Over the past few centuries, the world has experienced pivotal revolutions changing the way people consume, produce, and work. The Industrial Revolution of the 1700-1850’s was the catalyst for the advancement of the world’s economy from the dark ages to the modern era. We now live in a time following another revolution, restructuring the world dynamic and propelling us further forward as a more cohesive society, the technological revolution.
The technological revolution began in the 1950’s and held its course, establishing itself in the mainstream by the late 1990’s with the mass adoption of the world wide web. The introduction of such technologies saw its adopting countries shoot forward into economic prosperity, with a dramatic increase in productive efficiency and communication.
The graph below shows a comparison of the growth in labour productivity between the years of electrification and information technology. The blue line shows that information technology holds similar growth prospects as electrification did centuries ago.
So how is this related to my research? I’m glad you asked. Thailand’s economy has historically been backed by its agricultural sector and recently (in the past 20 years) has shifted its focus towards the technology sector. With success stories such as Silicon Valley and China, Thailand has seen great potential in the current market for the production of computers and integrated circuits, now making up the majority of its export composition. So naturally, I want to investigate the effect this shift from agriculture to technology has had on the economy, analysing changes in key economic indicators such as GDP per capita and Net Exports through a VAR Regression Analysis. Below is a concept map outlining the aspects of the Thai economy I intend on exploring into deep detail.
I feel as if this line of research will play to my strengths as I have always been intrigued by the tech industry’s contribution to the economy and I feel comfortable with the VAR regression analysis required for this study. Articulation and concise writing will be the main skills I have to work on during the research process to present the best report possible.
I will post periodically to check in with how my project is progressing, and update you on my experiences in Thailand and Laos.
But for now, more data mining…
Economic Adaptation 
Hi Tom,
I love your concept map and I have been doing additional research on the Silicon Valley in China. One thing that worries me is that although China and Thailand are geographically neighbours they each hold extreme unique culture. I wonder if these factors would impact success?
Thailand is one of the big agriculture exporters in the world, and China being the birthplace of innovation and gadget makers. China has already dominated the market as the biggest worldwide exporter of tech-products such as Apple. Although indefinitely the world is shifting into the next era is there enough space for Tech in Thailand? Or will they be shot down trying in this aggressive market.
Another aspect to consider is the entrepreneurs or seniors as the backbone to lead a successful change. Silicon Valley has extremely skilled and talented individuals Ben Hu and his ex-Google partners.
This article suggests over wise and that exporting technology in Thailand may boost trade.
https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/the-relative-importance-of-trade-vs-fdi-led-economic-growth-in-thailand/198806
I have found some sources that may be useful for further research:
The first about Silicon Valley commercialisation strategies of technology
https://www-scopus-com.ezproxy.uow.edu.au/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-77954087607&origin=resultslist&sort=plf-f&src=s&st1=thailand&st2=technology&searchTerms=silicon+valley%3f%21%22*%24&sid=953f51236b4fd773dd26892fc3a3cff4&sot=b&sdt=b&sl=88&s=%28TITLE-ABS-KEY%28thailand%29+AND+TITLE-ABS-KEY%28technology%29AND+TITLE-ABS-KEY%28silicon+valley%29%29&relpos=0&citeCnt=29&searchTerm=
The second is similar but focuses more so on Silicon Valley as a model of venture capital financing
https://www-scopus-com.ezproxy.uow.edu.au/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-70350046725&origin=resultslist&sort=plf-f&src=s&st1=thailand&st2=technology&searchTerms=silicon+valley%3f%21%22*%24&sid=953f51236b4fd773dd26892fc3a3cff4&sot=b&sdt=b&sl=88&s=%28TITLE-ABS-KEY%28thailand%29+AND+TITLE-ABS-KEY%28technology%29AND+TITLE-ABS-KEY%28silicon+valley%29%29&relpos=1&citeCnt=0&searchTerm=
Despite the aggressive market in my brief search of Silicon Valley, there are now competitors from private firms who have grown exponentially over $1 billion in value. These firms have been crowned ‘unicorns’ for succeeding the competitive market. Will Thailand be the next unicorn at Economical Adapting Technology?
https://www.scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2106494/where-chinas-silicon-valley
I am extremely intrigued to find out.
– Buddy Amy
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