The future is here. What surprises Silicon Valley

Here every day the impossible becomes possible. The Internet and iPhones were invented here, cars with autopilot that carry passengers themselves are already being sold here, and for several years they have been working on a project to send people to Mars. "Forum", by the way, is already писал about the private initiative to colonize Mars and the Russian-speaking participants in this project. In the valley that collects the best brains from all over the world, technological revolutions occur every day. The future is already here, but few people know about it. The Forum found out how they live in Silicon Valley, what they talk about and who they pray to.

- Who would bring me coffee in bed in the morning?

- We need to urgently make such an application! Calling coffee in bed, like Uber!

- Are you sure that he is not there yet?

Such conversations can be heard in the Valley at every corner. Guys with glasses and dented T-shirts for days looking for puzzles and problems, and, having discovered, they begin to solve them with passion. The Valley of Innovations, with its capital in Palo Alto, attracts open-minded minds from all over the world - together they think, experiment, tirelessly create something new. Old-timers of Silicon Valley forecast, which will be greatly enhanced by talented programmers, who were forced to leave Russia. But regardless of nationality, every new person who arrives here quickly joins the game called “Let's make the world better”.

Next - Stanford, recently recognized as the third largest university in the world for the quality of education. Factory for the production of highly skilled professionals. And in some ways even superheroes. Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, co-founder of Yahoo! Jerry Young, HP creators David Packard and Bill Hewlett and 21 Nobel Prize winner.

The main features of graduates are the irresistible desire to help all of humanity, the absence of any framework of what is possible in their heads, inner freedom and a childishly open view of the world. And also - total optimism. They are not afraid of problems here. Here they are carefully looked for. After all, it is by solving problems that something new can be built. And also - to achieve success, find funding, bring your ideas to life and conquer the world with your startup. How to do this, "Forum" already described in detail in the article.

Software developer ArmWarod from Thailand works at Smart Things, a startup that Samsung acquired six months ago. “You just don’t look at problems as problems. Problems - it is an opportunity to come up with a solution ", - he admits.

Arm Varodom. Photos from the personal archive

They want energy from the sun.

One of the main problems over which fight in Silicon Valley is energy saving and alternative energy sources. California - leader in increasing the number of installations of solar panels.

By the end of 2015, by forecast research company IHS, 10% of all electricity produced in the state will be received from solar panels. Writes San Francisco Chronicle“, soon, at the expense of the state, the houses of those residents who cannot afford to buy them will be equipped with solar panels - for these purposes will go the money that California was going to spend on combating global warming. The largest local corporations, including Google and Tesla, are also invested in solar energy.

Andy Crew, a software engineer, put the solar panels at home three years ago. It cost him nearly $ 5 thousand. "Solar panels, at least with current state subsidies, - very profitable investment. Energy from solar panels is cheaper than from any other source. The panels on my roof will pay for themselves in seven years, but their shelf life is 20 years. So, the remaining 13 years, I will pay for electricity in two, and maybe three times less. That is about $ 300 dollars per year, but not $ 1000, as it would be without panels. Soon there will be meters that will allow me to sell the energy that my panels produced, and I did not use, ” - says Andy.

Andy Cru. Photos from the personal archive

In addition, residents of Silicon Valley dream of getting rid of wires and cables. In many coffee shops here it is already possible to charge an iPhone without an outlet, only with the help of a special ring.

And people from Ukraine came up with first pet camcorderwhich can be controlled via the app on a mobile phone.

For them, health is paramount.

Silicon Valley residents are not less concerned with electrical health. People run in the mornings, ride bicycles, hang out in the gym and look for more and more organic products. Many keep chickens in their plots, breed bees. In the center of Palo Alto - huge public gardens, where the locals grow their own food.

From technical innovations that allow to monitor health, in the Valley are popular scales trainer for $ 149. They will not only tell you the weight, but also help you measure pressure, analyze the quality of the air outside, and also instruct you on how much you need to do sports and at what time.

A built-in sensor in the new phone from Samsung, the development of the company's research center in Mountain View, measures the level of stress, pressure and pulse.

They want their home to be smart.

