Missed the train? Maybe didn't fully participate in the dot-com boom or the startup-buzz, but that's not the full picture with regards to technology. The world wide web came from CERN. ARM which powers most popular mobile devices was founded in the UK (only bought by a Japanse company post-Brexit). German cars are everywhere. Nokia and Ericsson were at the forefront of the boom in mobile telecommunications. ITU is based in Geneva and GSM (the basis for all modern mobile telecomms) orginated in France (it took years for the USA to catch up).