Is Silicon Valley really the world’s top tech hub?
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World’s top tech hubs
With so much going on in the technology industry across the globe, it might be time to start questioning whether Silicon Valley really is the world’s top tech hub. Though the valley certainly defends its title, there are countless up and coming tech hubs competing to take first place. Ultimately, more cities will be, and have proven to be, more successful than others, but which of these cities are the top tech hubs in the world today?
Beijing, China
Beijing has overtaken Silicon Valley to become the world’s top tech hub. Even though Beijing lacks the start-up culture of other top tech hubs, such as that of Silicon Valley, it is a city renowned for its use of smartphones and number of patents filed per capita, which makes the cities success even more captivating. Not only does Beijing offer affordable living costs, but the structure and widespread availability of resources have allowed startups to flourish in the unusual environment.
Berlin, Germany
Berlin might not be the world’s top tech hub, but it is certainly on the right track to stealing the title of Silicon Valley in the future. In 2015, Berlin was the fastest-growing start-up ecosystem in the world – The innovative city also received the most venture capital investment than any other city in Europe, and is home to countless global giants, including Delivery Hero, Facebook and even Google!
San Francisco, USA
You may have noticed that every city claims to be the ‘Silicon Valley’ of its home country, but you can be sure that San Francisco’s claim to fame is legitimate. The infamous Silicon Valley might be America’s top-ranked tech city, but San Francisco is definitely a firm second place! Over the next few years, there’s nothing to stop San Francisco from overtaking Silicon Valley, or even become the world’s leading tech hub!
Shanghai, China
In 2014, Shanghai scored the title of top new tech hub in the world, and as the city continues to emerge as a tech innovation hub internationally, there’s nothing to intercept Shanghai from keeping this title. In fact, the closest Shanghai has to Silicon Valley is the infamous Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, a technology park located in the Pudong district of Shanghai and home to more than 3,600 companies.
London, England
On Monday 30th October 2017, London & Partners announced that the UK is one of the most attractive European tech hubs for Silicon Valley investors and new business owners alike, and incredibly, British tech companies have raised more venture capital than any other European country, including Madrid, Barcelona and Paris, thanks to the fantastic networking opportunities London has to offer. Whilst London might not be the world’s top tech hub, it will certainly remain as Europe’s top tech hub.
Silicon Valley, USA
And now, we have Silicon Valley, argued to be the world’s top tech hub. Today, it is still very possible that Silicon Valley could keep its title, but fewer people are considering it to be an option for starting a business. Why? Silicon Valley is under pressure from cities across the globe, and with the likes of Beijing offering affordable living costs, Silicon Valley simply can’t compete.
Whilst Silicon Valley might be an incredible city home to some of the largest tech companies in the world, it might not be world’s top tech hub – but we’ll let you decide.
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