The programmer Arm Varodom from Smart things explores developments that allow you to negotiate with your own home. “Already, you can talk to your house, tell him the names of the guests so that the alarm does not accidentally block them inside. There are also mini surveillance cameras. With their help, the owner, wherever he is, can instantly see what is happening in his house on the screen of his phone. Such a monitor now costs $ 199 and is installed in 30 seconds. We are working to ensure that all components (telephone, home, plasma screen) are interconnected ", - he says.

They have their heroes

Silicon Valley has its heroes. First of all, this is multi-billionaire Elon Musk, creator of Tesla electric vehicles and the SpaceX cosmodrome. Last week he performed at Stanford to a sold out crowd. The whole day everyone around talked only about him and his projects: Tesla with autopilot, rockets that in a hundred years will send humanity to Mars, the Solar City. Musk became a legend after losing millions of dollars in investors' investments in 2008, but managing to find the strength to start over.

Just a few days after Mask’s speech, a biographical book about him was presented at Stanford. The author, journalist Ashley Vance, recognizes: Ilon - Difficult person. Subordinates complain of overload and despotic temper Mask. Known, for example, is the story of how he dismissed the first founder of Tesla Martin Eberhard for violating the deadline. “He can easily pour coffee on the table during a meeting if the coffee is cold,” says a former employee in the book. The journalist justifies this behavior with today's difficult multi-billionaire childhood: “His classmates did not like him very much. He always walked with such a look, as if he knew everything better than anyone. Classmates once even lowered him from the stairs, so much so that Ilon lost consciousness. ”

Nevertheless, the biographer claims, Ilon is a romantic person. “A very funny story happened when Ilon met his second wife, at that time a virgin, in London. They sat in a bar, he showed her videos of rockets and new Tesla models, not to mention that he was the founder and owner of companies. At that time, Ilon was just divorcing his wife. He did not mention this either. But it turned out that his future spouse is the daughter of an employee of the British secret services. And the first thing that dad did when his daughter enthusiastically told about a new acquaintance - checked him in his bases. “Did he tell you that he was married?” Do you know that he has five children? " - he peppered his daughter with questions. Fortunately, Ilon himself spoke about his marital status on the second date. Ilon and Talois got married in 2013 year. His children from their first marriage are probably the only children in the world who complain that they have to spend every weekend at the spaceport ”, - tells Vance.

They launch new startups all the time.

The Valley has very favorable conditions for starting your own business. "Forum" recently told, what startups here consider promising.

Orestes Fernandez in Palo Alto is also developing his own startup. Essence - cleaning the premises on the principle of Uber. Cleaning the client orders through the application, noting the points that specifically need to be put in order. A cleaner (Orestes calls his staff “ambassadors of cleanliness”) can be called on the same day when cleaning is needed. Goes fast and cheap.

Fernandez explains why he decided to start a business in the Valley: “Dating, potential partners are all here. We already have an agreement with the guys from Uber, who help to build an application algorithm. The idea came to me in a dream when I spent the night in one of the local hostels. Usually in hostels it is dirty, because the incoming staff receives payment for the hours of work, and not for concrete actions (to wipe the dust, to wash the floor), and therefore he does not care much about the result. In our company, everything will be focused on the result. I didn't water the flowers — I didn't get the money or I got less. ”

Fernandez constantly tells everyone about his idea, honing and perfecting it in this way. He adores skeptics. - It was they who suggested to him that the visits of such cleaners may be unsafe, and therefore insurance is needed. “The valley is a very prosperous area. It is convenient to start a business here, because everyone wants to help each other. They will listen to you here, and the more you are listened to and asked, the better your idea, your product becomes, ” - ponders Orestes Fernandez.

But with what in the Valley tugovato, so it is with flirting. The first question that was asked at the presentation to the author of the book about Ilona Mask was how the inventor won his wife. “Perseverance, dedication and three rings,” - replied Vance.

IT specialists and programmers are people who are modest, squeezed and spend more time with the computer than with people. That is why, how to get into novels and build relationships is actively discussed here, but in a whisper. Remember the series “The Big Bang Theory” - and you will understand everything.