Most of the technical innovation in the US is financed by military sources and state-sanctioned monopolies.  Things like the internet and self-driving cars basically came from ARPA and DARPA fundings —at least initially.<p>Compared to those thing, the typical web startup we see in the Bay area innovates little and disrupts nothing.  They&#x27;re just facilitators and middle men.  The likes of DropBox, YouTube, Twitter, Blogger, even Facebook… <i>none</i> are needed.  They only compensate for our asymmetric bandwidth, without solving the real problem.<p>If you want real innovation, you need to finance fundamental research.  You know, things that have no short term benefits, uncertain long term benefits, and uncertain monetisability.<p>In any case, the US is one of the most militaristic countries out there.  It wages war all over the place for oil, and develops nice military devices to secure its supremacy.  That&#x27;s a pretty good drive for technical innovation.