M. Diana Helweg

The Japanese economy of old -- coddled by an overbearing government and riddled with corruption -- is dying. Today Japan is undergoing nothing short of an economic revolution. No longer able to count on bailouts, banks are restructuring. Companies are putting profits ahead of personal loyalties. Reforms are breathing life into decayed industries. And the climate for foreign investment is better than ever. The most important force for change is the wave of small, creative, high-tech companies that have built Japan's very own Silicon Valley. The government's lackluster economic stewardship is no longer important. The state is not driving today's revolution; business is.