Ann Arbor As Tech Hub

Ann Arbor is rising as a New Top Tech Hub in the U.S., Bloomberg Report confirms.

With the tech giant Google opening a large Ann Arbor office well over a decade ago, many startups, startup accelerators, tech firms, plus being a prominent meeting center for industry, Ann Arbor is an attractive destination for further tech entities to establish their roots locally. If you’re a tech startup, all set to open offices, note that America’s high-tech businesses and workers (the talent) are gravitating to regional college towns like Ann Arbor, a recognized site for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

There are reasons why Ann Arbor is uniquely positioned to help pave the way as the world looks ahead to a future of interconnected, self-driving cars. With all its reserves of technology and engineering students, plus its proximity to the Big Three Automakers, headquartered only 40 miles east in Detroit, Ann Arbor has emerged as a one-of-a-kind, living laboratory for the collaborative efforts of STEM research, technology, and industry. Soon, north campus at the University of Michigan will offer completely automated, driverless shuttle busses for students and faculty, thanks to a French company drawn to Ann Arbor for the university’s autonomous-car test track. Known as Mcity, this proving ground for autonomous car testing and research brings in motor giants like General Motors, Toyota, Honda, BMW, and Intel, who are conducting research there in collaboration with the University and the government.

A controlled facility like Mcity, with testing also on the street in the real world, and on this scale, doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world!

Ann Arbor is not far behind bigger cities in the Midwest, such as Chicago, Minneapolis, and others, when it comes to the availability of tech workers as well as new and well-established tech-based firms. It truly is an area packed full of future tech talent.

What draws entrepreneurs to Ann Arbor are elements of a strong startup community: a large research institution and the fact that more than half of the venture capital firms in the state are in the area. Ann Arbor’s college-town atmosphere makes it easy for tech startups to connect with potential partners due to the educated local population.

Moreover, you can hire talent in Ann Arbor that won’t get stolen by Google or Facebook. Ann Arbor startups far more “capital efficient” due to “low-wage because of the low cost of living”.

Ann Arbor, being a rising tech hub, brings enormous career opportunities for the tech aspirants ready to start their professional journey. Many top engineering students get hired by in town companies once they finish their degrees at different universities in the area and find they don’t need to move to the West Coast or a much larger city or area to make their mark on the tech world. The University of Michigan has a solid connection to Ann Arbor’s success as a tech hub. From startups spinning out of the university to incubator programs such as Desai Accelerator and Tech Transfer and alums moving into the booming cybersecurity space in town, there is no shortage of talent here.