] Our methodology was simple. We examined 1303 electronic
] high-tech initial public offerings for a 10-year period
] ending in 2002. We limited ourselves to IPOs from the New
] York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, which were ground zero
] for the telecom and dot-com explosion of the 1990s. We
] sorted out those that were VC-funded and compared them
] with those that were not. We rated them on a scale of 1
] to 5, with 1 being the most technically innovative. [See
] sidebar, "Scoring Innovation."]
]
] We were shocked by what we found. Overall, the level of
] innovation during that decade was surprisingly low. Even
] more dismaying, it did not correlate well with VC
] funding: the level of innovation actually dropped sharply
] after 1996, even as venture funding was going through the
] roof.

Feature Article: VC doesn't drive innovation.