An interesting trend we're noticing at Stripe: US startups are pulling ahead of their peers elsewhere. These charts show averaged revenue growth for software startups in each location. US startups typically grow somewhat faster than those elsewhere. However, since mid-2023, US companies have accelerated a lot. Interestingly, this is not just because of AI startups: if we strip those out, there's still a big divergence. Our leading hypothesis is that US startups (even those that aren't AI companies as such) are adopting new technologies (AI, stablecoins, etc.) faster than companies elsewhere. (This pattern of faster adoption among US companies was also seen with the internet itself.) Whatever the cause, the pattern is striking. [Methodological note: this pattern appears to hold beyond Europe as well.]
