I posted the following question on Quora about a month ago, “Why has Austin become a recent hub of technological innovation?” I received a few answers, but I still haven’t been convinced that Austin is able to set itself apart from basically any other city in the United States. Part of me believes that it is somehow pure luck.
A few factors come to mind as to why Austin would be a great place for startups to thrive:
1.) Lower cost of living - Austin is neither on the coasts nor does it have the panache of those cities, and ”California” or “New York City” is not in its name, making it a less desirable (thus cheaper) alternative, but with an equally high quality of life.
2.) Large state school - the University of Texas is both a massive state school and a very good technical university in the heart of the city, which helps to spur economic and creative innovation from its very own labs. This is certainly a plus because technical minds are often born in universities.
3.) Capital city - the Texas government is headquartered in Austin, making it one of the biggest employers in the area. This means that it can be a client for various startups, many people are already in the area, and legislative and regulatory decisions can be made for companies without much inconvenience.
4.) SXSW - a festival that brings together film, design, music, and technology into a networking and partying event that outsiders and locals alike enjoy. I haven’t gotten a chance to go to SXSW, but it’s definitely on the list.
5.) Weather - I will never understand this because I love winter and I absolutely despise the same warm weather everyday, even if it is nice. But obviously the heartland of Texas has hot, sunny weather, so Austin will be an attractive place to live.
To sum it up, Austin seems to have a great array of qualities that is conducive to flourishing startups. However, I don’t quite understand how it separates itself from any other city in the country. Why couldn’t a large startup scene develop in, say, Madison, WI, or Columbus, OH (hometown!), or even Washington D.C.?
To me, it’s one thing and one thing only: weather. In the three examples mentioned, all of them basically have the same characteristics.
Lower cost of living? Check. Midwest has a very low cost of living and the areas in and around Washington D.C. typically do not have inflated real estate values.
Large and good technical university? Check. University of Wisconsin, Ohio State University, and University of Maryland all are in the top 25 in engineering and are very good universities in general. They are massive employers in their respective areas as well.
Capital city? Check. Madison, Columbus, and of course Washington D.C. are all capital cities in some shape or form. The first two are state capitals like Austin, while the third is obviously our nation’s capital, so the government has a large presence in the areas.
The last two factors are what seem to separate Austin from these cities. SXSW is a huge gathering of creative minds across different industries, so it attracts the young, industrious individuals. Though I’m sure the city of Austin, its companies, and state of Texas have put in energy, money, and countless hours into the festival, I find it difficult to believe that this festival’s becoming one of the “things to do” is not lucky. Many different cities are home to festivals like SXSW, but for some reason they have not garnered national attention or developed quickly the way this has. Maybe it was a meticulous, comprehensive plan over the past few decades to make it that, but I don’t know. Any thoughts regarding this would be great.
The last factor bothers me. I will never understand why constantly warm weather is so attractive to everyone. As most of my friends and family know, I will ramble ad nauseum about how irritating this is, and how cold, Northern cities get the cold shoulder solely because it gets cold and snows. Snow is great! Anyway, I’m not going to do that for the sake of boring everyone and my getting unnecessarily angry. Given that I believe that SXSW is a stroke of luck (and really do correct me if I’m wrong), it seems to me that weather is the biggest factor that is separating Austin from similar cities across the nation. Annoying.
Regardless, credit needs to be given where credit is due. Very good for Austin! It’s good to see an inland city get some national recognition. It seems like a great place to go; and hopefully, I’ll visit it in due time. I would love to hear what everyone thinks about the city, especially if you’ve been there.
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pavyedav posted this
