OPINION: To maintain its position as a leader, California’s tech economy should be open to adaptation.
Business concerns include taxes and regulations that increase costs and make it hard to grow companies in-state.California’s economy is diverse, but its greatest asset is technology, with much of the world viewing the state — and the Bay Area in particular — as the global center of innovation. However, there are growing concerns with a range of issues that could erode California’s technology leadership.
As it emerges from the pandemic, California’s strength in science and technology is undiminished. That’s good news, but it’s not the whole story. Science and technology leaders are raising several issues that over time could pose problems for California’s technology leadership and the jobs, tax and other benefits it delivers. Most stem from quality-of-life concerns that those who live here, and talented people who want to come here, increasingly face.
There are issues at several levels. California draws deeply on its universities for talent, but since 2000 public investment in the University of California has fallen by nearly half. California’s other main source of technology talent, immigration, is also vulnerable.