Immigration's scientific legacy shapes America's innovation hub

President Donald Trump stirred controversy in the British and New Zealand scientific communities by listing the splitting of the atom as one of the achievements of the American nation. In reality, this was accomplished in 1917 by Ernest Rutherford, a British scientist from New Zealand, now known as a founder of nuclear physics.

Similar confusion would arise from attributing all Albert Einstein's successes to the United States. It is well-known that he was born in Germany. However, not everyone knows that he received American citizenship only in 1940. Before that, Einstein frequently visited the USA, but he published the General Theory of Relativity in 1915 while living in Berlin. He decided to stay in the USA permanently only in 1933, after Hitler's rise to power.

It is no surprise that Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States in the 18th century, was a descendant of immigrants. The immigrant community has been and continues to be a significant force in the science of this country throughout its 250-year history. Alexander Graham Bell was born in Scotland, came to the USA as an adult in 1871, and invented the telephone in 1876 before receiving citizenship. The physicist Joseph Henry, of Scottish descent, constructed a prototype of a direct current motor.

It's easy for misunderstandings to arise when one doesn't know the history of the USA well because almost every American citizen can quickly find foreign roots in their ancestry. Samuel Morse and Thomas Alva Edison were Americans for many generations, but the famous Henry Ford was the child of immigrants from Ireland and Belgium. Similarly, Nikola Tesla was born in Serbia in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Many scientists achieved success before even arriving in the USA. John Ericsson, born in Sweden, was one of the inventors of the propeller and the constructor of the first American steam-powered ship, the USS Princeton. John von Neumann, a Hungarian-American scientist, laid the groundwork for the mathematical formalism of computer science in the 20th century.

Research conducted at Harvard University indicates that between 1880 and 1940, almost 20 percent of patents were filed by immigrants, and currently, it's even 30 percent. Immigrants are both more productive and innovative than U.S. residents, despite lower incomes. In the history of the Nobel Prizes, 40 percent of its American laureates are immigrants.

The turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was a time when new perspectives on reality were being forged, and old superstitions were giving way to a scientific understanding of phenomena. European science played an important role; however, turbulent times favoured emigration.

A significant number of foreigners were attracted by the Manhattan Project during World War II. The project to build the atomic bomb was overseen by J. Robert Oppenheimer, an American whose family came to the USA from Germany. At various stages of its construction, individuals such as Richard Feynman (of Polish-Russian Jewish descent), Enrico Fermi (from Italy), Edward Teller and Leo Szilard (born in Hungary), Stanislaw Ulam (from Poland), and Hans Bethe (from Germany) were employed. Sooner or later, they received American citizenship.

After the capitulation of the Third Reich, as part of Operation Paperclip, over 1,600 German scientists arrived in the USA, many associated with the rocket industry, led by Wernher von Braun. He played a crucial role in the early years of NASA, and under his leadership, the Saturn V rocket for the Apollo program was developed.

Immigrants can be found among the founders of companies in the computer industry—Intel, Google, eBay, Yahoo!, Sun Microsystems, Apple, Nvidia. The role of immigrants is not limited to big names. Foreigners join scientific communities and enter American companies, where they leverage their experience and education (often obtained in their home countries) not only in managerial positions. In companies related to modern technologies, 25 percent of the employees are immigrants.

The percentage of people with doctorates in the USA who were not born in this country is even higher, at about 57 percent (data from 2024). In scientific and engineering staff, 30 percent are foreigners (data from 2020). Most, over half of these individuals, come from Asia, followed by citizens from the Americas outside the United States, with Europeans being a somewhat smaller group. Receiving a postdoctoral position at a university doesn't automatically mean that someone will become an immigrant. Achievements are not the only factor; the status of a resident or the appropriate visa, which is not easy to obtain, is also crucial. It is expected to be even more challenging with the new president.

The biggest supporter of the current President of the USA was not born on American soil. Elon Musk is from South Africa. At the age of 17, he "escaped" mandatory military service by going to Canada. He began his studies there, which he completed in Philadelphia.

Musk's journey to the stars began in 2002 when he founded SpaceX, now an undisputed leader in the private spaceflight market. In the same year, he also became an American citizen. His initial successes, such as Zip2 and then PayPal, which made him a considerable fortune, were achieved while he was still an immigrant. Interestingly, he initially did not have a visa allowing him to work in the USA. In Donald Trump's world, Musk's story might have unfolded differently. That's why during the campaign, outgoing President Joe Biden accused Musk of double standards.

The United States is often cited as a place where the development of businesses related to advanced technologies and the commercialization of scientific achievements is particularly favourable. This is due to factors such as the economic stability of the country, a highly developed investment system where private capital plays a significant role, and a supportive system of scientific grants.

A supportive legal system, business environment, and forward-thinking in the name of "science for society, not just for science itself" are helpful. Numerous universities and research centres, whose budgets can be compared to the entire science budget in some countries, provide an ideal environment for both scientific and commercial development.

The USA is a country of great contrasts. Despite significant investment in the promotion of science, a considerable portion of the population does not attach much importance to it. The current president is supported not only by Musk but also by the CEO of Alphabet, Sundar Pichai, who, like the CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, emigrated from India at one time. He is one of several technology oligarchs, as the heads of American Big Tech companies involved in the world of politics are now called.

The cracks in the idealized image of the USA are something that China has been deftly exploiting for years. The scientific atmosphere in China is becoming friendly, leading to the return of Chinese experts to their homeland and the relocation of American and European scientists to institutions there. However, the notion that the USA has ceased to be a paradise for science and technology is exaggerated. In 2022, China spent 2.5 percent of its GDP on research and development, while the USA invested 3.5 percent of its GDP.

Donald Trump's decisions will outline the USA's position in global science, technology, and possibly even space exploration in the coming years. They might determine the outcome of the technological war with China. Stargate, announced with OpenAI, is a plan to invest 500 billion dollars (720 billion Canadian dollars) in AI development by 2029. This plan was not enthusiastically received by Elon Musk, who currently does not see investors with such significant resources. On the other hand, he is pleased with the president's support for the Starship rocket project, which is set to revolutionize space transportation.