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Put yourself in the action early
The hub
San Francisco is a vortex for venture capital, startup energy, and now AGI. One founder moved there right after college and was exposed to a ton of different parts of the industry just naturally. For finance, New York City is probably the equivalent early on.
The apartment
His first home in San Francisco was a one-bedroom apartment in the Tenderloin shared by three people for $1,500 a month, complete squalor, but in the mix. Putting yourself in the action very early, no matter the cost, can have a lot of benefits.
Leaving later
Staying permanently would probably not have gone as well for him. Leaving San Francisco gave him a completely different perspective on the world, which let him succeed in tech from outside the vortex, and it is better for his well-being.
Why do industries cluster in one city?
Economist Alfred Marshall explained the pattern in his 1890 Principles of Economics: nearby firms share a pool of skilled workers, specialized suppliers, and ideas that pass from person to person. AnnaLee Saxenian compared Silicon Valley with Boston's Route 128 corridor in her 1994 book Regional Advantage. She argued that the Valley's open networks of workers and firms helped it adapt faster.
How did San Francisco become a tech hub?
Stanford engineering dean Frederick Terman encouraged students such as William Hewlett and David Packard to start companies, and Stanford opened its industrial park in 1951. Fairchild Semiconductor was founded in 1957 by eight engineers who had left another firm. Venture firms followed on Sand Hill Road, with Kleiner Perkins and Sequoia Capital both founded in 1972.
Why is New York the center of finance?
Wall Street's role traces to the Buttonwood Agreement of 1792, in which 24 stockbrokers agreed to trade securities among themselves under fixed commissions. That agreement is regarded as the origin of the New York Stock Exchange, which adopted its current name in 1863. Banks, brokers, and lawyers gathered around the exchange over the following decades.
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