A list of factors that act(ed) as drag on the European Tech/Startup scene

The author lists factors that, in their experience, pushed the European tech and startup scene onto a different trajectory from Silicon Valley, with some factors now less pronounced and others potentially fixable. Cultural risk aversion is cited, including insolvency rules that bar founders from starting another company for years and a labor market with sluggish job creation. Market fragmentation is central: the largest European market, Germany, has 80m people against the US's 340m, and fragmented capital markets produce smaller IPOs and more cautious early-stage investing. The list also names the lack of a DARPA-style funder for risky research, poor employee stock option legislation, EU directives implemented differently by each country, and Germany's exit tax on angel investors.