Fab5 slideshow in english (abridged)
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Model presented local innovation leaders to pool resources to place Tijuana's emerging ecosystem in front of investors across the Americas (targeting Canada, Chile and Colombia), Asia (targeting South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore), the Middle East (the U.A.E., Jordan and Israël) as well as the European Union (targeting Scandinavia, C.H., and BeNeLux).
![Pop-quiz answers (to questions sent to engage listeners)
1.[d] The typical digital marketer uses thirteen tactics, particularly
the social media (87%) and videos (73%).
2.[d] Among purchasing officers, 89% begin their buying research
on line, with 86% relying on social media during the process.
3.[d] Tijuana ranks 27th among Latin American cities for doing
business, including innovation, behind five other Mexican cities.
4.[d] Spending in the U.S. and Canada for digital advertising is
expected to surpass that for television by 2019.
5.[d] Most Americans and Canadians spend more time on the
Smart-phones or tablets than on personal computers.](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
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Fab5 slideshow in english (abridged)
- 1. Digital Platform and Road-map from Tijuana to Tecnojuana
- 2. Pop-quiz answers (to questions sent to engage listeners) 1.[d] The typical digital marketer uses thirteen tactics, particularly the social media (87%) and videos (73%). 2.[d] Among purchasing officers, 89% begin their buying research on line, with 86% relying on social media during the process. 3.[d] Tijuana ranks 27th among Latin American cities for doing business, including innovation, behind five other Mexican cities. 4.[d] Spending in the U.S. and Canada for digital advertising is expected to surpass that for television by 2019. 5.[d] Most Americans and Canadians spend more time on the Smart-phones or tablets than on personal computers.
- 3. Principal Activities of the ‘Fab-5’ 1. Angel Ventures México is establishing a technology ecosystem through investments and aggressive networking on behalf of start-ups. 2. HUB STN is seeking to be a global network node of similar spaces. 3. MIND-Hub has a four month up-or-out investment time horizon. 4. BIT Center has a view into the medium term (up to five years). 5. Endeavor-Baja California is long-term in its perspective.
- 4. Possible Ecosystem in Tijuana Endeavor: Up-up- and-away! BIT: entreprise maturation MIND-Hub: up-and-out incubator HUB STN: idea generation N
- 5. Strategy framework of the U.S. Army in Iraq: End State = where victor wants things to be when he wins Strategy = the general direction of how to get there Tactics = a road-map of implementation Shape (current state) Clear (enemies out) Hold (hearts and minds) Build (consolidate the gains through clinics, etc.) Activities = specifically assigned granular tasks
- 6. Strategy Framework applied to Baja California: End State = Tijuana as “Tecnojuana” Strategy = 1. new sources of investments and talent 2. higher quality, higher volume traffic Tactics = networks in place into targeted areas worldwide digital platform self-sufficient advocacy changes Activities = to be determined
- 7. End State = “Tecnojuana” as a tech axis Advantages of Tijuana 1. doorway to the U.S. from the Pacific Rim 2. deep pool of educated talent in México and Tijuana 3. great working partnership with San Diego (¡Vamos Chargers!) 4. large cluster of maquiladoras (assembly plants) 5. improving infrastructure with recently announced upgrade of port facilities Strategy Framework applied to Baja California:
- 8. Strategy = 1. diversified innovation resources 2. better web-site traffic, more engaged Constraints to overcome: 1. local government gone AWOL 2. too little spent in México on RD&I 3. indifference in the U.S. (except for San Diego) 4. problems of U.S. domination of the T.P.P. 5. depending almost solely on government grants Strategy Framework applied to Baja California:
- 9. Tactics = networks beyond the Americas Preliminary foundation of such a ‘tactical’ network 1. shape communications platform in the short-term 2. clear remove bureaucratic obstacles in the medium-term 3. hold incentives to draw international investors and to facilitate application of info-tech to the maquiladoras in the long-term 4. build free trade agreements with the Pacific Rim (i.e., the T.P.P. without the U.S. or Japan) and the European Union concurrently Strategy Framework applied to Baja California:
- 10. Activities = to be determined and to include, but not be limited to, the following: 1. leverage short and longer term domestic funding sources; 2. create a digital marketing platform with highly targeted solicitation campaigns overseas; 3. delegations to the U.A.E., Scandinavia, Singapore, etc. 4. keep the U.S. and Japan out of the T.P.P.; as well as, 5. maintain strong ties with San Diego Strategy Framework applied to Baja California:
- 11. Product Mix Web site (optimization); Digital branding (campaigns); and, communications (intelligence) affiliated consultant WSI World WSI Partners: Google; HootSuite; Microsoft; HubSpot, Adobe et al. WSI Global Relationships: BMW, DHL, Disney Key Relationships in México: Playboy, Coneval, Hampton Inn-México, Auditoría Superior de la Federación, PricewaterhouseCoopersCUSTOMER
- 12. N.G.O. The Board has a representative from each institution General Partners: [1] BIT Centre [2] Endeavor-B.C. [3] HUB STN [4] MIND Hub Managing Partner ¿INADEM? Managing Partner ¿Angel Ventures MX?
