Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#1

Post by Apocryphon » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 2:59 AM UTC

Within the U.S., what other destinations could software engineers and those who are seeking to create tech startups go to? I've heard of many other cities already, but I'd like to narrow it down to two starting criteria (feel free to add your own):

* Opportunity- for those who would just like to go work, the level of demand for software developers. For those who would like to launch a startup outside of SV, the abundance of VC firms and other sources of funding in the area.

* Quality of life- the Bay Area has unrivaled weather, and unrivaled high rent prices. How do other cities compare?

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#2

Post by jfasi » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 3:24 AM UTC

New York is going to be the second choice here, I think. The culture is certainly a little different in terms of VCs and the sorts of companies that take up residence there, but it's a great place to be.

After that, having spent a good length of time in Boston, I can say that there is a small but very healthy startup community there.

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#3

Post by wh-uws » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:07 AM UTC

jfasi wrote: post #2

New York is going to be the second choice here, I think. The culture is certainly a little different in terms of VCs and the sorts of companies that take up residence there, but it's a great place to be. After that, having spent a good length of time in Boston, I can say that there is a small but very healthy startup community there.

Yeah my purely speculative, non scientific list goes like this:

1) The Bay Area (Silicon Valley + SF etc.) - Pretty much perpetually

2) NYC

3) Austin,Tx and Boston are tied

3.5) Chicago

4) Seattle, Boulder,Co ; and Los Angeles are tied

5) Any other major city with a good engineering school in the vicinity or other major money industry with that needs a few Computer Science and/or IT guys around (i.e. Oil)

A few cities like this include: Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Washington D.C., Miami, Kansas City (especially since Google Fiber is rolling out there), and Las Vegas

Just for info, I currently live in Austin. Almost moved to SF but just finished school and prefer the nightlife in Austin

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#4

Post by Apocryphon » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:28 AM UTC

wh-uws wrote: post #3

jfasi wrote: post #2

New York is going to be the second choice here, I think. The culture is certainly a little different in terms of VCs and the sorts of companies that take up residence there, but it's a great place to be. After that, having spent a good length of time in Boston, I can say that there is a small but very healthy startup community there.

Yeah my purely speculative, non scientific list goes like this: 1) The Bay Area (Silicon Valley + SF etc.) - Pretty much perpetually 2) NYC 3) Austin,Tx and Boston are tied 3.5) Chicago 4) Seattle, Boulder,Co ; and Los Angeles are tied 5) Any other major city with a good engineering school in the vicinity or other major money industry with that needs a few Computer Science and/or IT guys around (i.e. Oil) A few citie…

Good list, though I'd think that D.C. would rank higher considering it's supposed to be a huge (growing?) tech center. Or maybe those jobs are just for government.

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#5

Post by paulsutter » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:32 AM UTC

Your only negative on the bay area seems to be high rent.

I'd suggest you turn that around. High rents are an excellent indicator of opportunity and quality of life. Location is a market and the good things cost more.

For someone just starting out, there's nothing like the bay area. Of course, I've been around the block a few times and I've moved to Seattle to get away from valley groupthink.

Nothing beats visiting in person. Spend time in each place you'd consider and you'll just know what feels right.

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#6

Post by 001sky » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:36 AM UTC

Quality of life- the Bay Area has unrivaled weather: It sounds like you've never lived a whole year in SF weather! Although its nicer certain times of year in palo alto or berkeley, etc. =] To answer your question, though: consider specialty niche.

SV - For pure tech or big-blue-sky-idea-ish. Also, anything HW (viz apple, chips, tesla etc) or hands-on engineering.

NY -Doesn't have the "tinker in the garage" culture traditionally, due to high-rent and lack of garages ;). But for Finance/BigCo, Avertising/ad-tech, Data Analytics, Specialty Retail/fashion/etc, or Old Media (copyright/music/publishing), and EMAE facing international markets it's very competitive.

