Jon Gertner
Before Silicon Valley, a single corporate laboratory in New Jersey invented the transistor, information theory, and much of the foundation of the digital age. This is an account of how patient capital and institutional design can support long-term innovation.
Allocating resources to basic research without immediate commercial application forms the necessary foundation for unforeseen, monumental technological advancements.
Physical proximity between theoretical scientists and practical engineers sparks spontaneous collaboration and transforms abstract ideas into functional realities.
There is a vital distinction between an invention, which is the mere creation of a novel device, and an innovation, which requires manufacturing and successfully scaling that device for a broader market.