Innovation has always propelled economic progress and wealth creation. Investors once accessed the growth of groundbreaking companies through the stock market after these innovative firms went public. But the investment landscape has dramatically shifted in recent decades. Companies today often delay their initial public offerings (IPOS) and stay private for longer or forever. From 1980 to 2000, the IPO market averaged 325 transactions per year. Since 2000, that number has dropped dramatically, to an anemic 135. How have the public markets changed? One example of the IPO heyday is Apple Computer.