One of the recurring topics this site keeps returning to is how cities like San Francisco and London have seen an explosion of tech startups in recent years.
Probably the spectacular of all the cities that have shot to prominence is New York; a decade ago tech startups in the city were a rare thing, today there are thousands.
Today I had the opportunity to visit AlleyNYC, one of New York’s biggest tech accelerators. It’s impressive how a venture two years old can be so successful.
A question I asked was ‘what has driven the change in New York?’ The consensus was the combination of the Great Depression and the success of high profile companies like Facebook.
The success of high profile startups has validated the business model in the eyes of both investors and founders, people who would have been reluctant to leave their jobs and start a business now see the opportunities while investors can see there are returns to be made.
What’s notable about cities like New York, London and San Francisco is the depth of industry expertise, capital, networks, education institutions and diversity. These are key factors in attracting tech startups.
For other cities aspiring to be ‘the next Silicon Valley’, it would be worthwhile considering where their strengths lie compared to these giants.
It’s not a given that any of today’s global leaders will be the future centres of industry, but other cities and regions will need to have a very strong reason for businesses to choose them over the incumbents.