Innovation Strategy Blue Icon

Innovation

strategy

CX

strategy

EX

strategy

AI

strategy

4 Reasons Why Design Is Taking Over Silicon Valley

Design Thinking is being used more and more by innovative companies around the world – including technology companies. In a recent article in Fast Company, John Maeda, design partner at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers, says the fortunes of design are on the rise in Silicon Valley. During a presentation at South By Southwest 2015, Maeda argued that not only is Silicon Valley taking design more seriously; design is actually taking over. Here are four key reasons why the most successful tech companies of the future will really be design companies.

MOORE’S LAW NO LONGER CUTS IT.
Maeda said during his presentation, because “Moore’s Law no longer cuts it as the key path to a happier customer” in Silicon Valley. For years, the solution to every problem in tech was to build a faster chip. Now, design—not silicon —is seen as the answer.

START WITH DESIGN, DON’T END WITH IT
With design capturing more and more venture capital dollars, there’s a shift occurring in tech. Before, tech companies saw design as something to spray on a product at the end—think of the generic beige case you might slap a desktop PC into, but increasingly, the companies that are making the biggest splash are integrating design into every product from the beginning, like the Nest smart thermostat.

TECH IS NO LONGER FOR TECHIES
There was a time when tech companies didn’t have to worry about design, because their audiences were techies, just like them. Not only is that no longer true, but the ubiquity of tech has made user interface and experience design more important than ever before.

DESIGNERS ARE IMPORTANT TO STARTUPS
Designers are key to startups and established tech companies alike, Maeda argues. In startups, early hires heavily influence corporate culture, so bringing in designers on the ground floor is hugely important. That’s a fact startups are surely starting to wake up to: designers are now hired at a rate of one to four compared to engineers at tech startups. According to KPCB’s talent partner Jackie Xu, this ratio used to be closer to 1:15 or even 1:30.

You can read the entire article here.

About the Author

Design solutions that shatter assumptions, delight customers, and define growth possibilities sustainably

Related Articles

Get in Touch

Please get in touch if you would like to learn more about this methodology.

Scroll to Top

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Every month we share industry news, updates and more!