A recent story in Forbes magazine tabs the Salt Lake City area as the top spot in the nation outside of Silicon Valley as a center for technology development. Based on tech-related patent registrations, Forbes says the talent is not necessarily staying in Northern California.
“Instead of holding tight to top talent, however, Silicon Valley is spreading its seeds. Those floating away are planting themselves firmly in other metropolises,” the Forbes article said.
The story continues, “Where are these fertile fields attracting tech entrepreneurs and teams? Here’s a hint: They’re not the places you might expect.”
The story, under the byline of Falon Fatemi, then named Salt Lake City, Denver, Atlanta, Portland and Seattle as places with fast-growing tech populations, ranking Salt Lake City as No. 1.
It went on to say this about Utah’s capital city:
“Once known primarily for its Mormon Tabernacle Choir and fantastic vistas, Salt Lake City was recently ranked by Entrepreneur as the top startup destination outside of San Francisco or New York City.
“For those in the know, the ranking wasn’t a big surprise. Three years ago, eBay took the lead by opening an enormous facility there. Venture capitalists have taken note, collectively offering hundreds of millions in seed money to Utah-based startups.
“Vaughn Aust, executive vice president of marketing and product at MarketStar, partially attributes his company’s success to its relocation to Salt Lake City’s suburbs. Aust points to the city’s stable workforce, top-ranking tech universities, low cost of living, attractive climate, low crime rate and family-friendly atmosphere. Plus, he explained, Mormon missionaries often return to their Salt Lake City roots, bringing back multilingual abilities and phenomenal sales skills.
“At Domo, vice president of communications Julie Kehoe is just as passionate as Aust about the ‘Silicon Slopes.’ She appreciates the business-friendly climate fostered through the region’s cultural roots of self-sufficiency and industriousness.”