--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Internet didn't get invented on its…" description: "\"The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet. The ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg" --- # The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government… ![“The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet. The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together.” quote by Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg) > “The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet. The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together.” [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Collaboration between government and private sector fuels technological progress, combining individual initiative with collective effort. **In simple terms:** Innovation needs both personal drive and teamwork. Key Takeaway Balance solo effort with collaboration. Themes innovation government collaboration Mood optimistic reflective Type political inspirational When to use this quote - startup funding - policy making - research labs Key Concepts public policy entrepreneurship technology development Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure fair sharing of benefits? - What policies best support joint innovation? A Different Perspective Government role can be controversial. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Created Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/created-internet-1797956/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Initiative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/initiative/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Internet Companies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet-companies-685460/) [Internet Didn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet-didn-610237/) [Invented Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invented-government-5704261/) [Making money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-money/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Research Created](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research-created-2762466/) [Succeed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/succeed/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) ## Related quotes > [Well, another market is being created now out of Internet technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/well-another-market-is-being-created-now-out-of-internet-technology/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Focus group research has created a composite No-Man who resembles no-one anyone has ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/focus-group-research-has-created-a-composite-no-man-who-resembles-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Chinese government still would like to see U.S. Internet companies explore the Chinese market, providing they are willing to abide by Chinese law.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-li/the-chinese-government-still-would-like-to-see-u-s-internet-companies/) [Robin Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-li/) > [I would say the consumer Internet companies - in a lot of ways, if you go inside the consumer Internet companies and you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-say-the-consumer-internet-companies-in-a-lot-of-ways-if-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Compared to Apple, Internet companies like Google and Facebook don't have strong perspectives on the way they want the world to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/om-malik/compared-to-apple-internet-companies-like-google-and-facebook-don-t/) [Om Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/om-malik/) > [I'd rather people talked about the 1,000 most successful French Internet companies instead of the 5 or 10 faces we already know - including mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xavier-niel/i-d-rather-people-talked-about-the-1-000-most-successful-french/) [Xavier Niel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xavier-niel/) > [I have been quoted saying that, in the future, all companies will be Internet companies. I still believe that. More than ever, really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-grove/i-have-been-quoted-saying-that-in-the-future-all-companies-will-be/) [Andy Grove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-grove/) > [ICG wasn't an index fund so much as a collection of venture-capital investments focused on so-called business-to-business Internet companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-lashinsky/icg-wasn-t-an-index-fund-so-much-as-a-collection-of-venture-capital/) [Adam Lashinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-lashinsky/) > [When there were not very many Internet companies, the supply of Internet companies to the market was small and the appetite for them was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-wilson/when-there-were-not-very-many-internet-companies-the-supply-of/) [Fred Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-wilson/) > [Yahoo to me, as the founder of a company, is one of the biggest opportunities you could have; it's one of those classic Internet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-d-aloisio/yahoo-to-me-as-the-founder-of-a-company-is-one-of-the-biggest/) [Nick D'Aloisio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-d-aloisio/) > [Big Internet companies on average are capable of generating revenue of $1 million per employee, and that compares to 10 to 20 percent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuri-milner/big-internet-companies-on-average-are-capable-of-generating-revenue/) [Yuri Milner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuri-milner/) > [“A.G. Riddle spent ten years starting and running internet companies before retiring to focus on his true”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-g-riddle/a-g-riddle-spent-ten-years-starting-and-running-internet-companies-2/) [A.G. Riddle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-riddle/) > [If we didn't have Net neutrality, carriers could do things like penalize companies that use a lot of bandwidth or create high-speed lanes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-lyons/if-we-didn-t-have-net-neutrality-carriers-could-do-things-like/) [Daniel Lyons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-lyons/) > [On the Internet, companies are scale businesses, characterized by high fixed costs and relatively low variable costs. You can be two sizes: You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bezos/on-the-internet-companies-are-scale-businesses-characterized-by-high/) [Jeff Bezos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bezos/) > [Our belief is that it is a basket of well-diversified companies that are playing the Internet, but are not direct Internet companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-zimmerman/our-belief-is-that-it-is-a-basket-of-well-diversified-companies-that/) [John Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-zimmerman/) ## More by Barack Obama > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-peaceful-transition-of-power-is-one-of-the-hallmarks-of-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [As opposed to getting into arguments about, well, these folks have been treated fairly so now we're going to be doing things that, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/as-opposed-to-getting-into-arguments-about-well-these-folks-have-been/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Donald Trump is temperamentally unfit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/donald-trump-is-temperamentally-unfit/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [What we've said to the girls is: 'If you guys ever decide that you're going to get a tattoo, then mommy and me will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/what-we-ve-said-to-the-girls-is-if-you-guys-ever-decide-that-you-re/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Nobody is listening to your telephone calls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/nobody-is-listening-to-your-telephone-calls/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [All of us take offense to anyone who reaps the rewards of living in America without taking on the responsibilities of living in America.