- 14. Capital- raising vehicle $$$ MXN €€€ ¿Maquiladora? Identify and attract entrepreneurs Diversify funding sources Valuing exits for licensing, take- out investments, spin-outs, etc. N.G.O. Digital Platform
- 15. CONCLUSIONS 1. The N.G.O. (public-private non-profit?) sponsors the web-site to mobilize inert intellectual capital by advocating for ‘Tecnojuana’. 2. The digital platform establishes the name in the market of the four pillars of innovation, together with other key stake-holders, as the foundation for ‘Tecnojuana’. 3. The site itself primarily seeks to attract high-impact start-ups to the growing Tijuana ecosystem in an open-ended R.f.P. 4. The site also facilitates financial analysts to ‘discover’ Tijuana as they research investment opportunities in emerging markets. 5. The targeted campaigns work to attract seed investors from other technology hubs.
- 16. Partial Reference List (about a third of the sources) 1. http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/income_expenditures_poverty_wealth/gross_domestic_product_gdp.html 2. http://steveblank.com/2014/09/09/how-to-think-like-an-entrepreneur-the-inventure-cycle/ 3. http://www.statista.com/statistics/270970/number-of-smartphone-users-mexico/ 4. http://mcdigitaltj.blogspot.com/2014/09/tecnojuana-150914-viva-mexico-carta.html 5. http://www.cdt.org.mx/Portals/2/documentos/SIDUE%20PROYECTOS%20ESTRATEGICOS.pdf 6. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/08/05/democratization-of-funding-part-ii-a-closer-look-at-a-few-players-shaping-the-new-crowdfunding-ecosystem/ 7. http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=BERD_INDUSTRY 8. http://barnraisersllc.com/2014/07/surprising-facts-social-selling/ 9. http://www.tijuana.gob.mx/dependencias/tesoreria/PDF/2013/ADSCRIPCION.pdf 10. http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS/countries 11. http://rankings.americaeconomia.com/mejores-ciudades-para-hacer-negocios-2014/ranking/ 12. http://blogs.wsj.com/cmo/2014/03/13/digital-will-surpass-tv-in-ad-spending-by-2018/ 13. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mx.html 14. http://www.toprankblog.com/2014/05/b2b-content-marketing-statistics-2014/ 15. http://www.strategy-business.com/article/12103?rssid=all_updates&gko=ee74a&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+StrategyBusiness- AllUpdates+%28strategy%2Bbusiness+-+All+Updates%29 16. http://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html 17. http://www.descubretijuana.com/es/content/desea-invertir-en-tijuana 18. http://www.sinembargo.mx/27-11-2013/827786 19. http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/nsf99335/measures.htm 20. http://ensenada.net/noticias/nota.php?id=32001 21. http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/rdit1/gross-domestic-expenditure-on-research-and-development/2012/stb-gerd-2012.html#tab-International-Comparisons-of-GERD-as-a- Percentage-of-GDP--R-D-Intensity- 22. http://services.google.com/fh/files/misc/omp-2013-mx-en.pdf 23. http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/8/1/tech-companies-thrivinginsandiegotijuanaborderzone.html 24. http://venturebeat.com/2014/10/04/why-china-will-leapfrog-the-world-in-internet-of-things 25. http://eleconomista.com.mx/tecnociencia/2014/01/29/internet-retoma-crecimiento-mexico
- 17. “The (web-)search is a complicated and evolving art and science, so rather than focussing on specific algorithmic tweaks, we encourage you to focus on delivering the best possible experience for users.” --Amit Singhal (GOOGLE), 2011 ¡GRACIAS! ¿PREGUNTAS?
