Silicon Valley is the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay Area, which includes parts of the cities of San Francisco and Oakland, as well as Santa Clara County and San Jose County.

The word “silicon” originally referred to the large number of silicon chip innovators and manufacturers in the region, but the Silicon Valley is now a leading hub and startup ecosystem for high – tech innovation and scientific development.

Survived the rise and fall of the New Economy, the Silicon Valley continues to represent the most important hi – tech district in the world, ready to conquer the leadership in the new innovation sectors, from biotechnology to nanotechnology, from wireless to digital technologies applied to entertainment. While having a relatively small geographic extension and a density of limited inhabitants, it has a high concentration of businesses. The link between research and the creation of enterprises in Silicon Valley has always been very strong: in fact, one out three companies are established less than 50 km from a university campus.

The Silicon Valley economy is going strong, with accelerating employment growth, continued expansion of businesses and services, and rising incomes. However, serious housing and transportation issues challenge the region’s economic competitiveness and impact the quality of life for the region’s residents.

The qualified migration took place in California in recent decades, allowed companies of the valley to enrich their creative heritage. In addition, the close collaboration between academia and businesses, made sure that many students would transform their ideas into entrepreneurial projects. This was possible because the financial community believed before others in the development of hi – tech, financing the projects of young entrepreneurs with substantial funds and using intensively venture capital: a mechanism that several countries, including Italy, are trying to replicate