, the new VC set-up by the excellent Klein's, put out a great post on why London is becoming such a successful technology hub.
They make a compelling case and I believe this is only the beginning for the UK's capital.
Having lived in New York for the last 13 years this got me thinking more broadly about the 'challenger' tech hubs around the world.
According to the Compass Global Start-Up Eco-System Ranking 2015 London comes in at No.6 and New York at No.2. The one category where they come in ahead of Silicon Valley is in 'Market Reach.'
Silicon Valley is still head and shoulders above any other region in terms of the size and strength of its eco-system. I don't see this changing any time soon. But other regions are closing the gap.
One key reason for this is what i call the 'diversification of tech.' The tech market used to be highly centralized on both the supply and the demand side. It was sold into IT departments and then rolled out into other parts of the organization. You also had access to much more advanced tech in the office than you did at home.
But now tech is sold into many different groups and departments. Indeed it is predicted that marketing will overtake the IT department in tech spend within the next year or so.
Tech is also disrupting pretty much every industry and is not just an industry of its own anymore. You have fintech, adtech, hrtech, fashion tech, foodtech, edtech etc.
We are also seeing the 'Consumerization of IT' where the combination of the smartphone, WiFi and the Cloud has led to the consumer market now leading the way in terms of tech adoption and innovation, with businesses desperately trying to keep up.
All of this is contributing to the diversification of tech. Tech is sold into lots of different departments, it is disrupting lots of different industries and it is being adopted and driven by everybody.
I would argue that this diversification favors cities like London and New York where there is great diversity on both the business and the consumer side. This means that these hubs are closer to, and more in tune with, their markets - and that is a powerful thing.
But if you love startups and technology, what most people still don’t fully appreciate is how fundamental a force London has become in the global technology ecosystem. So as we start 2016, here are just 12 possible reasons why London is now so firmly on the map for startups and scale-ups
https://medium.com/localglobe-notes/12-reasons-to-be-excited-about-london-62060110eb84#.n5w8bkti1
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