Editor's Notes
- This platform will NOT be a simple web-site with portals directly into the constituent sites. That would add no value and likely get everybody in trouble with GOOGLE, with the result of sites being excluded from search engine rankings for some period of time. The idea of this platform is to engage people in targeted markets with the concept of “Tecnojuana”. The premise is that, by the time people get to the constituent sites, they are already sufficiently engaged to understand the importance each institution, notwithstanding the relative weakness of their individual sites.
- This was the “waiting page” for people as they came to the webinar. I had sent out a pop-quiz as a way to engage participants and to focus on the agenda on two of the three key topics within the discussion, namely the ascendancy of digital marketing (particularly with respect to mobile) in the B2B and consumer sectors. Rankings for question #3: México City / D.F. (3rd); Monterrey (15th); Guadalajara (18th); Querétaro (19th); and Puebla (20th). NOTE: Querétaro, Puebla and México City are near to each other and are creating a regional cluster in the automotive and aerospace industries.
- Tijuana’s four pillars of innovation: 1. Hub STN, a bi-national entrepreneurial working area, as a laboratory of open innovation and forum for ideas towards product concepts. 2. MIND-Hub, the first government-certified accelerator in NorthWestern México, to flesh out the ideas into “minimum viable products” (i.e., working prototypes) taken to market by start-ups. 3. BIT Centre, a longer-term incubator to nurture start-ups into profitable small-to-medium businesses. 4. Endeavor-B.C. , part of the Endeavor network of Northern California and NYC, to pick the best prospects of the smaller businesses to elevate their trajectory to that of disruptors. NOTE: not a universal path for every start-up. Nevertheless, each basic phase of the ecosystem’s cycle is covered by an institution. As always is the case, most of the entreprises in any particular phase will fail.
- Summary infographic. Inclusion of the National Entrepreneurs Institute (INADEM, for its Spanish acronym) as a possible funding source, under its investment program to support high-impact entrepreneurs. NOTE: The inclusion of INADEM and Angel Ventures represents a hypothetical scheme only and does not reflect any response or preference of the institutions.
- Simple framework that I saw in Iraq and Afghanistan (as a civilian with Department of State, the U.S. Command and USAID) Activities DRIVE tactics ALIGNED with a strategy to ATTAIN the victorious end-state. The sub-text under tactics represents the tactical array for counter-insurgency deployed in Iraq during the surge (on which I have written in the counter-insurgency press). The beauty of this framework is that is simple, clear and flexible. TACTICS: Shape, or gather intelligence to influence the context of the target area; Clear, or eliminate or induce local populace to expel enemies or other obstacles to allegiance toward the government under attack by an insurgency; Hold, or stabilize the security and basic services for the local population; as well as, Build, or cement a permanent allegiance of the local population to the government through elections as well as the construction of infrastructure, hospital and schools, etc.
- How this schema will work toward the conversion of Tijuana into Tecnojuana: END STATE: one of five or six future hubs of the inter-net of things (the integration of mechatronics and info-tech into interactively intelligent manufacturing). STRATEGY: two basic goals of attracting higher quality traffic to the various (and, to some extent, competing) sites and of attracting a deeper pool of talent and investments from diverse sources (beyond México and the U.S.). TACTICS: optimized master web-site as a marketing platform (shape); private financing after the initial investment by INADEM et al. (clear); sustained investment support and deeper global talent pool (hold); as well as, building infrastructure and networks to create a sustainable ecosystem (build). IMPORTANT: results are not guaranteed; there will be risks assumed during every step of the process. Again, INADEM and Angel Ventures represent purely hypothetical sources of short-term funding.
- Current advantages of Tijuana (and Baja California) More engineering graduates produced in México every year than in the United States. $650 million allocated by the state government for infrastructure and innovation in Tijuana; 25-35% for port facilities upgrade (serious gap). 20% of the U.S.-México border industry (i.e., maquiladoras) based in and around Tijuana, especially in medical devices and advanced electronics. Tecnojuana as the door to Latin America and the U.S. for the Pacific Rim , especially if the U.S.A. does NOT join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (T.P.P.). Nevertheless, the return to an 11% tax-rate is not a sustainable solution for the problems facing many maquiladoras. The model is obsolete with the new México. One solution might be to allow tax credits (from 16% to 11% for the first year, reducing by one percentage point each year over five years) for investments to modernize the maquiladoras by using the high-tech and engineering talent readily available in México. This idea would advance Tijuana as a center for the inter-net of things from the standpoint of manufacturing.
