An enclave of liberalism in a conservative state, Austinites love their open-minded, eclectic city.
A magnet for musicians and artists, the city has also been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the tech revolution, earning the nickname “Silicon Hills”.
The Lone Star state’s $115bn economy is bolstered by a burgeoning technology sector. A number of Fortune 500 companies have headquarters or regional offices in Austin, including Amazon, Apple, eBay, Google and IBM.
The launch of the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas in 2014 strengthened the city’s position as a national destination for life sciences and biotech innovation as well as providing a home for tech firms, from start-ups all the way to global titans.
THE OCCUPIERS
Apple is one of the biggest occupiers in the city, and other key tenants include Dell, IBM and Samsung, all of which employ more than 6,000 people in Austin.
Software giant Oracle is building a south-east Austin campus on a 25-acre site in the East Riverside Drive corridor.
One of Austin’s largest deals this year was AI-driven cognitive analytics company SparkCognition’s $32.5m Series B raise.
According to a JLL report this year, around 22% of the tenants seeking space in Austin are technology-based companies.
Other major occupiers include life sciences and biotech companies, such as Thermo Fisher Scientific, which occupies almost 80,000 sq ft in the city.
ONE TO WATCH
Aceable, an online start-up helping students pass their driver’s certification course, which recently raised $4m of funds and has plans to extend its online courses to other industries requiring professional certification, including real estate, corporate HR, nursing and food safety.
WHO TO KNOW
Charlie Plauche
Principal at Austin-based S3 Ventures
David Steinwedell
Head of the Austin ULI chapter
Stephen Straus
Entrepreneur and creator of a start-up diversity and inclusion pledge in Austin
Jamie Rhodes
Founder, Central Texas Angel Network
