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Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

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Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#41

Post by expertentipp »

xfour wrote: post #13
adrianN wrote: post #4

Come to Berlin

Had a friend that recently washed out of SoundCloud and returned to the U.S. I spent some time there and went to the disrupt Europe when it was in Berlin. I might be able to swing it long term as my wife has an Italian passport but would be a longer process with that. Seemed like when I was there it was something about a rocket and cloning US tech and SoundCloud were the two big games in town. Has there gotten to be…

Selling clothes, food, and insurances over the internet is big in Berlin nowadays. All "machine learning" - the user asks for shoes and gets a clown outfit, annual subscription to a local sushi place, and everything is fully insured in case of failure of German pension system. Positioning in Google search results is booming also.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#42

Post by kosei »

I've heard good things about Dublin. Anyone here on HN able to speak from direct experience?

Personally live in Seattle and love it, but I got in before the major boom and it is not nearly as affordable as 5-10 years ago. Still think it is a major upgrade to SF, though.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#43

Post by edoceo »

gcampos wrote: post #39
xfour wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hear Seattle has gotten just as expensive as SF not true? Remote is interesting for sure. The rise of companies like Buffer and I believe the Wordpress company is 100% remote. Definitely solves half my issue also looking for somewhere actually nice to live.

Seattle is expensive, but not near as much as SF. I actually think here is one of the best places to leave. You can find SV level paychecks, no income tax, and housing for half of the price!

Also, 45 minutes out of the city core (light traffic) gets real affordable compared to in-city.

If you can bus or commute off-hours it can work.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#45

Post by jypepin »

If you are relocating to Europe, Amsterdam is great.

The economy is good, the tech scene is already good and booming. A lot of local startups, bigger and bigger local companies and the typical international tech startups are here.

Salary are lower but the cost of life too and you'll live way better here. Home prices, groceries, restaurants/bars and travels are mostly cheaper. I'd say I spend almost half in Amsterdam than what I was spending in SF, for a pretty similar life style. This sounds true to most of my friends who did the same move.

Everyone speaks english, so you won't have to rush to learn Dutch. There are great english-speaking private schools that you'll be able to afford, or free Dutch schools, to which your kids will adapt very quick if they are still young.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#46

Post by jypepin »

xfour wrote: post #30
plessthanpt05 wrote: post #29

I've seen Los Angeles being called 'silicon beach' (around Venice and Santa Monica) and I've read that the Midwest (Omaha I think) is being referred to as 'silicon prairie'.

I’ve heard people complaining that LA is just as bad as the Bay now housing costs vs Salaries. Anyone live in the Midwest and can chime in on their experiences?

My sample size is very small, but everyone I know who moved from SF to LA for tech jobs get pretty much the same salary and housing is still cheaper, even for places right in Venice/Santa Monica.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#47

Post by imAsking9836 »

mockingbirdy wrote: post #37
atlasunshrugged wrote: post #7

I'm a former Bay Area startupper (Marketing/Sales early stage and a bit of product, not an engineer) and did a stint in Berlin and am currently in Tallinn (Estonia). I think for quality of life Berlin can't be beat, it's a big city but you can choose the right neighborhood for a reasonable price and get any sort of vibe you want from small town to big city hipster (okay maybe there are a few neighborhoods with the la…

Edit: Sorry, skipped the home ownership part. Berlin's real estate market is currently too hot right now. In Munich it's the same - I know some millionaires who couldn't afford homes (with more m2) for their families there. It's generally better to rent for yourself and buy a home as an investment (you get tax breaks and the tenant basically pays the mortgage). Can vouch for Berlin, too. In Berlin Mitte near Alexande…

How about bureaucracy processes and getting up and running with internet, gas, bank, etc? Doubt that call centers have English speaking guys or forms in other languages

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#48

Post by flukus »

xfour wrote: post #11
locust101 wrote: post #6

Is being part of tech scene a requirement? Chicago is pretty nice, affordable and cosmopolitan.

Tech Scene for me personally provides a type of insurance. Here in the Bay Area you just have 1000s of companies bit and small contributing to this insane ecosystem that feels so that you could get a new job if necessary relatively easily. In other cities it seems like you have a single or a few employers and if it didn’t work out with them you’d need to uproot your life and move areas again. Having an ecosystem like…

Any largish city will have 1000's (or at least 100's) of companies wanting to hire software developers. Unless you're actively looking you'll probably go your whole life without hearing about 99.99% of them.

There might not be as many as the Bay area, but there is more than enough to keep your employment stable until retirement. As a bonus, much fewer of them will be unstable startups.

Re: Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area

#49

Post by krn »

atlasunshrugged wrote: post #7

I'm a former Bay Area startupper (Marketing/Sales early stage and a bit of product, not an engineer) and did a stint in Berlin and am currently in Tallinn (Estonia). I think for quality of life Berlin can't be beat, it's a big city but you can choose the right neighborhood for a reasonable price and get any sort of vibe you want from small town to big city hipster (okay maybe there are a few neighborhoods with the la…

I came here to write exactly this. Berlin is #1 tech scene in the world not in terms of the quality of startups, but in terms of the quality of life[1]. You won't make much money here, and you won't need to. In Berlin, a person making 60k has a better quality of life than a person making 200k in Silicon Valley[2]. And it's not only about the prices. You don't need a car in Berlin, at all. Because the entire 3.5 mln city is walkable and cyclable day and night, and a world-class public transportation system can get you and your family anywhere in under 30 minutes, even with your bikes. You also don't need to buy any real-estate, because 85% of the city is renting, and the rental agreements are protected by state from huge price increases. But most importantly, the nature is built into the city itself, so you never feel like you have to leave it[3][4].

[1] https://assets.weforum.org/editor/2vlR8al6iWyoYpVPo25yRwsEap... (#2 for Livability)

[2] https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?cou...

[3] https://www.visitberlin.de/en/lakes

[4] https://www.berlin.de/en/parks-and-gardens/3561883-4407152-p...

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