Northern California is home to one of the greatest and stealthiest revolutions in the history of mankind. Getty
Northern California is home to one of the greatest and stealthiest revolutions in the history of mankind. Getty

Book review: Troublemakers offers a riveting look back on the early days of Silicon Valley



In 1968, the Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm introduced his groundbreaking study, Industry and Empire, by remarking that "the Industrial Revolution marks the most fundamental transformation of human life in the history of the world recorded in written documents".

It is difficult to imagine a scholar who might wish to quibble with Hobsbawm's characterisation of that epoch. Yet as he was composing his words, and as he could not reasonably have been expected to intuit at the time, in a quiet corner of California an array of technologically-minded savants were starting to assemble modes of analysis, communication and production that would inaugurate a social transformation, the effects of which would prove at least – if not more – as profound than anything Hobsbawm found in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.  

The world of which the British historian wrote was one in which machinery was starting to assist, replace, and in some ways, liberate mankind. Yet at the very moment Hobsbawm chose to chronicle that transition, another development – of equal, if not greater, magnitude – was beginning to establish itself. The results, broadly, are what we now know today as the “internet age”. And here are how things look in this era.

The email in which I have filed this article to be printed here will be one of more than 200 billion sent every day. In the time it has taken me to write that sentence, more than 400 hours of video content will have been uploaded to YouTube. The video-game industry is now larger than the movie business.

Five companies enable this extraordinary activity and revenue, and they are five of the six most valuable organisations on the planet. Three of them are based in Silicon Valley, California. And in addition to revolutionising contemporary forms of recreation, communication and commerce, they have transformed the nature of employment and trade.

The so-called high-tech sector now accounts for 9 per cent of employment in the United States. It generates 17 per cent of gross domestic product, 60 per cent of US exports, and facilitates a biotech industry valued – in the US alone – somewhere in the region of $325 billion (Dh1,193 billion).

The subjects of Hobsbawm’s great study were horrified and in many instances, impoverished, by the advent of mechanised forms of production. The advent of computerised automation in the US has now reduced the number of citizens engaged in manufacturing-based employment to just under 10 per cent of the population.

Meanwhile, it is estimated that the electronics and manufacturing equipment industry spends up to $60 million each year. Online social networks are used and abused to perform geopolitical manipulation, further impoverishing and endangering a global populace that is impoverished and endangered anyway.

And yet in some weird masochistic deference to these deprivations, 46 per cent of Americans say they are unable to live without their smartphones, and a third of adults claim they would rather deny themselves a meaningful personal relationship than a few dopamine-inducing clicks on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

Given these extraordinary calculations, and adding to them the experience we all have had of the tyrannies (and yes, the benefits) that the advent of "connectivity" has had on our lives, it now seems urgent to find a way of establishing how our lives could have been so stealthily and comprehensively revolutionised. Or, as the biographer and behavioural scientist Leslie Berlin puts it – with characteristic mildness – in the introduction to Troublemakers, Silicon Valley's Coming of Age, "it makes sense to ask how we got here".

In pursuit of this question, Berlin opens her perceptive and energetic study of the beginnings of Silicon Valley with the nauseating advertising copy that was Apple’s auto-hagiography of 1997: “Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers... They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can can change the world, are the ones who do.” Yuck.

But, to be fair, Berlin is not so much concerned with this miserably ersatz radicalism. Rather, she wants to understand the steps that led to it. Accordingly, she devotes her attention to telling the story of the “generational hand-off” that took place between the late 1960s and the early 1980s, “as pioneers of the semiconductor industry passed the baton to younger up-and-comers”. In constructing this narrative, Berlin introduces us to seven relatively unknown figures whose activities in the period proved momentous.

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We meet Bob Taylor, who “kick-started the precursor to the internet, the Apranet, and masterminded the personal computer”. We are granted table time with Apple’s first chairman, Mike Markkula, who had an ownership equal to that of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak but of whom we hear little today.

Al Alcorn joins the party as the figure who "designed the first wildly successful video game", in the form of Atari's Pong. Fawn Alvarez turns up and brings with her the example of a woman who was able to rise from the position of an assembler on a factory line to that of the the luxuriously be-chaired executive. Then the early software entrepreneur Sandra Kurtzig arrives, and we are acquainted with the tale of the first woman to take a technology company public.

Berlin chooses to focus on these individuals not simply because of their achievements, but because of who they are. And in this she succeeds admirably. Her analyses of her subjects’ lives and achievements are careful, enlightening, fair and entertaining.

Occasionally her book pays insufficient attention to the behaviour of the more gruesome figures – one thinks of William Shockley, authority on semiconductors – who inhabit the unhappier corners of her narrative. But on the whole Troublemakers offers a riveting, surprising and intelligent account of a period of history that is at least as momentous as that which was chronicled by Hobsbawm half-a-century ago. His was a subject that transformed the world. Berlin helps to show why hers is too.

Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The lowdown

Badla

Rating: 2.5/5

Produced by: Red Chillies, Azure Entertainment 

Director: Sujoy Ghosh

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Amrita Singh, Tony Luke

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

A MINECRAFT MOVIE

Director: Jared Hess

Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa

Rating: 3/5

The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

The lowdown

Bohemian Rhapsody

Director: Bryan Singer

Starring: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee

Rating: 3/5

LA LIGA FIXTURES

Friday (UAE kick-off times)

Levante v Real Mallorca (12am)

Leganes v Barcelona (4pm)

Real Betis v Valencia (7pm)

Granada v Atletico Madrid (9.30pm)

Sunday

Real Madrid v Real Sociedad (12am)

Espanyol v Getafe (3pm)

Osasuna v Athletic Bilbao (5pm)

Eibar v Alaves (7pm)

Villarreal v Celta Vigo (9.30pm)

Monday

Real Valladolid v Sevilla (12am)

 

The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

On sale: Now

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

How to apply for a drone permit
  • Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
  • Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
  • Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
  • Submit their request
What are the regulations?
  • Fly it within visual line of sight
  • Never over populated areas
  • Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
  • Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
  • Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
  • Should have a live feed of the drone flight
  • Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
At a glance

Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.

 

Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year

 

Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month

 

Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30 

 

Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse

 

Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth

 

Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances

In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013 

Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

While you're here

Tottenham's 10 biggest transfers (according to transfermarkt.com):

1). Moussa Sissokho - Newcastle United - £30 million (Dh143m): Flop

2). Roberto Soldado - Valencia -  £25m: Flop

3). Erik Lamela - Roma -  £25m: Jury still out

4). Son Heung-min - Bayer Leverkusen -  £25m: Success

5). Darren Bent - Charlton Athletic -  £21m: Flop

6). Vincent Janssen - AZ Alkmaar -  £18m: Flop

7). David Bentley - Blackburn Rovers -  £18m: Flop

8). Luka Modric - Dynamo Zagreb -  £17m: Success

9). Paulinho - Corinthians -  £16m: Flop

10). Mousa Dembele - Fulham -  £16m: Success

Hamilton profile

Age 32

Country United Kingdom

Grands Prix entered 198

Pole positions 67

Wins 57

Podiums 110

Points 2,423

World Championships 3

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

MATCH INFO

FA Cup final

Chelsea 1
Hazard (22' pen)

Manchester United 0

Man of the match: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)

Milestones on the road to union

1970

October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

1971

March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.

September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5