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Chicago alone is a glaring exception. - It's not constrained for space, rent is relatively cheap - Good public transit and airports - Great food scene - Cul

Chicago alone is a glaring exception. - It's not constrained for space, rent is relatively cheap - Good public transit and airports - Great food scene - Cultural mecca - Young people love it - Several great universities are either in it or nearby - Pedestrian/biker friendly - Each of the many neighborhoods is like a different town with its own character Google and Facebook recently made minor expansions into Chicago, but why the trickle? I get that in the short-run the elite want to be "where it's at" i.e. SF and NYC, but Chicago has so much to offer. Tech companies would get a lot for their money if they start a virtuous cycle of investment and employment here. Many STEM students from UChicago, Northwestern, and UIUC would rather stay home but the opportunity in California is too great to pass up.

SilasX 7y ago
- They will tax the crap out of anything that moves because of impossibly high, undischargeable pension obligations, and techies will be an attractive target.
novok 7y ago
The weather is worse, there is less of a gravity effect. Tech workers attract more tech workers because of the liquidity of the employment market.
opportune 7y ago
I agree but Chicago has a bit of a commute issue still. I'm assuming most execs and more senior employees would want to live in the north shore area like new trier and new trier->loop is a bit more of a commute than los altos->mountain view. Also I think people unfamiliar with Chicago don't understand the nature of its crime issues (namely that it's just as safe as other big cities as long as you avoid the worst areas). One other potential issue is that a lot of the good software engineers in Chicago are working for reasonably high incomes at trading companies which maybe big tech doesn't want to compete with or has culture concerns And municipal corruption. But other than all those it's great

SilasX 7y ago

- They will tax the crap out of anything that moves because of impossibly high, undischargeable pension obligations, and techies will be an attractive target.

novok 7y ago

The weather is worse, there is less of a gravity effect. Tech workers attract more tech workers because of the liquidity of the employment market.

opportune 7y ago

I agree but Chicago has a bit of a commute issue still. I'm assuming most execs and more senior employees would want to live in the north shore area like new trier and new trier->loop is a bit more of a commute than los altos->mountain view. Also I think people unfamiliar with Chicago don't understand the nature of its crime issues (namely that it's just as safe as other big cities as long as you avoid the worst areas). One other potential issue is that a lot of the good software engineers in Chicago are working for reasonably high incomes at trading companies which maybe big tech doesn't want to compete with or has culture concerns And municipal corruption. But other than all those it's great