The tech community is excited about a quickly growing startup scene outside of the industry’s traditional strongholds in the Bay Area and New York City. Chicago’s startup community has been generating higher returns on investments than anywhere else in the country. Technology entrepreneurs in Chicago continue to create and develop businesses, making Silicon Prairie an up-and-coming force in the national technology and innovation scene.
According to a report by investment research company PitchBook, Chicago is currently the most profitable city for startups in the United States. Of the 31 Chicago startups analyzed by PitchBook, 81 percent yielded between 3 and 10 percent return on an investment. With 31 startups that meet PitchBook’s profitability requirements compared to Silicon Valley’s 613, of which 72 percent yielded between 3 and 10 percent return. Chicago remains a relatively small hub for technology entrepreneurship. However, the fact that startups in Chicago are achieving such impressive return rates suggests that the technology industry in Chicago is growing at a steady rate.
Investors and entrepreneurs in Chicago have resources available to them including the tech incubator 1871, which has helped businesses grow and innovate during the past five years by providing them with space and connectivity, education, early-stage venture capital and customers. Located in downtown Chicago’s famous Merchandise Mart, 1871 is now the home of more than 400 startups.
Another good resource is the website Built in Chicago. It connects job seekers with startups and reports on news in the technology sector. The daily job listings on Built in Chicago illustrate the benefit of the city’s startup scene on an individual level.
Chicago’s prospects as a technology hub have been rising in recent years. Industry experts point to the city’s historically multifaceted business community, robust and innovative revenue streams and a steady stream of local tech talent to explain why Chicago is prospering. Its big-city location adjacent to transportation hubs and institutions of higher education is another reason why Chicago has attracted and retained talented people from around the world as the technology sector has steadily grown. The companies being founded and incubated in Chicago are steadily growing, creating good jobs as they expand and innovate.
The health and continued growth of Chicago’s technology sector is crucial to the state of Illinois and its economic well-being. The technology sector is becoming an increasingly important part of the global economy by creating good-paying jobs and valuable companies. It has revolutionized and revitalized local economies and it continues to benefit the locales in which it flourishes.
Chicago is uniquely positioned to become the next big tech hub. Expect to hear more about Chicago in the future as a diverse community of companies continues to expand, solve everyday problems, and create good jobs for a 21st century economy.
