I don't think by "new cities" he meant starting a new city in an empty field. Take an existing, small, cheap city and go there. The thing stopping us is the ne

I don't think by "new cities" he meant starting a new city in an empty field. Take an existing, small, cheap city and go there. The thing stopping us is the network effects of big cities and tech hubs, but Austin is an example of relatively sudden, rapid growth. (Oil may have played a part, but in recent years it's been tech. My perception is that the oil jobs are in Houston.) Could we take ten cities that look like Austin circa 1980 and turn them into Austin today rather than continuing to cram into NYC and SF? Would that be better (by whatever metrics we care about)?