There is an active debate in Washington on the appropriate role for government to play in private markets generally, and in technology markets specifically. In order to ground this debate about government’s role in the future, Commonweal Ventures conducted a novel analysis of government’s historic impact on technology markets in the past.
Today, Commonweal is publishing our white paper titled American Tech: How Government Investment Drives the Early-Stage Technology Market
In this white paper, we identify the seven primary ways that governments intervene in technology markets, and analyze those instances in which government investment meaningfully contributed to the development of successful venture-backed companies.
Crucially, we find that government intervention drove 24% of all venture-backed unicorn outcomes during the period from 2003-2023. Our analysis provides empirical support for the powerful positive role that government at all levels plays in the innovation ecosystem. It also suggests the power of government partnership to unlock value for early-stage technology companies.
