Few would deny that Chicago is one of the commercial centers of the United States, but when people think of technology, the windy city doesn’t really ring a bell. Silicon Valley must now acknowledge tech centers like Seattle, Boston, New Jersey, and Austin as legitimate rivals for IT mind share and market share, but could the cultural and economic capital of the Midwest arise as a surprise technology hotbed?


Chicago’s suburbs do boast the worldwide headquarters of wireless giant Motorola. As the economics of the IT revolution become more punishing to tech startups struggling in the highly competitive world of Silicon Valley, more and more entrepreneurs may choose to set up shop in the Midwest rather than pursue the famous Silicon Valley dream. Vic Tyagi is founder of RapidMedia Network, a young company developing a multi-media browser, and suggests, “I think a year ago a lot of folks were thinking of packing their bags and moving out [to west]. Then word started coming out that not all was rosy in the land of opportunity.”


Certainly, entrepreneurs moving to Silicon Valley find an exorbitant cost of living and high operating costs, and a tight job market, with employees who want high pay and often look to jump from job to job. In contrast, the Chicago area offers low rent and a good pool of loyal employees who can afford to be paid less. And it’s not as if Chicago is a wasteland. The area benefits from top professional recruits coming out of prestigious academic institutions like Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management and the University of Chicago, as well as out of local business and industry. Tyagi concludes, “If anything, the Midwest has allowed us to go about building a real business with minimal distractions.”

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