I'm from Atlanta, and I'm now living in the SF Bay Area...
Here's why I don't think Atlanta can duplicate or really compete with Silicon Valley:
Atlanta just doesn't have as many "crazy" people who are willing to take a risk on "stupid" ideas. I think this article sums things up well (just substitute Georgia for Michigan):
Atlanta will never have enough "crazy" people... while Atlanta is one of the most progressive cities in the South, it's still pretty conservative which doesn't really allow for thinking differently and taking risks on a more massive scale.
It's also good to note that a lot people from either GT or Emory move to either New York or California after graduation or shortly after...
Hard to argue this, though I really do want it to work here. We're doing a startup in Atlanta and I'm pretty well hooked into what's going on, but some of Paul's points about the necessary infrastructure (investors mostly) are true enough. I'm just about at the stage where I'm speaking to investors so I'll report back what I find.
I think the issue is concentration. The ingredients are there, they're just scattered in various ways.
1. Geography: Atlanta is sprawled out, so even if you live near Tech or Emory, odds are you can't skip down to the local coffee shop to get a feel what other startups are doing.
2. The Business Mix: Silicon Valley is tilted heavily toward technology in general and therefore also to startups (at least the kind we're talking about here). In Atlanta your friends and neighbors are likely to be bankers, accountants, healthcare professionals, or any number of corporate types than startup founders or even early-to-medium stage technology employees.
3. The Business Culture: There's little "porosity" among companies -- the knowledge/social network isn't there, and that's probably the most important ingredient of a startup hub, more important than money, IMO.
Interestingly, I think this might be an scenario where a YC clone could do the most good -- because as we are always hearing here, its real value is as an aggregator of like-minded people, enabling some of the knowledge interchange and social connections that don't happen naturally.
1. I spent a good deal of time tooling up and down 101. SV and Ess Eff are kinda like Atlanta and Alpharetta. If you walk into the Starbuck's at 5th & Spring on any work day and toss a quarter into the crowd it will land within 5 feet of an entrepreneur, an investor, or both.
2. Great point. Real estate is king in ATL. Read "The Man in Full" for more.
3. I think the social network is here. I literally sit and look at over it every day from my office window.
the quantity part maybe true and I could be wrong but I just feel there's not really many of them that are nuts enough...
people there are too conventional and practical, which isn't all bad but it's just not as conducive for innovation
Atlanta doesn't get many Christopher Klaus's - and they typically leave, while the list goes on and on in valley... the culture in Atlanta is just too different.
I used to feel the same way... Atlanta is nice, but you need to live in the Bay Area for a bit and you'll understand. It's a huge difference, especially for software startups
Yeah when we were there for Startup School in March we noticed it. Then again we were at the YC reception so it's not really fair to compare (that was really a cool event), but there's a definite vibe in the air. It's almost as if you're doing something wrong if you don't have your Mac with you showing somebody your latest build.
Atlanta just doesn't have as many "crazy" people who are willing to take a risk on "stupid" ideas.
I found the same thing to be true of St. Louis, my hometown. People just aren't ready for new ideas - they'll spend hours telling you why you're an idiot when they don't understand what you're trying to do in the first place. I try not to even mention my startup while I'm there - I've even had people say they had religious objections to what I was doing. It's just nuts.
It's hard to understand the quality of the Bay Area startup environment until you actually live here for awhile - before I moved to SF I had this nebulous idea that it was where I should be, but in hindsight the difference is much more pronounced than that.
Here, you're almost in the minority if you don't have big, 'crazy' ideas.
It's hard to know in just what way we're supposed to take some of these comments.
"Crazy people"? There's a difference between taking a calculated (but passionate) risk and a redneck, "watch this" kind of risk.I've spent time in SF - I think the quality of life is better in Atlanta because there aren't so many nutjobs (no offense to the left-coast nutjobs).
Geography: You're right - there is no sprawl in California. Everyone hangs out at Buck's and the 880 or 280 (take your pick - I prefer scenic Newark) to San Jose ia a short, leasurely jaunt.
BTW, I drink a lot of coffee. Re-phrase: A LOT OF COFFEE. When I'm in a coffee shop, I tend to be head down, working away - I'm not broadcasting that I'm working on a startup or looking to get a "feel" for what other startups in Atlanta are doing. There's plenty of more efficient ways to do that (ATDC/TAG, AWE, YnR, etc.).
Business Mix: God forbid that you'd ever want to associate with anyone that might be your customer/end-user or just a regular human. I love my startup(s). I love hanging out with the other "Crazy People" (I assume you mean "entrepreneurs") here in Atlanta. But 99.99999% (don't hold me to that - I made it up) of the world is NOT made up of startup entrepreneurs. Be wary of hillbillies with "real world" perspectives - we shall rule the world y'all.
Business Culture: By "porosity" I'm guessing you mean Yahoo Lunch 2.0, Google seminars, etc. If so, you'd be right. I'll admit that UPS, Home Depot, et. al. don't exactly fling their doors open, but they're not that type of company. Google has offices here. They certainly have enough servers a few feet down from my colo rack. I'm not seeing much "porosity" from them, but then again, I'm guessing at what you mean.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Atlanta is perfect. I will probably NOT be able to raise the capital I'm looking for locally. The local investors don't really get the space I'm in (and candidly, that's just because there aren't that many local investors). And I'm aware that investors want to be able to drive to your office and flash the pimp hand, etc., etc. (No offense to any investor types either). But the water in SV does NOT make you smarter or better able to execute. Yes, there are enablers there, and most will never leave. But I've got cheap rent, some pretty smart people working with me and AirTran has cheap tickets to SFO.
Full Disclaimer: I've changed my position many times before (as recently as this morning) and reserve the right to do so in the future.
Here's why I don't think Atlanta can duplicate or really compete with Silicon Valley:
Atlanta just doesn't have as many "crazy" people who are willing to take a risk on "stupid" ideas. I think this article sums things up well (just substitute Georgia for Michigan):
http://www.metromodemedia.com/blogs/posts/TMeloche3037a.aspx
Atlanta will never have enough "crazy" people... while Atlanta is one of the most progressive cities in the South, it's still pretty conservative which doesn't really allow for thinking differently and taking risks on a more massive scale.
It's also good to note that a lot people from either GT or Emory move to either New York or California after graduation or shortly after...