Nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains sits Boulder, Colorado. Ranked highly for healthy residents, happy people, and hippy lovers, Boulder can add haven for startups to its many illustrious titles. Just yesterday, The Kauffman Foundation ranked Boulder No. 1 on its list for Top 10 Metro Areas for High-Tech Startup Density. (Doubtful reader: “But Will, I really question the validity of this argument, what even is the Kauffman Foundation? “ A. Chill out, I ask the questions around here, B. go be a member of the digital age and Google it, and C. Bloomberg Businessweek also ranked Boulder at the top of its list for best startup cities, so there) Whether it’s the awesome national research labs or the high percentage of residents working in tech, Boulder and its relatively small population of less than 100,000 (11th biggest city in Colorado) would be right to argue that bigger is not always better.
Boulder didn’t become a destination for tech startups overnight. In the Mid-1990s, Boulder’s software industry was growing steadily and bringing in talented employees from all over the country. Being home to prestigious research labs like the National Institute of Standards & Technology didn’t hurt either when it came to drawing in well educated talent. As more and more of these biotech, telecom, and data storage employees began to branch out and begin their own businesses, a “bottom-up” revolution (as explained by Bloomberg writer Virek Wadhwa) eventually took hold. Despite the lack of major city or state investments often seen in other cities, Boulder's rise as a startup destination quickly gained steam and never looked back. The city now boasts the highest concentration of software engineers per capita in the entire nation. Venture capitalists, startup mentors, and massive companies like Google, Microsoft, and Oracle are flocking to this town just 25 miles outside of Denver to manage, support, or acquire groundbreaking startups on a long list that are calling Boulder home. According to the NY Times, Venture Capitalists from Silcon Valley to Manhattan invested nearly $2 billion in 275 Colorado startups from 2007 to 2009.
TechStars, arguably the best startup accelerator around, got its start in Boulder back in 2006 and still churns out exciting new companies that decide to remain in Boulder. TechStars Founder David Cohen makes a convincing argument for Boulder as the ideal setting for startups, citing a host of resources and events that support entrepreneurs. Perhaps Cohen’s most convincing argument though is that Boulder easily draws in some of the best and brightest people in the tech world because it is such a fun place to live (Think about the one or two people you know who have lived in or currently live in Boulder and the great reviews they give it). Not many towns can offer the enjoyment of hitting the slopes or hiking great trails in between grueling meetings over user experience or scalability issues. All in all, founders looking to get in on a tech scene that prides itself in sharing, collaborating, and helping each other out don’t have to look very hard when they’re in Boulder.
Boulder didn’t become a destination for tech startups overnight. In the Mid-1990s, Boulder’s software industry was growing steadily and bringing in talented employees from all over the country. Being home to prestigious research labs like the National Institute of Standards & Technology didn’t hurt either when it came to drawing in well educated talent. As more and more of these biotech, telecom, and data storage employees began to branch out and begin their own businesses, a “bottom-up” revolution (as explained by Bloomberg writer Virek Wadhwa) eventually took hold. Despite the lack of major city or state investments often seen in other cities, Boulder's rise as a startup destination quickly gained steam and never looked back. The city now boasts the highest concentration of software engineers per capita in the entire nation. Venture capitalists, startup mentors, and massive companies like Google, Microsoft, and Oracle are flocking to this town just 25 miles outside of Denver to manage, support, or acquire groundbreaking startups on a long list that are calling Boulder home. According to the NY Times, Venture Capitalists from Silcon Valley to Manhattan invested nearly $2 billion in 275 Colorado startups from 2007 to 2009.
TechStars, arguably the best startup accelerator around, got its start in Boulder back in 2006 and still churns out exciting new companies that decide to remain in Boulder. TechStars Founder David Cohen makes a convincing argument for Boulder as the ideal setting for startups, citing a host of resources and events that support entrepreneurs. Perhaps Cohen’s most convincing argument though is that Boulder easily draws in some of the best and brightest people in the tech world because it is such a fun place to live (Think about the one or two people you know who have lived in or currently live in Boulder and the great reviews they give it). Not many towns can offer the enjoyment of hitting the slopes or hiking great trails in between grueling meetings over user experience or scalability issues. All in all, founders looking to get in on a tech scene that prides itself in sharing, collaborating, and helping each other out don’t have to look very hard when they’re in Boulder.
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