- There is a tendency in the government-supported investment and innovation programs toward intellectual autarky. Understandable as México is trying to stanch the bleeding of talent moving overseas. But a better long-run retention bet is attracting talent and investors through special visa programs, targeted fund-raising campaigns and other initiatives. Silicon Valley was created not only by Americans but many Indians and Chinese, while Mexicans are the leading group of professional émigrés there today to maintain its edge in innovation. Never forget 1985/86 when México collapsed under the double-punch of a massive earthquake in México City (or, ‘D.F.’ for Distrito Federal, like ‘D.C.’ in the U.S.) and a long-term crash of oil prices, precipitating a second round of hyper-inflation and the eventual bankruptcy of the Republic. With a global ecosystem in place, Tecnojuana could sustain another ‘worst-case’ scenario. Targeted markets would include the usual suspects (i.e., the great powers like the U.S., Germany, the U.K., Japan and China). Beyond these targets most often mentioned would be smaller countries with high levels of knowledge, a need for engineers and a habit of spending more money, in terms of pesos, on RD&I than México (118 million people). Such countries include Israël (9-13 million people); Sweden (9 million / 25 million for Scandinavia); Switzerland (9 million people); Taiwan (23 million); South Korea (49 million); et al.
- Shape: the master-site will promote Tijuana as “Tecnojuana” and not the specific pillars of innovation; platform premise of engaging users visiting the site and planting in their minds the idea of Tecnojuana before they arrive to a specific site of HUB STN, MIND-Hub, BIT Center or Endeavor-B.C. This narrative or content ‘hook’ places the minds of the user into a disposition of seeing Tijuana as an ecosystem and the specific constituent site, not as a stand-alone entity, but as an integral member of the ecosystem. Clear: establish the short-term funding, perhaps through INADEM (national), Angel Ventures (private) and the state government of Baja California. The local government is all about the maquiladoras. Since Tijuana’s window of opportunity is eighteen months, focus on sources other than the local government. In the medium term, continue with investment funds, like Angel Ventures México, and other private or non-governmental sources. This auto-sufficiency would make the ecosystem less vulnerable to the 1985/86 nightmare blitz. Hold: establishment of a global name in market. A name in market is more than a reputation (i.e., what others say when I leave the room after being a passive participant in the discussion) but less than a brand (an intellectual icon of the logo cutting through BIG DATA). The name in the market is what people say after I have said my piece eloquently and then left the room; some people call it a digital brand, which I believe overstates the power of digital marketing. Since Tijuana has eighteen months and not eighteen years as well as certainly not having eighteen billion dollars to create a brand, the name-in-market is the feasible target for a digital platform. Build: infrastructure of bricks and mortar (e.g., a City of Knowledge) as well as intellect (special talent visas, etc.).
- Tactics to be defined by, and fleshed out with, the tactics. NOTE: proposed roles of INADEM and Angel Ventures are hypothetical. The role envisaged for Angel ventures – or a similar entity like LatAm Fund or Startup-México – would be pivotal. One of the shakeouts looming now (aside from the supposed tech bubble) is a blow-up of some large crowd-funded investment project. When that occurs, most of the investment money will turn out to be “hot money” and disappear. For the chastened investors still in the market, there will be a requirement of eyes-&-feet on the ground for due diligence of projects to be funded. Angel Investors could undertake this role, while filling out the investor roster from its network. Then Angel Ventures would manage the portfolio and the exits of successful portfolio companies. In this structure, Angel Ventures-México would act like a private equity fund and could likely gain similar pricing (5% up front; 2% per year; 20% of the appreciation in value upon exit).
