, a printer, and a fast internet connection.

Egyptian Ramy Adeeb’s startup is based here. He’s been in San Francisco for almost a year now.

Ramy Adeeb, Vision: Be the next Big Thing: “To truly become a global firm, you need to come to the Bay Area. Fortunately, this is where you go down the street, you go to a coffee shop and you will find the executives from some other enterprise that you can interact with and that’s really hard to replicate.”

The café’s side glass in Soma is a favorite meeting ground for local techies. Curiously, there’s no wireless connection here. Even startup founders apparently enjoy having a couple of moments unplugged.

Belgian Xavier Damman is a regular customer. It’s a place where he can meet with investors.

Xavier Damman, Situation: Negotiations over a latte: “Everybody here is working on a startup and wants to change the world. And so you meet with people who can help you, think along the same way, whereas in Belgium, in Europe, if you are an entrepreneur, you are going to feel different and alone.”

After a hard day at work, network parties are the place to be for San Francisco IT entrepreneurs. They’re ideal for making business contacts and finding staff.

IT specialists are in short supply in the city, despite yearly starting salaries of over €120,000.

The highlight this evening is the party presentation where innovators can present their business ideas on stage.

The goal of most presentations is to attract investors. Myles Weissleder organizes the parties. Here he brings startup founders together with venture capitalists.

Myles Weissleder, Calculation: Sponsors for good ideas: “In this room today, I definitely saw a couple of venture capitalists. They tend to keep a low profile because they don’t want to advertise that they’re here, necessarily.

But they’re looking for that ‘next big thing’.

What that is, is anybody’s guess. And it all depends on what their focus is.”

San Francisco. Once the cradle of the Hippie Movement, today the city is at the center of the global internet scene.

Questions

1. More startups and tech firms are being established in San Francisco. True or false? What are some examples?

2. Do many tourists visit San Francisco? Is San Francisco popular among tourists? Why do they go there?

3. “Coming to San Francisco as a techie guy is like an actor going to Los Angeles.” What does this mean? Is it cheap, expensive or medium-priced to set up shop in San Francisco?

4. To talk to investors and engineers, you have to set up and appointment and meet them in their headquarters. Is this right or wrong?

5. Is there a short or glut of IT experts and engineers, or is it adequate?

6. The climax of the gathering is music and dancing. Is this correct or incorrect?

7. Do investors and venture capitalists announce at parties: “Hello everyone. I am an investor!” Why don’t they do this?

 

A. Is there a tech or startup scene in your city or country? What happens there?

B. Do computer specialists and engineers go to tech centers abroad? What are some favorite destinations?

C. Is there a shortage or glut of skilled, talented and entrepreneurial individuals?

D. The government is encouraging and fostering tech businesses, startups and industries. Yes, no, in the middle?

E. What will happen in the future?