Edinburgh could be a good option. If you look hard enough, it is still relatively affordable (especially compared to the Bay Area) and I’ve found very intellectual people to work with. There seems to be a big focus in the U.K. on collaboration between academic and industry and if you’re into data, Edinburgh is home to a The Data Lab, an innovation centre around data.
I moved here from North America and have previous work experience in Silicon Valley. The startup vibe is slowly getting stronger and we’ve been very fortunate to get linked into the ecosystem.
Berlin or Amsterdam would be my picks in Europe. Bangkok or KL for Asia. Austin for the US.
Since you mentioned Asia, consider Kerala, the southern most state in India. India is like Europe - even though there are lots of similarities, most states have its own language, a different culture etc. Kerala is known for it's high literacy and higher standard of living. Plus its beautiful and raw too.
Plenty of co-working and reasonable hotels around Cyberjaya, good food, fast internet, it is a bit boring though for SE Asia.
I visit family in KL and am interested in tech hotspots. However, the city seems quite normal - is Cyberjaya where most of the action is?
Cyberjaya is like the upcoming tech scene of KL imo. It has a growing number co-working spaces, plenty of decent accommodation for low prices, hosts many of big data centers including IBM, doesn't suffer from the traffic issues of the center, parks and greenery, air feels clean, is 15minutes from airport or 15mintues to KL sentral via the train etc.. I usually stay Citadines at DPulze which puts you pretty central and above a shopping centre, it's quite sparse so you'll need to GrabTaxi to different co-working places etc... If by action you mean nightlife it's meh, there a little pretend irish pub where locals smoke inside and few other sterile hiso venues, better hit Bukit Bintang if you need a beer or three (happy hour trend is 3x for some odd reason).
As you say, places near academic institutions should be pretty good for you. Oxford or Cambridge in England may not be too expensive. Edinburgh or Glasgow would be cheaper even. In any case you may consider enrolling in some kind of academic research program. Pursuing your own intellectual thing by yourself will be incredibly tough and lonely.
> Oxford or Cambridge in England may not be too expensive
They’re really not far off London prices, and because they’re in the UK, the weather sucks
If you really consider moving abroad, then Berlin might be a good option. It has a decent American expat community, it's relatively “cheap” and culturally rich.
BTW: of course another great option in Germany is Munich, my favorite city. But: rents are higher, salaries too though. The range of employers is larger. You can go for companies like BMW if you like but also startups. Shoot me a mail if you’re interested to get more insights
Munich is an amazing town but it is literally one of the most expensive places to live in Germany. Getting an affordable flat close to downtown is a nightmare.