[mschuster91]

> Funding gaps remain larger in Europe than in the US.

Well, of course. Engineers in the US take home five-figure sums each month, which explains why there are so many startups largely funded by ex-Google/Apple/MS/FB employees.

In Germany, wages are so low, and taxes and rent so high, that you have to be either fucking good or fucking rich via inheritance to save enough money for your own startup.

Not to mention that failure is expected and financed in the US startup culture, whereas in Europe you can't even get a small loan without putting your car/house/... as collateral, and you will get shunned for failure. Therefore, many capable people (have to) choose not to enter the start-up world.

[ThomPete]

Thats not really the problem though startups aren't paying engineers a lot in the beginning so thats comparing two different things.

While it's true that the funding gaps remail larger in Europe than in the US it's still the wrong question to ask.

The real question is why the funding gaps are there to begin with. I would claim 4 major reasons.

1. Disconnect between the needs of the European politicians and those of European startups.

2. Europe has no Silicon Valley or New York.

3. European startups ask for permission instead of forgiveness.

4. The EU seems to be fixing the problems that the startups could fix.

In other words a lot of the problems in Europe is the EU.

Go back 40-50 years and plenty of fortune 500 companies were European.

I am exploring it in more depth in this essay:

http://000fff.org/why-is-europe-failing-to-create-more-unico...

[kuschku]

> 3. European startups ask for permission instead of forgiveness.

Well, because everything else will destroy your reputation and company socially and legally for all eternity.

[ThomPete]

Say that to ex Uber and Airbnb plus a host of the other companies.

[mschuster91]

Well, Uber is taking a heavy beating in Europe (and thanks to our regulations, taxi service never has been as bad as in the US, so the market for "better taxis" isn't as large to begin with), and AirBnB already bows to regulator's pressure all over the world.

[ThomPete]

Thats not the point though.

The point is that they are the leader not a European company because they take that battle.

You can't disrupt most fields only by pure technology. A lot of the disruption is legislation.

[kuschku]

Well, disruption is just not necessary. Uber competitors existed in Europe before Uber even did.

AirBnB is literally doing what people in Europe had done for decades, just with a neat web listing.

[rhaps0dy]

>The EU seems to be fixing the problems that the startups could fix.

and then

>In other words a lot of the problems in Europe is the EU.

Are the EU fixing or creating problems?

EDIT: okay, I'm reading the essay. Maybe they are creating problems for the creation of startups, but solving problems for the population.

[ThomPete]

It's a problem that the EU (read politicians) are fixing a lot of the problems that startups could have been fixing instead.

I.e. it's a bad idea that the EU is not trusting private enterprise more than they are.

[ThomPete]

The population needs private jobs not necessarily cucumbers being the right size or cookie laws :)

But sure you could make that argument, mine is that it has consequences that I am not sure is to the benefit of the population in the end.

[adwn]

> 4. The EU seems to be fixing the problems that the startups could fix.

For example?

[mschuster91]

Taxis. When I hop into a German cab and want to be driven home, it always costs me the same amount (plus/minus variable waiting times), cab drivers generally don't fuck you over with the routes, the cabs are in perfect technological and optical conditions (BOTH are mandated and controlled by the government)...

[kuschku]

And what’s the issue with that?

I’d argue it’s even better than Uber, as in this case the whole profit is locally spent. In contrast to uber, where it lands overseas in private pockets.

[ThomPete]

You are confusing your political views with what the discussion is about.

It's not whether it's right or wrong that this exist. It's about WHY European startups have such a hard time building really big companies in this field.

[pm90]

That's an interesting point. I wonder if the reason why startup culture thrives so much is because a lot of the VC's/Investors are ex-engineers who made their wealth from their own companies... and there is a better understanding in SV of what it takes to succeed (and how to handle failure).

[drinchev]

Super strange for me to read that.

I'm freelancing web-dev in Berlin and I was always thinking that you work 24/7 in US for the same amount of money.

Here I enjoy a heart-of-the-city-center apartment for 800 Euro ( ~60 sq.m. ), beer for one euro, cheap health insurance and yes of course higher taxes.

On the same hand :D I'm working around 5-7 hours per day ( RescueTime tracked ) and definitely don't pick up my phone when it's saturday or sunday ( anyway nobody calls at that time for work ).

[xamuel]

It's basic Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. You aren't gonna create the next big breakthrough if you're struggling to put food on the table.

[logingone]

Yes. Your head has limited bandwidth. Europe manages to fill your head with issues from the Victorian era, leaving no room for "luxurious" thought.