Joint Venture 2015 Silicon Valley Index

Every year Join Venture puts out a Silicon Valley Index that discusses a variety of topics from the economy to governance and challenges that our region faces. There are always tons of interesting stats in these publications.

Lynn Peithman Stock from the SVBJ has a nice breakdown of how some Silicon Valley stats compare to San Francisco over the last year:

Silicon Valley new jobs: 57,591 (11k up from the previous year)
San Francisco new jobs: 18,499 (4k down from the previous year)

Silicon Valley new patents: 17,000
San Francisco new patents: 1,900

Silicon Valley IPOs: 23
San Francisco IPOs: 5

Silicon Valley startups: 8,600
San Francisco startups: 7,400

Click here to read the entire report (or scroll down for highlights). You can also watch the video briefing below.

Highlights of the 2015 Index include:

Jobs – The number of new jobs grew by 4.1 percent, bringing the region’s job total to nearly 1.5 million. Silicon Valley added 57,951 new jobs between Q2 2013 and Q2 2014; San Francisco added another 18,499 for a total of 76,450 in Silicon Valley and San Francisco.

Investment– Venture capital investments in Silicon Valley and San Francisco shot up, reaching $14.5 billion in the first three quarters of 2014 alone – more than in any other year since 2000. San Francisco’s share was $7.1 billion, a 68 percent spike over 2013. Cleantech venture capital investments increased dramatically as well in 2014, reaching an all-time high of nearly $3.3 billion.

IPOs/M&A – 23 of the 275 U.S. Initial Public Offerings in 2014 were by Silicon Valley companies, three more than the prior year. As of Q3 2014, Silicon Valley was on pace to reach 2013 merger and acquisition activity levels, while San Francisco exceeded the number of deals in 2013 in the first three quarters of 2014 alone. During that time period, there were 560 M&A deals involving Silicon Valley companies, and 403 involving San Francisco companies.

Innovation – The number of Silicon Valley patent registrations continued to rise, reaching 16,975 in 2013 (1,910 more than the previous year). The largest share (40 percent) of the patents was in Computers, Data Processing and Information Storage, with another 24 percent in Communications.

Population – The entire Silicon Valley region (including Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties, Fremont, Union City, Newark and Scotts Valley) grew by nearly 42,000 people between January 2013 and January 2014. During that period of time, Santa Clara County was the fastest growing county in the state at 1.5 percent – nearly twice the growth rate of the state as a whole (0.9 percent) – and a few Silicon Valley cities (Campbell, Milpitas, Foster City and Morgan Hill) grew three to four times faster than the state.

Income – Average annual earnings (including wages and supplements) in Silicon Valley and San Francisco as of Q2 2014 were $116,033 and $104,881, respectively, compared to $96,663 in the nine-County Bay Area, $70,847 in California and $61,489 in the United States. Median household income in 2013 in Silicon Valley was $94,534 and $79,778 in San Francisco.

Housing – Home prices and rental rates continued to rise in 2014, with a median home sale price of $757,585 (7.5 percent higher than 2013 and more than $360,000 higher than the median price throughout the state) and an average rental rate of $2,333 per month (11 percent higher than 2013) in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties.

Commercial space – The amount of approved development hit skyscraper levels in FY 2013-14 to 12.9 million square feet – nearly twice the floor area of the Pentagon, the largest U.S. office building. This amount of net non-residential development is far more than any other year over the last decade, and is 2.6 million square feet more than the last peak in 2004.

Published annually since 1995, the Silicon Valley Index findings are reported in five major sections: People (talent flows and diversity); Economy (employment, innovation and entrepreneurship, commercial space, income); Society (preparing for economic success, early education, arts and culture, quality of health, safety); Place (environment, transportation, land use, housing); and Governance (city finances and civic engagement).

The 2015 Silicon Valley Index is accessible online at www.siliconvalleyindicators.organd may be downloaded from the Joint Venture website at www.jointventure.org.

About Joint Venture Silicon Valley

Established in 1993, Joint Venture provides analysis and action on issues affecting the Silicon Valley economy and quality of life. The organization brings together established and emerging leaders—from business, government, academia, labor and the broader community—to spotlight issues, launch projects and work toward innovative solutions. For more information, visit www.jointventure.org.