It won't be like before: why Silicon Valley is losing its significance

It feels like there's an alumni reunion going on in Silicon Valley right now. The U.S. is lifting covid-19 restrictions , and IT pros who haven't seen each other in ages are cheering each other up. Almost all companies (from Alphabet to Zynga) encourage employees to come to work in the office. VCs are returning from their Lake Tahoe homes or Wyoming ranches. Foreigners, who were outnumbered by unicorns in San Francisco during the pandemic, can again be spotted south of Market Street, with many startups valued at over $1 billion setting up offices there.

The people haven't changed, but the place seems different. The Economist correspondent, who spent a total of 12 years in San Francisco, including the pandemic, believes many returnees will feel like strangers. This is not because everyone suddenly became obsessed with blockchain technology (which is true), and not because the valley has reached its peak (which is not). Silicon Valley has changed, and not just because of the pandemic.