[ex-us]

London - Similar to NY for specialty. Lacks the VC and start-up bench-depth of talent to some extent. Similar to SF weather, better nightlife and public tranist. More $$$.

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#7

Post by enraged_camel » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:36 AM UTC

wh-uws wrote: post #3

jfasi wrote: post #2

New York is going to be the second choice here, I think. The culture is certainly a little different in terms of VCs and the sorts of companies that take up residence there, but it's a great place to be. After that, having spent a good length of time in Boston, I can say that there is a small but very healthy startup community there.

Yeah my purely speculative, non scientific list goes like this: 1) The Bay Area (Silicon Valley + SF etc.) - Pretty much perpetually 2) NYC 3) Austin,Tx and Boston are tied 3.5) Chicago 4) Seattle, Boulder,Co ; and Los Angeles are tied 5) Any other major city with a good engineering school in the vicinity or other major money industry with that needs a few Computer Science and/or IT guys around (i.e. Oil) A few citie…

Funny you mention Chicago. I'm there right now for a business trip, and decided I'd love to move here. I was wondering about the startup scene though...

I currently live in Long Beach, CA which is 30 mins south of LA, and it blows. There is a distinct lack of techies and nobody is working on solving interesting problems. Maybe it's different in LA proper though.

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#8

Post by vivekb » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:50 AM UTC

New York has a much better night life, and comparable but slightly cheaper rent than SF. The culture is much more interesting (IMO), and the companies here are very diverse and full of talent.

Bigger companies have made also investments here, most notably Google (3k people, a whole city block, and whole products reside here). Others include Facebook, Twitter, and eBay.

You might find that in the Bay Area tech is all around you – that's not quite true in New York. It's growing and fairly large at this point, but only for the people that are in the scene. There are tons of other scenes in the city (e.g. Fashion, Finance, Food). Overall, I prefer the diversity of industry and culture in New York – it makes it a more interesting place to be. The weather is decidedly worse in new york when compared to that of the bay area, but fall and spring can be beautiful here.

Source: Have worked at tech companies in SF and New York

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#9

Post by saiko-chriskun » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 4:52 AM UTC

enraged_camel wrote: post #7

wh-uws wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah my purely speculative, non scientific list goes like this: 1) The Bay Area (Silicon Valley + SF etc.) - Pretty much perpetually 2) NYC 3) Austin,Tx and Boston are tied 3.5) Chicago 4) Seattle, Boulder,Co ; and Los Angeles are tied 5) Any other major city with a good engineering school in the vicinity or other major money industry with that needs a few Computer Science and/or IT guys around (i.e. Oil) A few citie…

Funny you mention Chicago. I'm there right now for a business trip, and decided I'd love to move here. I was wondering about the startup scene though... I currently live in Long Beach, CA which is 30 mins south of LA, and it blows. There is a distinct lack of techies and nobody is working on solving interesting problems. Maybe it's different in LA proper though.

Santa Monica is where most of the tech scene is at in LA

Re: Ask HN: Where are the opportunities outside of Silicon Valley?

#10

Post by wensing » Sun, Oct 07, 2012, 5:14 AM UTC

enraged_camel wrote: post #7

wh-uws wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah my purely speculative, non scientific list goes like this: 1) The Bay Area (Silicon Valley + SF etc.) - Pretty much perpetually 2) NYC 3) Austin,Tx and Boston are tied 3.5) Chicago 4) Seattle, Boulder,Co ; and Los Angeles are tied 5) Any other major city with a good engineering school in the vicinity or other major money industry with that needs a few Computer Science and/or IT guys around (i.e. Oil) A few citie…

Funny you mention Chicago. I'm there right now for a business trip, and decided I'd love to move here. I was wondering about the startup scene though... I currently live in Long Beach, CA which is 30 mins south of LA, and it blows. There is a distinct lack of techies and nobody is working on solving interesting problems. Maybe it's different in LA proper though.

What makes you say you'd love to move to Chicago?