The Government Is Becoming the Startup's Customer of Last Resort
By Tanvir Newaz
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Who finances technologies that markets aren't patient enough to build?
Government is becoming the bridge between technological invention and commercial viability.
Fusion may require decades. Defense budgets can fund strategic technologies before consumer markets are ready. The same logic applies to AI, drones, robotics, nuclear technology, space, quantum, advanced manufacturing, and energy.
The government becomes more than regulator. It becomes: customer + investor + infrastructure partner + strategic buyer.
Silicon Valley's next big investor isn't venture capital. It's the State.