- WSI McDigital is my handle. I am not the tekkie but the relationship partner. The value proposition, like the strategy framework is simple and flexible, from global to local: WSI WORLD is a leading digital marketing agency with more than $160 million of annual billing through more than 1,100 active consultants in 81 countries. Around for as long as the inter-net, WSI is one of the very few (like two or three) global partners with GOOGLE. We also partner closely with leading providers like HubSpot (web) and HootSuite (social media). The first and fourth most recognized brands – GOOGLE and Microsoft – came to WSI to partner with the consortium. WSI-México is based in D.F. and the regional center of excellence for Latin America. It has been operating for seven years with relationships at all levels of the private and public sectors in México. Current clients include projects for CONACYT. WSI-McDigital is the one-man-wonder (i.e., me), based in Tijuana with the mission of bringing WSI-International's global best-practices, together with the cultural touch of WSI-México, to medium and large-sized enterprises in Baja California. Part of my mission, as I negotiated it with WSI-International when I invested in the consortium, was to use these resources to aid in elevating Tijuana’s parochial profile to Tecnojuana’s eventual global stature. Currently, I am re-pivoting more towards traditional institutional relationships. Whatever the direction I chart out, my basic mandate remains the same: to get the message of the customer out in his or her terms, at his or her timing, with his or her unique presence. That mandate is balanced with the technical necessities met to follow through on the WSI commitment. My local practice covers three functional areas: traditional search engine optimization (20-30%); marketing campaigns and branding (30-50%); as well as, intelligence gathering, reputation management and continuous improvement through measurement (30-40%).
- A non-governmental and not-for-profit organization as a public-private partnership under Mexican law and structured as a strategic joint venture of variable capital “with a base in technology”. This permits members to join and leave as necessary and allows for eligibility for special governmental purchasing programs. The N.G.O. would sponsor the web-site, as an entity independent of any partner to de-conflict regulations. This part draws on my incomplete recall of previous work to structure an in-house incubator for a national science center in México. This structure would most likely be revised after careful legal review; it is intended as a preliminary view only. To lock in funding in the short term, each of HUB STN, MIND-Hub, BIT Center and Endeavor-B.C. would have to make an initial investment as a good-faith deposit (i.e., earnest money). The controlling interests of the partnership would accrue to the primary financiers, in this hypothetical case, INADEM and Angel Investors. As the digital marketing campaigns began to attract resources, other sources of funding in the private or non-profit NGO sector would be tapped. One alternative might be to bring additional partners in at a fee to recover the initial investment.
- AdaptiveSEO™ is WSI-lnternational’s new and proprietary product to render web-sites virtually “future proof” (particularly the vagaries of search-engine algorithms). The product leverages the consortium’s weekly collaboration with GOOGLE and BING to protect our most valued relationships from unexpected penalties due to changing algorithms. These search engine algorithms ferret out “black-hat” practices that manipulate search engine criteria to elevate the rankings of sites to levels above where they otherwise should be. Some e-commerce companies have been unduly harmed for continuing practices they did not know had been deemed as “BOZO-no-nos” by GOOGLE. AdaptiveSEO™ seeks also to ramp up the importance, again, of the customer’s message, stated in a manner authentic to the customer. WSI-International also seeks to prevent damage to sites by unethical competitors of the client, who create empty back-links (i.e., spam-links) to a targeted web-site. GOOGLE detects these “spam-links” and expels the victim-site from search-engine results for a period of time (i.e., often long enough to undermine a small-to-medium business). In fact, there are reports of unscrupulous groups extorting money from defenseless smaller companies, lest the latter lose its site’s rankings in GOOGLE. Ironically, while the AdaptiveSEO™ devotes much of its explanation to site optimization, search engine standing is critical but, over time, the least important part of a digital marketing campaign’s success. In actuality, the AdaptiveSEO™ product functions more like the Maslow pyramid of a hierarchy of needs. In the Maslow paradigm of human development, the lower level needs must be fulfilled to realize the next higher level of needs. To place search engine optimization into perspective, it resembles the first two levels (from the bottom, up) of the pyramid: physical and security needs. One can not live long without bread, water and some protection from saber-toothed tigers. Yet (wo)man does not live by bread alone. If eating bread, drinking water and not getting iced from day to day is all one does for 70-80 years, that person’s life is hardly a success, all things being equal. Whence comes such success? From nurturing relationships, mastering higher intellectual and interpersonal skills, as well as developing a unique essence over time, These sources of self-confidence are shared with (or actualized through) other people, thereby winning their recognition. That is just how the AdaptiveSEO™ Works. The relationships come through social media engagement of site visitors; the skills come through measuring and improving of the digital marketing performance; the actualized essence manifests through the content, both on the site and via various digital media (videos, social media, etc.). The measuring and improving includes building the reputation into a sustained name in the market and, hopefully if eventually, into a brand. In the end, S.E.O. is about one-third of the effort while the digital strategies and branding represent two-thirds. In the case of building a platform to aid in the transition from Tijuana to ‘Tecnojuana’, the AdaptiveSEO™ platform would take about two years fully to build out (or ‘actualize’ itself).
