A Survey in The Atlantic Further Confirms the Need for More Visas to Spur Innovation
In the November 2014 issue of The Atlantic (dubbed “The Technology Issue”), a piece titled “The View from the Valley” provides additional, powerful evidence of the severe shortage of talent in the U.S. and the negative effect this shortage is having on innovation. The survey is particularly potent because it is not an immigration centered article. Instead, the article poses a number of questions to top Silicon Valley executives, innovators and thinkers, to get a “View from the Valley”.
The question directly relevant to immigration was the following: “What is the biggest barrier to innovation in the United States?” The answers below are striking, but perhaps less so to anyone familiar with our professional employment immigration system.
• 20% – Government regulation/bureaucracy
• 16% – Immigration Policies
• 14% – Education
• 10% – Talent Shortage
• 10% – Lack of diversity among tech executives
• 8% – The need for patent reform
• 6% – Lack of investment
If you view talent shortage as an immigration related problem (since this problem can be largely addressed by better immigration policies), 26% of those surveyed listed the biggest barrier to innovation as our inability to meet demand for talent through better immigration policies. Lack of investment is another issue that can be addressed with immigration reform. While there are investment visas available for those who invest substantial sums of their own capital, no category exists for an entrepreneur who grows his or her company with investment funds from others (such as venture capitalists and angel investors). Creation of an “entrepreneur visa” would spur both investment and innovation.
This article highlights the increasing negative effect immigration policies are having on our technology sector. The technology sector has become the largest sector in the U.S. and has helped the U.S. maintain it global economic position and influence. However, our position as the leader may quickly change if we do not create an environment that fosters innovation rather than stifles it.
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