[TechConnext Summit] 10 Facts: A Peek Into the Valley
by Safon Floyd

August 25, 2015

[TechConnext Summit] 10 Facts: A Peek Into the Valley

As Black Enterprise readies to venture to Silicon Valley for the very first TechConneXt Summit, presented by AT&T and Intel, we thought it fit to share a little about Silicon Valley to demystify “the far off land where tech stuff happens.”

There are many underlying facts about Silicon Valley that you may not know. BlackEnterprise.com is here to help you with that. Check out these 10 facts to get the gist as you prepare to see it all for yourself at the BE TechConneXt Summit, Monday October 12 – October 13 in Santa Clara, California.

[Related: (Part I) Veteran Tech CEOs Tell Stories of Bias in Silicon Valley]

  1. The term ‘Silicon Valley’ usually refers to the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay Area, the Santa Clara Valley in California.
  2. The valley is named Silicon because silicon is used for semiconductors in microprocessors.
  3. The mouse was invented in Silicon Valley in 1963.
  4. Silicon Valley is home to many of the commonly known top tech-companies, including Apple, Google, Facebook, Intel, Yahoo!, Twitter, Netflix, LinkedIn, Hewlett-Packard, Cisco Systems, Oracle and many others.
  5. 300 out of 1000 workers in Silicon Valley are employed in the IT sector.
  6. Average salaries in Silicon Valley range from $16,000 to $200,000 per year.
  7. African Americans represent 2% or less of the workforce at most of the major tech companies in Silicon Valley, including Google, Yahoo!, Facebook, and Apple.
  8. Only 9% of executive officers in Silicon Valley are women.
  9. Silicon Valley has the second highest concentration of wealthy people in the nation.
  10. Black Enterprise will permeate Silicon Valley in 2 months on a mission to accelerate diverse corporate recruitment and access capital and membership for tech entrepreneurs.

There is much more to learn to get you in the loop. Join Black Enterprise at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara, Santa Clara, California for the TechConneXt Summit whether you’re looking to launch a career in tech, interested in tech entrepreneurship, or simply looking for fresh opportunities. Register now.

For more information on the TechConneXt Summit visit https://blackenterprise.com/events/techconnext/. Follow @blackenterprise on Twitter for updates and tech news.  


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