When “Silicon Valley” debuted on HBO a year ago, techies were anticipating a series that spoke to them in a way no other show has before — complete with plenty of inside jokes and industry jargon. And the response to the Mike Judge sitcom, which follows six young guys trying to get their startup off the ground, has been pretty polarized. Some say the half-hour comedy cleverly pokes fun at South Bay culture, while critics say it’s simply not harsh enough to be considered satire, and fails to lampoon the obvious elements just begging to be mocked. Others just can’t bear to watch it because truthfully, it hits just a little too close to home: After all, the last thing some entrepreneurs want to to do after a long workday is watch people pitch VCs and debate whether or not to sell their company.
Regardless of whether you're amused by the brogrammers, the references to real-life tech rockstars and cameos from the likes of the Winklevoss twins, if you work in the tech industry, there are bound to be some elements that will ring pretty accurate. But as Season 2 of "Silicon Valley" on HBO continues tonight, we wondered: if this show were reimagined to be about Boston tech entrepreneurs, how would the plot, the characters, and the overall tone of it change?
We talked to a handful of local tech veterans to get their take.
Is this a legit depiction of the tech world?
TJ Parker, CEO of PillPack, is a fan of the show: "I’m a big believer in laughing at yourself, and there aren’t many things intrinsically funnier than the characters parading around the startup scene."
So is Codeship co-founder and CEO Moritz Plassnig, and he says the basic elements of “Silicon Valley” are all pretty accurate, with some exaggeration — but that's to be expected in this type of comedic television.
“You’ve got a bunch of hustling nerds trying to build a great product that are not interested in selling out,” he told me in an email. “And a lot of unanswered questions. Great tech but not a clear go-to market or traction strategy.”
Allan Telio, VP and director of Startup Institute, added that the characters on "Silicon Valley" feel very authentic: “I've worked with some of those people.”
“I love the last episode because I think they did a great job highlighting the issues around raising an A round,” Telio told me. “The show did a good job capturing the problem with runaway valuations and why that can really hurt a business. I actually think this is one of the differences between East Coast and West Coast VCs. Boston VCs are often blamed for being too conservative. The counter argument for that is that they are actually being sensible and trying to keep the cap table under control so everyone can have a good exit.”
Philip Beauregard, co-founder and CEO of Objective Logistics (and a co-founder of Rekindle, recently acquired by HubSpot), watches “Silicon Valley” whenever he gets the chance. But he says it's like “South Park” — viewers have to take a lot of it with a grain of salt.
“There are very real, if not slightly hyperbolic, scenarios that abound in the program,” he told me. “I found myself hysterically laughing at Erlich Bachman’s 'negotiating tactics' – i.e. act obnoxious to a VC and they’ll want you all the more. The scene where the founder of Pied Piper is questioning another CEO who had his company swept out from under him (and made nothing off of a $200M “failure” of an acquisition) if he maybe could have taken less money at a lower valuation was fantastic. The other founder, incredulous, shot back ‘wait, like, we could have taken LESS money?’”
What would the show be like if it were based in Boston?
According to Telio, this sitcom would inherently be dramatically different if it took place in The Hub because our city isn't quite as cutthroat of an environment.
“Boston's economy isn't based 100 percent on tech,” he said. “We have a vibrant and diverse economy (Biotech, pharma, Ed, tech, etc, non-profits, etc.). In the Valley, it is basically all tech all the time. It's how people live. You can't throw a rock without hitting someone involved in tech...in fact, I am pretty sure someone in the Valley is making a rock throwing app as we speak.”
Plassnig pointed out some other crucial distinguishing factors, noting that if a show like “Silicon Valley” took place in Boston, the show would “have worse weather, less big launch parties, more traveling involved and a more closely knit startup community.”
"If it were set in Boston and not the Valley, Erlich wouldn't be a wannabe branding guru and former one-hit-wonder founder,” added NextView Ventures VP of platform Jay Acunzo. “He'd be an overly academic type who was forced out of the MIT Media Lab but still adds an opinion to every discussion that starts, ‘You know, when I was at the MIT Media Lab...’"
Oh, and that massive VC party at the Giants' AT&T Park in the Season 2 opener? Acunzo says that would more likely be a trip to the Vineyard or Nantucket. Or, honestly, a coffee meetup at Voltage.
"There would be a lot more male patterned baldness, shittier weather, lower valuations, and a general saltiness of founders grumbling about playing second fiddle to Silicon Valley."
As for all those frequent jokes at the expense of Snapchat and Google — Acunzo made a valid point: What firms would they be targeted at in Boston? TripAdvisor? Wayfair? HubSpot?
“They all kinda seem like nice, quiet folks, at least publicly,” he said. “Alright, let's take five until DraftKings gets where it's going. We need material.”
Still, Acunzo was adamant that the Boston version of this show would be about the same exact product.
“Because in what world is Pied Piper's techie, afraid-to-admit-I-still-don't-get-what-they-do product a hot Valley product and NOT a business proudly built in Boston? If it was set here, we'd get Pied Piper, and they'd get a fictional messaging app called Sup Dog ($20 million offer at $100 million pre).”
Beauregard was a little more blunt in his analysis.
"Were 'Silicon Valley' to be filmed in Boston I think there would be a lot more male patterned baldness, shittier weather, lower valuations, and a general saltiness of founders grumbling about playing second fiddle to Silicon Valley."
And Parker is confident the series wouldn't have stayed in The Hub for long at all: "They would’ve moved to Silicon Valley by the end of season 2."
Silicon Valley sign via Shutterstock.
