Report: Rethinking Mexico and Its Ties to Silicon Valley
The Bay Area Council Economic Institute recently released a report authored by Senior Director Dr. Sean Randolph examining Mexico’s growing tech and innovation sector and its ties to Silicon Valley. In a commentary that appeared in the San Jose Mercury News, Dr. Randolph highlighted some of the top findings.
When Americans think about Mexico many things may come to mind — immigration, cartels or perhaps beaches. Technology and innovation are probably not on that list but reflect that a new reality is taking hold across Mexico — led by investors, entrepreneurs and leaders in states and cities — that is moving Mexico onto the map of U.S. technology and innovation partners. In this transformation, Silicon Valley’s role looms large. Here’s why.
Mexico’s young venture capital industry is growing rapidly. From $55 million in 2010, annual investment has grown to more than $1 billion. Softbank’s $5 billion Innovation Fund, created several years ago to invest in Latin America, was a turning point that put Mexico on the global venture map. Now the country boasts unicorns and fast-growing startups. More are on the way, supported by universities, accelerators and by large tech and startup conferences such as Talent Land in Guadalajara and INCmty on Monterrey.
