Which I think is the major point the author missed, the german IT industry itself is in denial for a long time now. Its not even the question why can't Germany create any major internet company like Facebook or Slack, its: "Slack has no value to me", I don't understand why people use Facebook/Whatsapp at all... These are the majority in the industry and block any real innovation at the earliest possible moment.
Only if you buy into the idea that Slack (or Facebook) have any value in the first place. You can say "You're wrong to disagree", but ..
I do believe that Germany has issues, mostly governmental (setting up a company, taxes, bureaucracy) and there _is_ a certain lack of cultural support for moving fast / start-up culture. Having lived in Germany for most of my life, a year in Tel Aviv and being in Singapore now: Tel Aviv and Singapore have a thriving scene of people that want to start their own company. The places in Germany I've called home never felt that way.
But this article? It seems rather pointless to me. Just like Slack. Or Facebook. :)
