Silicon Valley Trip April 2022: The New Momentum

Silicon Valley, a unique place with major cult status and indispensable input for the startup narrative. So we could hardly wait, after two years of pandemic restrictions, to finally be on site again and experience the latest developments live. Together with innovation-scouting teams from Provectus Technologies GmbH, SQL Projekt AG, Beiersdorf & Evolutionplan AG, we headed to San Francisco in April 2022.

Mountain View, California in April 2022, perfect biking weather. When do you ever get the chance to ride from one unicorn HQ to the next? In Palo Alto, no problem, of course! The FUTURE CANDY Silicon Valley trip delivered the startup look and feel as hoped. Agile. Exciting. Pure inspiration. We started at Nonfiction, one of California's trendiest design studios. Led by Phnam & Mardis Bagley, the agency stands for a sustainable mindset combined with intuitive design. Here we learned a lot about the growth potential of UX-based campaigns. Of course, no trip to the Valley goes by without new insights into the development of AR optics. At Rokid Corporation Ltd., our participants could test the company's state-of-the-art AR/VR glasses, from everyday VR goggles in sunglasses format to explosion-proof professional equipment.

Exciting insights awaited the FC team. Founding always has to do with financing too. For startups, that takes special expertise. Lauren Schroeder of Rho, the innovative business-finance service, knows where the pain points lie and how to clear those hurdles. Sandra Miller, CEO of the Runway Innovation Hub, an incubator & accelerator for tech startups, and Christian Litsch showed us how to successfully bridge to the big companies. A chat with Peter M. Jensen, CEO of the investment and cryptocurrency experts RocketFuel, offered a glimpse into the complex financial construct behind the easy lifestyle that the offices' laid-back interior design suggests. Nigerian Fadé Ogunro of BAE (Bookings Africa Electronic Service) embodies the Valley spirit as a techpreneur. The founder and CEO of the African online marketplace BAE inspired all participants with her exciting company story.

To close, the biggest flagship was on the FUTURE CANDY agenda: the venerable Stanford University. With its research, The Farm is also regarded as an essential founder of the IT and high-tech nucleus of Silicon Valley right next door. At Stanford, we spoke with innovation strategist and leadership expert Petra Chequer and one of the Valley's leading legal experts on startup investments and M&A activity, Mark White.

After all these exciting insights, it was time for another real tech experience: autonomous driving. Waymo (the former Google self-driving car project) has made it its mission since its founding in 2009 to offer the safest driving experience. With over 20 million test miles completed, the company is a leader in the mobility of the future.

San Francisco is the city where the future is written. And right now, a new momentum is taking shape here again. After an exodus during the pandemic due to uncertain job markets, home-office rules and extreme rents, the real-estate situation in the trendy California metropolis has changed. Back at a moderate, normal level, rents currently offer room again for creative minds, new founders and visionaries. The Silicon Valley startup landscape, established over three decades, is getting new drive.

We're looking forward to the next FUTURE CANDY Innovation Trip in the fall and are curious about the new dynamics.

Next stop Silicon Valley September 2022

Are you an innovation scout and interested in exploring Silicon Valley together with us? Do you want new insights into the connections between a positive innovation culture and successful digital business models and to visit exciting, innovative startups and institutions like Stanford University?

Then join us in September when we're back in the Valley! Come along on our innovation journey to the epicenter of startup culture, the unique place on San Francisco Bay.

Here you can find the travel information.

We're looking forward to the next Silicon Valley Innovation Trip 2022!