A Boston Innovator Says Start-Ups Keep Starting Up

When it comes to high technology, Massachusetts boasts one of the deepest talent pools in the country — and some industry leaders say innovation could drive Massachusetts out of the economic doldrums.

Even though venture-capital investment fell nationwide in the first quarter of 2009, Massachusetts received more than 12 percent of all VC investment in the United States, according to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. That’s above the historical average.

“The basic notion is that, you know, a start-up company looks something like this,” says Tim Rowe, walking down one of the many long, airy corridors of the Cambridge Innovation Center in Kendall Square. It’s lined with office spaces — some just cubicles where a lone person taps away on a laptop. But through windows in others you can see four to five people focused on getting their business off the ground.