Vivek Wadhwa's take: RTP is technology backwater

Vivek Wadhwa doesn't pull punches when he assesses the Triangle's technology industry and how it stacks up compared with Silicon Valley.

"There's not much happening," he said. "It's still a technology backwater."

A former local entrepreneur who's now an influential tech blogger and researcher, Wadhwa will speak tonight in Research Triangle Park. He plans to discuss Silicon Valley's advantages over the Triangle.

Wadhwa spoke by phone this afternoon from the Houston airport. Some highlights:

On Silicon Valley's networking advantage:
Silicon Valley is one giant network. It's a culture of informality, risk-taking, openness and inclusion that makes it what it is. Every evening there's another event happening. You meet people in different tech communities. They mingle and share ideas. That's where the magic happens.
When you ask someone what they do, they show off about the number of companies they've screwed up, the number of failures they've had. In the Triangle, people look at you like you're a loser. In Silicon Valley, it's a badge of honor.
In the Triangle, CED (the nonprofit based in Research Triangle Park) is really the only networking group. But it's long been dominated by lawyers and real-estate agents. It had a lot of potential, but it's become irrelevant in the entrepreneur community.

On Silicon Valley's immigrant advantage:
In the Triangle, the percentage of immigrants at companies is among the lowest in the nation, despite the fact that our schools are dominated by foreigners. They don't stay. We don't welcome them. In Silicon Valley, half of all startups are by immigrants and venture capitalists are eager to back them. That's something else that's off locally.

On how he would improve the Triangle's tech sector:
We need a dramatic shakeup to make any changes, have any hope of being a tech center.
I would set up informal networking events. That's why I'm speaking to this group tonight. Successful entrepreneurs should give back and network. There are many successful people from UNC and Duke who come back here. It's a wonderful place to be. We need to set up more ties between them and new entrepreneurs.
We need to find more ways to encourage immigrants to settle here. We need to teach entrepreneurship.

On the state's role in helping local tech startups:
The IT budget of the state is close to $1 billion, but how much of it is spent at local companies? The whole system is rigged so that the big guys get all the contracts. You could rebuild all the systems with new technology for much cheaper. Yet they have hundreds of people maintaining old systems.
They should open up government and make information available to anyone who wants to solve problems. Give local entrepreneurs a chance. It will create the jobs, and people will come here.

On reports that Red Hat, one of the Triangle's most successful tech companies, might move out of the area:
If it does move, many employees probably won't move and they'll end up starting companies. Let them move if they want. They're just looking for subsidies and tax breaks. It's just a big game.
You want the next Red Hat, that's who's going to create the new jobs. The big companies don't create the jobs. We need to focus on the startups and the next generation.

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Editor's Note: Wadhwa writes about technology, globalization and other issues for BusinessWeek.com and TechCrunch. He's an adjunct professor and executive-in-residence at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering and still owns a house in Chapel Hill, but lives in Silicon Valley and is a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
He visits his Duke students occasionally, but does much of his work over the Internet. He first moved to the Triangle in 1991 and he and his wife keep debating when they'll move back.

If you go: Wadhwa will speak at a meeting of the RTP New Tech group at 7:30 p.m. at the First Flight Venture Center, 2 Davis Drive, RTP. For more information call 622-5000.