- Every activity, as in this example, will be primarily, not exclusively, targeted to a specific audience. The web-site will be technically optimized in the short-term to attract inventors and entrepreneurs from México and beyond to locate in Tijuana. With the funding in place, there would be, in effect, an open Request-for-Proposals for technology entrepreneurs. In the medium-term, targeted campaigns to the usual suspects (¡México does love Mr BIG!) plus niche countries like the BeNeLux trio, Turkey, Jordan, Spain, et al. to create a virtual City of Knowledge, hopefully to be followed by a real one, the members of which would convert over time into investors, entrepreneurs, company heads, etc. The long-term continuous improvement (i.e., measure and improve) would consolidate the reputation of Tijuana into a premier name in the market for Baja California to build toward a global brand with ‘Tecnojuana’. To be sure, each phase would appeal to elements of all audiences targeted; this example plots out the primary focus of each.
- To repeat my role: balancer of the technical and marketing aspects; trustee of customer name in the market; promoter the customer interests within the WSI consortium; and, trouble-shooting consultant. NOTE: the responsibility for creating content for dissemination through various channels would rest on the customer. While, I can contribute and assist, the message must come authentically from the source that really counts for inter-net users: YOU, THE CUSTOMER.
- Frequent questions ¿Munneeee? This plan would be an ambitious investment of approximately $400,000 in the first year and $250,000 annually thereafter. ¿Who supplies the content? ¡We are busy, Nedster! The customer has to do that. If you accepted my discussions involving Tijuana every other week (alternating with discussions on digital marketing) and one of the six institutions mentioned here took a turn for the other weeks, each representative would be responsible for an essay once every quarter. Other information accumulated can be bundled and converted into content to get the message out on a daily or twice-weekly basis and as fodder to engage users through the social media. ¿Why the focus away from the U.S.? “Poor México, so far from God so close to the United States” (except, of course, for San Diego). Neither the U.S. nor Japan should be in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (T.P.P.). ¿Why? The T.P.P. started ten years ago as a common market for smaller and emerging Pacific Rim economies. In this sense, it was meant to be like the European Common Market in the 1950s to help emerging economies (from the devastation of world war). The U.S. had no problem with that. To counterpoise the U.S.S.R. at the time the Common Market was born – as the U.S. claims it is seeking to do with the T.P.P. versus China – the United States established N.A.T.O., as a separate geopolitical alliance for collective security. The same should occur here. If the U.S. and Japan enter the T.P.P., with their likely rigid demands for I.P. protections and other requirements, they will subvert the intent of the treaty of a collective bargaining power with global economic powers. Additionally, without the U.S. and Japan, the T.P.P. can hold the balance of power among the three great powers of the Pacific: China, Japan and the United States. This position will ensure better terms for the participants with each of the powers vying for influence. The U.S. can set up a new-&-improved S.E.A.T.O. for its pivot. (S.E.A.T.O. was the former collective security agreement for Asia during the Viêt Nam War.) Otherwise geopolitics and trade economics will get confused at the expense of the smaller participants (i.e., the intended beneficiaries) of the T.P.P. This arrangement serves México’s interests in general and, to a lesser extent, Baja California’s in particular in several ways. México becomes the first among equals in the T.P.P., cementing the Republic’s status as a newly arriving world economic power. By having the most bi- / multi-lateral free-trade treaties already in place of any nation and by virtue of N.A.F.T.A., México becomes a commercial destination for both the Atlantic and the Pacific Rims. By virtue of its unique position – directly across the ocean from China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan while adjacent to San Diego (bio-tech leader), near Los Angeles (#3 tech hub globally) and one hour by plane from Silicon Valley – Tijuana can emerge as the gateway to / from the Pacific Rim into both the U.S. and Latin America. México avoids alienating China by taking sides in the struggle between China on the one hand and the U.S. and Japan on the other.