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| Next Silicon Valleys: Seattle lures in a new generation | Next Silicon Valleys: Seattle lures in a new generation |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| When it comes to technology, Seattle punches above its weight. Amazon is based there and Microsoft's nearby, helping spur a vibrant tech cluster. In the second in our Next Silicon Valleys series, Richard Taylor visits the seaport city to see how it compares with its Californian counterpart. | When it comes to technology, Seattle punches above its weight. Amazon is based there and Microsoft's nearby, helping spur a vibrant tech cluster. In the second in our Next Silicon Valleys series, Richard Taylor visits the seaport city to see how it compares with its Californian counterpart. |
| Claude Comair smiles wryly. And with good reason: Digipen, the pioneering "video gaming university" he founded 25 years ago is buzzing. | Claude Comair smiles wryly. And with good reason: Digipen, the pioneering "video gaming university" he founded 25 years ago is buzzing. |
| Today, some 1,500 aspiring undergraduates are beavering away quietly on video gaming projects; some in the capacious open-plan studio, others assiduously taking notes in lectures as diverse as artificial intelligence and character modelling. | Today, some 1,500 aspiring undergraduates are beavering away quietly on video gaming projects; some in the capacious open-plan studio, others assiduously taking notes in lectures as diverse as artificial intelligence and character modelling. |
| But now Digipen has its gaze firmly trained on farther horizons, on nurturing the next generation of video gamers. | But now Digipen has its gaze firmly trained on farther horizons, on nurturing the next generation of video gamers. |
| Next year Comair plans to open up the college to children, from as young as five up to 12-year-olds. | Next year Comair plans to open up the college to children, from as young as five up to 12-year-olds. |
| Unconventional? Yes, but Comair is unapologetic."A game is an aspect of being human. And entertaining ourselves is something we need on a daily basis," he tells the BBC. | Unconventional? Yes, but Comair is unapologetic."A game is an aspect of being human. And entertaining ourselves is something we need on a daily basis," he tells the BBC. |
| "Playing a game is a series of problem-solving events." | "Playing a game is a series of problem-solving events." |
| Digipen's idea is to build upon the foundations it established with a summer programme developed a decade ago, where kids spend half their time learning a regular curriculum and the other half focusing on tech, maths and science subjects. | Digipen's idea is to build upon the foundations it established with a summer programme developed a decade ago, where kids spend half their time learning a regular curriculum and the other half focusing on tech, maths and science subjects. |
| The end game is to equip them with the rigorous skillset necessary to turn them into the next generation of game designers. | The end game is to equip them with the rigorous skillset necessary to turn them into the next generation of game designers. |
| In most parts of the world, such a radically progressive attitude towards gaming would be sneered at, decried as irresponsible and unhealthy. | In most parts of the world, such a radically progressive attitude towards gaming would be sneered at, decried as irresponsible and unhealthy. |
| But this is greater Seattle, the largest city in the liberal state of Washington. | |
| Start-up city | Start-up city |
| The region has become synonymous with the rise and rise of the video gaming industry, today playing host to about 350 interactive entertainment companies. | The region has become synonymous with the rise and rise of the video gaming industry, today playing host to about 350 interactive entertainment companies. |
| Some, like Valve, focus purely on hardcore gaming. | Some, like Valve, focus purely on hardcore gaming. |
| Others, like the quirky Icanhascheezburger, are proving a YouTube sensation, with viral videos based on hilarious animal antics. | Others, like the quirky Icanhascheezburger, are proving a YouTube sensation, with viral videos based on hilarious animal antics. |
| Seattle's start-up scene is creating ripples far beyond too. Need a reliable contractor to repair your roof? | Seattle's start-up scene is creating ripples far beyond too. Need a reliable contractor to repair your roof? |
| Serial entrepreneur Matt Ehrlichman saw a gaping hole in the $1bn (£600m) home improvement market, and successfully funded Porch, a network that provides a vetted list of contractors to get domestic projects completed reliably. | Serial entrepreneur Matt Ehrlichman saw a gaping hole in the $1bn (£600m) home improvement market, and successfully funded Porch, a network that provides a vetted list of contractors to get domestic projects completed reliably. |
