When I first launched Tech London Advocates in the spring of 2013, 80 people came together at Central Working in Shoreditch to discuss some of the key strengths and weaknesses of London’s technology sector.
Last week, what began as a network of a few like-minded tech experts 18 months ago arrived in San Francisco with the backing of more than 1,100 members looking to take London’s digital growth back to the home of technology.
15 years ago, I worked for a VC firm in the Bay Area. In the two years I spent in the Valley, I faced the Silicon Valley investment machine from both sides – as an investor and within a tech startup. Three things have always stayed with me.
Firstly, that there was an incredible sense of ambition and determination in everyone I met. Creating a startup, growing the business, failing and starting again was as natural as breathing. That laser-like focus on innovation was the perfect environment for success.
The second was a fierce commitment to collaboration. Any VC will give an entrepreneur 30 minutes to listen to a pitch. If they don’t want to invest (and they often don’t), they will always suggest a list of experts, mentors or suppliers who might be able to help. Fear of competition was overwhelmed by a sense of community.
The final point was that no-one was interested in London.
London’s growing reputation
Coming back to San Francisco for the first overseas Tech London Advocates event was an experiment – an opportunity to bring together around 70 people, both Advocates based in the Bay Area along with members of the local digital community.
A mark of how far London’s reputation for technology has come was seeing the number of British entrepreneurs side by side with representatives from the area’s home-grown fast growing businesses.
WANdisco’s David Richards, Duncan Logan from RocketSpace and former European MD of LinkedIn, Kevin Eyres all spoke of their experiences of coming to the Valley and growing a technology business. A series of panel debates and keynote sessions focused on building the relationship between London and San Francisco. The two cities share many of the same concerns around issues such as access to talent, infrastructure and global expansion.
However, whilst Europe’s leading tech hub has a lot to learn from the world’s pre-eminent tech destination, it was even more fascinating to uncover the areas where Silicon Valley companies think London is pioneering new practices and routes to growth. 15 years is a long time in technology and the roaring progress that San Francisco has experienced now has a note of caution.
Different cities, different challenges
Jeremy Wallenberg, director of external affairs at sf.citi, the largest network of tech companies in San Francisco, spoke frankly about the tech backclash that San Francisco is experiencing amidst rising residential prices and the infamous Google Bus. Whilst the Bay Area may be the home of investment for tech, it seems London is currently a bit friendlier towards its tech businesses.
Penningtons Manches lawyers closed the event with Home Office Hours, providing practical advice to business owners looking to move to the UK or navigate British immigration legislation.
In 1999, London would not have been on the radar of the Valley’s VCs and tech entrepreneurs. In 2014, London is regarded as a young, but exciting, new contender. Looking around the room at figures from Square, Inkling and Salesforce.com gathered to hear the latest developments from the capital’s tech sector, it’s clear that an appetite for our city is taking seed.
Emerging from the Hyatt Hotel onto San Francisco’s Embarcadero it was clear that London has no reason to be afraid of Silicon Valley. We will never match the funding and experience in the Bay Area but that is not what we should be aiming for. London has its own unique strengths that many in San Francisco envy.
I hope to convene a second Tech London Advocates event in the Bay Area at the same time in 2015 and I am hugely enthused about the success stories we will be able to take to the West Coast a year from now.
Russ Shaw is the founder at Tech London Advocates, has been appointed as a London Tech Ambassador by the Mayor’s Office and is a member of the Tech City Advisory Group.