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/all-of-us-take-offense-to-anyone-who-reaps-the-rewards-of-living-in/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The world is complicated and full of grays, but there's still truth there to be found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-world-is-complicated-and-full-of-grays-but-there-s-still-truth/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ That is another theme in the book \[Dreams from My Father\]. How do we exercise more empathy in our public discourse? How do we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-another-theme-in-the-book-dreams-from-my-father-how-do-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I can say across Europe that many principles that have been taken for granted here around free speech, and around civil liberties and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-can-say-across-europe-that-many-principles-that-have-been-taken-for/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I want to thank the Greek people publicly for their humanitarian response to the crisis of so many migrants and refugees seeking safety in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-want-to-thank-the-greek-people-publicly-for-their-humanitarian/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [We had a farewell dinner for some of my senior staff, and generally everybody likes to talk about how cool I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-had-a-farewell-dinner-for-some-of-my-senior-staff-and-generally/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ It's good to get fresh legs in \[the White house\]. I think that it refreshes our democracy. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/it-s-good-to-get-fresh-legs-in-the-white-house-i-think-that-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Believe it or not, entertainment is part of our American diplomacy, it is part of what makes us exceptional, part of what makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/believe-it-or-not-entertainment-is-part-of-our-american-diplomacy-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) [Explore all 3,624 Barack Obama quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More Company quotes > [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [Subsequent to the original Quicken, the whole idea that we, as a consumer products company, could actually make business products, that was a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/subsequent-to-the-original-quicken-the-whole-idea-that-we-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The system in Germany is different, as you sign up with a company for two or three years, and you work exclusively with them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wlaschiha/the-system-in-germany-is-different-as-you-sign-up-with-a-company-for/) [Tom Wlaschiha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wlaschiha/) > [I've discovered special makeup by a company called M.A.C. You could wear it on the surface of the sun and it wouldn't move.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-smith/i-ve-discovered-special-makeup-by-a-company-called-m-a-c-you-could/) [Robert Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-smith/) > [I'm also the chairman of the board of Symantec, which is the world's largest cybersecurity - software cybersecurity company.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-schulman/i-m-also-the-chairman-of-the-board-of-symantec-which-is-the-world-s/) [Dan Schulman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-schulman/) > [If you choose to work at a larger company over a smaller company, you are more likely to be higher paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-sweet/if-you-choose-to-work-at-a-larger-company-over-a-smaller-company-you/) [Julie Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-sweet/) > [The undisciplined child enters into discipline by working in the company of others; not being told he is naughty.” “Discipline is, therefore, primarily a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-undisciplined-child-enters-into-discipline-by-working-in-the/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Many companies have long contended that stress in the home causes productivity loss in the market place.. and it does. But research now reveals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/many-companies-have-long-contended-that-stress-in-the-home-causes/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [My first company, Pure Software, was exciting and innovative in the first few years and bureaucratic and painful in the last few before it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-hastings/my-first-company-pure-software-was-exciting-and-innovative-in-the/) [Reed Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-hastings/) > [I won contest after contest until finally I realized, "Ok, I am the best in the world, but now what?" So I opened my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-hosoi/i-won-contest-after-contest-until-finally-i-realized-ok-i-am-the-best/) [Christian Hosoi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-hosoi/) > [To become a classical ballerina, you have to move to New York when you're 12 or 11 and that becomes your life. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-garner/to-become-a-classical-ballerina-you-have-to-move-to-new-york-when-you/) [Jennifer Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-garner/) > [Companies are not charitable enterprises: They hire workers to make profits. In the United States, this logic still works. In Europe, it hardly does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-samuelson/companies-are-not-charitable-enterprises-they-hire-workers-to-make/) [Paul Samuelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-samuelson/) > [I don't think that a company should own a studio and the network, and program for their own network. It hurts the creativity -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-bakula/i-don-t-think-that-a-company-should-own-a-studio-and-the-network-and/) [Scott Bakula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-bakula/) > [Antidepressants are the biggest fraud in the world. Number one, Prozac gives you a royal soft-on like you wouldn't believe, and number two you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-evans/antidepressants-are-the-biggest-fraud-in-the-world-number-one-prozac/) [Robert Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-evans/) > [Live always in the best company when you read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/live-always-in-the-best-company-when-you-read/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) [Browse all 8,710 Company quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet. The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Barack Obama" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its-own-government-research/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Company" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its-own-government-research/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f71/barack-obama-17_company_the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its_727319.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Internet didn't get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the…” — Barack Obama", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Barack Obama", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The Internet didn't get invented on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its-own-government-research/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-internet-didn-t-get-invented-on-its-own-government-research/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```