| For cancer suffers, another start-up, Presage, takes a uniquely modern approach to understanding how a person's tumour responds to drugs, administering micro-doses of different drugs and measuring a patient's reaction, rather than the blunt approach of subjecting them to larger, more toxic doses of drugs which may cause side effects without any benefit. | For cancer suffers, another start-up, Presage, takes a uniquely modern approach to understanding how a person's tumour responds to drugs, administering micro-doses of different drugs and measuring a patient's reaction, rather than the blunt approach of subjecting them to larger, more toxic doses of drugs which may cause side effects without any benefit. |
| As well as these consumer-facing entities, many of Seattle's emerging companies are focused on moving business operations online to the cloud, mirroring a wider global trend. | As well as these consumer-facing entities, many of Seattle's emerging companies are focused on moving business operations online to the cloud, mirroring a wider global trend. |
| Bill Gates legacy | Bill Gates legacy |
| Others still are developing mobile apps and services. | Others still are developing mobile apps and services. |
| That's little wonder given the area's rich software heritage, which has cast a long shadow over the region ever since Seattle natives Bill Gates and Paul Allen relocated Microsoft here in 1979. | That's little wonder given the area's rich software heritage, which has cast a long shadow over the region ever since Seattle natives Bill Gates and Paul Allen relocated Microsoft here in 1979. |
| And two decades ago, Jeff Bezos began his giant e-commerce operation Amazon just down the road from Bill Gates's empire. | And two decades ago, Jeff Bezos began his giant e-commerce operation Amazon just down the road from Bill Gates's empire. |
| Despite the presence of these two tech giants, start-ups say it's easy to find capable employees. | Despite the presence of these two tech giants, start-ups say it's easy to find capable employees. |
| Emily Ha is co-founder of the Cheezburger network, the firm responsible for spreading thousands of cat-themed photos overlaid with laugh-out-loud text and many of the viral video hits that litter your Facebook page. | Emily Ha is co-founder of the Cheezburger network, the firm responsible for spreading thousands of cat-themed photos overlaid with laugh-out-loud text and many of the viral video hits that litter your Facebook page. |
| She says employers generally find it a lot easier to build a business here rather than in states such as California or New York. | She says employers generally find it a lot easier to build a business here rather than in states such as California or New York. |
| "There's a huge pool of talent for us to choose from. And it's just a great small community that's really supportive of each other." | "There's a huge pool of talent for us to choose from. And it's just a great small community that's really supportive of each other." |
| There's no doubt the area now has the raw ingredients for a healthy ecosystem: a recent study ranked Seattle fourth globally on a range of measures, from availability of talent to a support network. | There's no doubt the area now has the raw ingredients for a healthy ecosystem: a recent study ranked Seattle fourth globally on a range of measures, from availability of talent to a support network. |
| Taking a risk | Taking a risk |
| Nevertheless, Seattle is still finding its entrepreneurial feet. | Nevertheless, Seattle is still finding its entrepreneurial feet. |
| Local investor Chris De Vore mentors start-ups trying to get off the ground. He complains that funding is in short supply - and that Seattle lacks the pioneering DNA and risk-taking attitude it needs if it is to live up to its potential. | Local investor Chris De Vore mentors start-ups trying to get off the ground. He complains that funding is in short supply - and that Seattle lacks the pioneering DNA and risk-taking attitude it needs if it is to live up to its potential. |
| "You need to have a culture where instead of people thinking when they get out of college, 'I'm going to get a job in a big company', the instinct has to be, 'I'm going to build a big company.' In Silicon Valley that's what you really have." | "You need to have a culture where instead of people thinking when they get out of college, 'I'm going to get a job in a big company', the instinct has to be, 'I'm going to build a big company.' In Silicon Valley that's what you really have." |
| And rewiring that impulse is no mean feat. It's this intangible mindset that ultimately presents the widest gulf between Seattle and Silicon Valley. | And rewiring that impulse is no mean feat. It's this intangible mindset that ultimately presents the widest gulf between Seattle and Silicon Valley. |
| The latter is imbued with a community of dream-seekers drawn from the world over. Seattle's outdoor-loving, coffee-imbibing workforce have a more laid-back attitude to life. The area has undoubtedly laid the foundations of innovation. | The latter is imbued with a community of dream-seekers drawn from the world over. Seattle's outdoor-loving, coffee-imbibing workforce have a more laid-back attitude to life. The area has undoubtedly laid the foundations of innovation. |
| But to steal the crown from Silicon Valley? That may take generations. | But to steal the crown from Silicon Valley? That may take generations. |