Boston Global Startup Hub moves into top gear

Boston’s startup epicenter has undergone a radical shift since 2011, with startups turning their backs to suburban areas and, in turn, embracing the urban district by establishing their companies in downtown Boston and Cambridge, in closer proximity to MIT, Harvard, and, consequently, swissnex Boston. Where the startups have gone, the venture capitalists have followed.

Now co-working spaces, and startup incubators and accelerators are sprouting up across the city. The universities in Boston have long provided access to a deep pool of talent, which explains why giants such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Novartis, Pfizer, J&J and many others have all opted to establish prominent bases in Cambridge. Universities are not only a vast resource of talent for potential hires, but also an invaluable one for finding key opinion leaders in nearly any field possible.

The startup ecosystem in the city is also becoming much more diverse. Although Boston’s core strengths historically lie in Life Science and Technology (especially infrastructure, networking, and security – the “plumbing of the Internet”), now new fields of expertise such as e-Health and ad-tech are starting to gain serious market traction in the city.

In short, Boston is now a more fertile environment for creative cross-pollination and innovation than it has ever been. The innovation industry has mirrored Silicon Valley’s migration from the suburb to the city, and the city feels more alive, throbbing with a pulse.

Market validation camp and market entry camp for Swiss startups
Swiss early stage & stealth mode start-ups enrolled in the CTI (Commission for Technology and Innovation of the Swiss Government) coaching process today have the opportunity to test product and business models in the US market validation camp, and more established global start-ups with initial traction can use the US Market entry camp to acquire customers, find partners, and hire collaborators. All of this takes place out of swissnex Boston’s sleek, cutting-edge facility in Cambridge, strategically positioned between Harvard and MIT, and, of course, with the support of the swissnex staff and network. More information at: http://www.ctistartup.ch/en/services/cti-market-entry-camps/usa/

Key facts & figures about Boston:

• With 74 colleges and universities, 265’000 students, and $ 1.5 Billion (B) annual university R&D expenditures, the greater Boston area is a major pool of talent and a factory of innovation.
• Boston entrepreneurs are highly educated (> 50% have a Master or a PhD)
• Boston’s funding ecosystem has no major funding gaps. In 2013, Massachusetts-based VC 
firms raised $5.4 B for new funds (roughly a third of all VC in the U.S).
• In 2013, Boston-based startups closed 97 deals for venture capital financing with a total flow of $593 Million (M).
• With 12 IPOs in 2013, Massachusetts followed California in the classification of states with the most IPOs.

If you are interested to learn more about the Boston startup ecosystem check out this webinar and video series:

Video series – Being an entrepreneur in Boston: http://bit.ly/1zxlB43  

Webinar – Boston Global Startup Hub, with C.A. Webb, director of New England Venture Capital Association: http://bit.ly/1GRCMib