The Silicon Valley-Hsinchu Connection: Technical Communities and Industrial Upgrading

Posted: 29 Feb 2008

See all articles by AnnaLee Saxenian

AnnaLee Saxenian

University of California, Berkeley - School of Information

Jinn-Yuh Hsu

National Taiwan Normal University

Abstract

Silicon Valley in California and the Hsinchu-Taipei region of Taiwan are among the most frequently cited 'miracles' of the information technology era. The dominant accounts of these successes treat them in isolation, focusing either on free markets, multinationals or the role of the state. This paper argues that the dynamism of these regional economies is attributable to their increasing interdependencies. A community of US-educated Taiwanese engineers has coordinated a decentralized process of reciprocal industrial upgrading by transferring capital, skill and know-how to Taiwan, and by facilitating collaborations between specialist producers in the two regions. This case underscores the significance of technical communities and their institutions in transferring technology and organizing production at the global as well as the local level.

Suggested Citation

Saxenian, AnnaLee and Hsu, Jinn-Yuh, The Silicon Valley-Hsinchu Connection: Technical Communities and Industrial Upgrading. Industrial and Corporate Change, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 893-920, 2001, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=914285

AnnaLee Saxenian (Contact Author)

University of California, Berkeley - School of Information ( email )

102 South Hall
Berkeley, CA 94720-4600
United States

Jinn-Yuh Hsu

National Taiwan Normal University ( email )

No. 162, Section 1
Heping East Road
Taipei City, Da’an District 106
Taiwan

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