Birmingham, Alabama - The 'Silicon Valley of the South'?

Question

I may be a little late posting this to the forums, but I wanted to put a (slightly delayed) spotlight on this awesome article that Forbes published in August.

Inside Birmingham's Bid to Become the Southern Silicon Valley

Birmingham has long had a reputation, along with much of the South, for being a bit behind, a bit outdated, a bit backward. Of course, for those of us that live here, nothing could be further from the truth. As this article highlights, there are some big, modern, exciting things happening in the Magic City, and our ambitious new Mayor is focused on bringing Birmingham - and its reputation - into the 21st century.

Our tech scene may not yet truly rival that of the Bay Area, but the California markets are quickly pricing themselves out of some promising young talent - talent that has started looking east for lower overheads and a more dynamic, inclusive, culture. Birmingham has proven to be a big destination for young professionals with degrees - a group that  starts more businesses at a younger age than previous generations. That's the kind of wave we want to see heading for Birmingham, and business, political, and community leadership are working together to make sure this new generation of innovators finds a home in our revitalized community.

Whether you think CA will remain the Tech Hub indefinitely or not, this piece does a great job of highlighting some of the future-focused businesses and programs being built in Birmingham. We at Spartan are excited about our city's ongoing Rennaissance - both personally and professionally - and I wanted to make sure the community here on BP got a glimpse of what's really going on south of the Mason Dixon.

Jason Cory · Answer

I fully agree Birmingham is changing & for the better. If the state of Alabama has a tech hub in its future I lean towards Huntsville. It's already the 4th geekiest city in the country with all of the smart people working for NASA & the private sector engineers servicing NASA.

I think that is why Google & Facebook are both spending hundreds of billions in the suburbs of Huntsville opening regional facilities. That should lend to more private sector companies to the area.

Birmingham has a knack for startups in technology though. Shipt is a great example of it. I doubt many realize it was founded in Birmingham but are quietly opening an office in San Francisco that will eventually become their headquarters.

Innovation Depot helps many startups in the tech industry in Birmingham.

To your point though, there are plenty of opportunities in Birmingham to invest.

Clayton Mobley · Answer

@Jordan Moorhead I think the point of this post is being lost somewhat. Simply by the numbers - population, size - it would be almost impossible for Birmingham to actually supplant the Bay Area. The 'Silicon Valley' tag is the Forbes author's twist, but I think is clearly a bit of hyperbole designed to grab reader attention, something more and more difficult to do, especially for a piece of this length. I doubt anyone reading this article or thinking critically for any amount of time would believe that Birmingham is poised to overthrow the Bay Area, or Austin, any time soon.

However, what the author was trying to draw attention to - and what my post was meant to highlight - is that Birmingham is changing, quickly. Arguing the probability of a city of 212k can immediately replace a city of 1 million + (Austin is about 1mil, Bay Area is 7) as a leader in any industry is certainly not the point of this post. Rather, I think it is important to showcase the work that is being done to bring this southern city into the modern day. Our Mayor's focus on tech education, on fostering interest and innovation in future generations, and on helping businesses and entrepreneurs in the local tech industry work with other local businesses and leadership to grow the community proactively are all worthy of note.

This post was not meant to be a sales pitch for Birmingham as the new tech hub of the world, that would be ludicrous. Anyone that reads my posts knows I'm not one for the hard sell,  but I think credit where credit is due, and I know the BP community is always interested in information about on-the-ground changes in popular RE markets.

Thanks to you and @Caleb Heimsoth , as always, for your input! If you read the article then my work here is done ;)

All the best,

Clayton

Jordan Moorhead · Answer

I'd agree with @Caleb Heimsoth

I seriously doubt the companies that pay $100k salaries on average will have trouble in Austin. The average price may be creeping close to $300k but they have an enormous amount of land and capability to build. Trying to beat that will be tough.

Not saying that Birmingham won't grow, it's just not Austin. I love Louisville and invest there, but it's never going to be Nashville...

Caleb Heimsoth · Answer

Last I checked the medium house in Austin cost 280k, so not sure how that’s pricing out talent.  It’s not 2M like in CA.  Anyways interesting read! After Austin and Denver I’d probably say the next big tech city is Nashville or Columbus.

Lane Kawaoka · Answer

I have four rentals in Birmingham but I don't think its the emerging market like Huntsville.

Danny Webber · Answer

the title has me rofl..... Roll Tide!

Clayton Mobley · Answer

@Caleb Heimsoth that's a point the article makes - even the last generation of 'new silicon valleys' (Austin, Denver) are starting to price themselves out of new talent. Every market that's already a 'tech destination' has a head start, by definition, but past is just prologue - what will come after remains to be seen, so it's good to keep an eye on how things are changing.

Birmingham, Alabama - The 'Silicon Valley of the South'?

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