The Rainforest: The Secret to Building the Next Silicon Valley - Softcover

Victor W. Hwang

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0615586724 ISBN 13: 9780615586724

Publisher: Regenwald, 2012

Synopsis

What makes places like Silicon Valley tick?
Can we replicate that magic in other places?

Discover the answers in this groundbreaking book from two of the world's leading experts at the intersection of venture capital and global development. Victor W. Hwang and Greg Horowitt propose a radical new theory to explain the nature of innovation ecosystems: human networks that generate extraordinary creativity and output. They argue that free market thinking fails to consider the impact of human nature on the innovation process. This ambitious work challenges the basic assumptions that economists have held for over a century.

The authors argue that innovation ecosystems – what they call Rainforests – can only thrive when certain cultural behaviors unlock human potential. Their theory of the Rainforest is influenced by several breakthrough ideas in academia, including insights on sociobiology from Harvard, economic transactions from the University of Chicago, and design theory from Stanford.

With an unorthodox and entertaining narrative, the book reveals the mysterious mechanisms of Rainforests. Furthermore, the authors provide practical tools for readers to design, build, and sustain new innovation communities. The Rainforest will transform the way you think about technology, business, and leadership.

About this title

About the Author:

Victor W. Hwang and Greg Horowitt are venture capitalists and entrepreneurs headquartered in Silicon Valley. They are co-founders and Managing Directors of T2 Venture Capital, a firm that grows startups, invests capital, and assists the development of innovation economies worldwide. Their clients have included dozens of investors, governments, and corporations, including the World Bank, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and Cisco, among many others.

Review:

"...a detailed analysis of the power of environment on startup success, and in particular an explanation of why Silicon Valley has been such a powerful incubator of ideas and innovation.... If you are interested in the interplay of environment and business, and in understanding in broader terms how our professional relationships define our success, I recommend picking up a copy." -- Forbes

"I thought I was planting seeds, but I have been planting weeds. This amazing book relates innovations to random propagations of life in the rainforest. I haven't read a book this innovative since Bionomics." --Tim Draper, Founder and Managing Director of the Draper Fisher Jurvetson Rainforest

"A well-written book with a valuable empirical and multi-disciplinary approach." --Prof. Ronald Coase, Nobel Laureate in Economics, University of Chicago

"The Rainforest - a book filled with passion, energy and wisdom - bubbles over with energizing insights and practical advice for policymakers, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists around the world. Drawing on their deep experience as entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, as well as some of the most advanced research in the social and psychological sciences, Victor Hwang and Greg Horowitt use the analogy of the rainforest to clearly explain the complex evolutionary interactions that must exist... Few issues could be more important for the United States and for developing countries..." --Richard Foster, Former Director and Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company

"Everyone's glooming and dooming, and this is literally the blueprint for the new world." --Daryl Browne, entrepreneur

"Every once in a while, a business book with a big idea that defines a way of thinking comes along. Such books as Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore and Jim Collins’s Good to Great come to mind. The Rainforest feels like one of those books." -- ForeWord Reviews

"Offering a challenge to traditional economic wisdom, The Rainforest is a much recommended read for those who want to better understand the intersection of economics, innovation, and business success."-- Midwest Book Review

About this edition

• Publisher: Regenwald
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0615586724
• ISBN 13: 9780615586724
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304