The place-based nature of technological innovation: the case of Sophia Antipolis

The article looks at the case of the French technopole known as ‘‘Sophia Antipolis’’. After a brief description of the history and main dimensions of Sophia Antipolis, we look at the everyday life of social relations in the technopole. We argue that the everyday life of social relations in Sophia Antipolis, such as community life and living choices of the workers, are poorly developed and this may affect negatively the economic life of the technopole. Finally, in the conclusion, we compare Silicon Valley’s model with Sophia Antipolis and we highlight similarities and differences.