“Is immigration the secret to Silicon Valley’s success? ” wonders the San Francisco Chronicle. The daily notes that the famous hub of high-tech industries located in northern California is proud of the prodigy founders of Tech, who generate enormous sums of money. But Silicon Valley depends on immigrants, the newspaper points out.
According to a new report from the National Foundation for American Policy, 55% of unicorns – that is, start-ups valued at more than $1 billion, not listed on a stock exchange and not affiliated with a large group – have were founded by immigrants. Of 319 unicorns, 48% were launched in the San Francisco area. This is the case of the online payment processing company Stripe, founded by two Irishmen. The financial services firm Brex was created by two Brazilians while Instacart was created by a Canadian.
Immigrants who create jobs
“Generallywrites this independent organization based in Virginia, 86% of $1 billion immigrant-founded companies had a single immigrant founder, multiple immigrant founders, a majority of immigrant founders, or an equal number of immigrant and native-born founders. Only 14% had a majority of founders born in the country”.
Conclusion, according to Forbes : “Immigrant entrepreneurs create jobs and innovations that benefit the United States.” This research “shows how essential immigrants have become in founding America’s most valuable businesses, continues the magazine. Think of the creations of Nikolai Tesla and Alexander Graham Bell, two immigrants who founded businesses and invented useful products.
Advocacy for an adapted visa
The National Foundation for American Policy report also notes that founders of innovative companies almost always enter the United States as refugees, on family reunification visas, or on employer-sponsored visas, such as H-1Bs. .
The body’s director, Stuart Anderson, believes it’s time to add an appropriate visa category for these innovators:
“A start-up visa to allow foreign nationals to start businesses and create jobs would be an essential addition to the US immigration system. Because it can be difficult for foreign-born entrepreneurs to stay and grow their business.”
