&quot;per capita&quot; bro in a population of 100,000 people.<p>That could be 1 person giving a company (doesn&#x27;t have to be a startup) a large sum, in which the per capita would sky-rocket.<p>The discussion isn&#x27;t over whether someone can run a startup successfully in Michigan or Ann Arbor. The discussion is whether Detroit (or Michigan) can become a technology hub.  After being born in Michigan and living their for 25 years, I can easily say that while there is deffinately the ability to build and run a startup, the ability to change the industry of the state (or even just Detroit) is really next to impossible unless the city&#x2F;state was willing to go to drastic measures to attract talent&#x2F;encourage startups (low&#x2F;no tax, office space, incubators, free money startup capital...etc), and educate the public on their goal&#x27;s.<p>Even is the state was able to give every startup no taxes for 10 years and startup capital, the response from the general public would be &quot;why are you helping them?!, I am the one without the job.  Why aren&#x27;t you trying to attract more manufacturing?!&quot;<p>While I love my state, it&#x27;s not a viable place to build any startup.  A high small business tax, and small talent pool that most state&#x27;s face when asking themselves &quot;how can we bring in more technology?&quot;<p>Back to Ann Arbor...
It&#x27;s a nice cozy city with a major university.  In regards to work force, where are you getting employee&#x27;s?  From the college?  That&#x27;s like the valley pulling it&#x27;s entire work force from Stanford.  In regard&#x27;s to a startup boom in Ann Arbor, where are the people going to live?  The city isn&#x27;t large enough for any large scale change.  Can you build multiple Google&#x27;s, Apple&#x27;s, or Amazon&#x27;s there?  Is the city viably committing to building out it&#x27;s infrastructure in order to have this be a silicon valley?<p>Building a startup is one thing, creating an entire industry is a totally different animal.  The state in general is committed to manufacturing as it has been for 100 years.  In 15 years there will be a new generation of politicians and then maybe we will see if the climate changes.  However, I can assure you that from a bureaucratic level, there is no such strive for a &quot;silicon valley&quot; in michigan.<p>Simply put: people want jobs.  They see the west coast.  They see tech as high paying.  They want high pay.  They want tech.  However, the cost of getting that is going to be much greater in monetary and sacrifice than people will&#x2F;are willing to do.