^ It depends:

If "tipping point" means has Chicago made any gains on other regions of the country, then the answer is, and probably always shall be, no.

If "tipping point" means does Chicago already have a lot of people working in tech? Of course, that never was an issue.

I'm guessing it has more to do with having a more diversified ecosystem within the industry with more options. Chicago area has had a lot of tech/IT for a long time but I don't think anyone can deny the last 8 or so years has seen some pretty big growth as far as diversification, number of companies, etc goes. My guess is that the poster is referring more to that. Chicago VC funding is already at around $4B this year too, which if I remember correctly would be on par with the LA area from a few years ago. At least from my perspective, Chicago right now looks much better for tech even if the number of tech workers in the area has been outpaced by other areas percentage wise.

also, what is "tech" anymore? is walmart any more or less "tech" than amazon?

if you consider software developers as the only true tech workers, those people are everywhere but yes there are a lot in the san fran bay area

I agree. The roles today and definitions today are even different than a decade ago. The amount of people and roles to pull this stuff off has grown a bit too. Product roles, for example, are also tech much of the time.

I personally take anyone who works on a tech product to be a tech worker no matter the company. I used to work for a stereotypical "tech company " but not anymore. My entire org, though, is larger than a lot of large tech companies. We have the same roles as a tech company, we use a lot of the same technology, doing a lot of the same things. I work with former employees of Google, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, IBM, Salesforce, etc etc. We use a lot of the same methodologies, processes,, etc as them.. But how many people recognize us as "tech workers"? It's so sad it's funny. By the way we are hiring something like 250 tech workers in Chicago right now but alas, that doesn't make the news.

There's always been a bunch of tech workers in Chicago but it's more visible now because of the startup ecosystem and large increase of VC funding in a relatively short period of time. Ultimately this is a good thing to be diversified whether you can work in the financial industry, retail industry, at a startup, or an established tech company.

I am a "tech" worker.

I spend all day having to use a POS electronic medical record system that is clumsy and designed by dingleberries that I'm sure I'm 100 times smarter than, but because all of my data entry is done on this thing, and I spend more time doing this than talking to patients, I'm officially a "tech" worker :D

^ at this point you should say you're working a double-shift with how much trouble machines have given you ;)

Back to "tipping point", I was referring to the city core itself being the site of attracting jobs. Metro Detroit has the 2nd highest concentration of tech jobs, next to Silicon Valley. Even though a lot are in automotive and other jobs that wouldn't traditionally be considered "tech", many outsiders are surprised by the abundance of jobs in computer science and engineering. However, most of these jobs aren't in Detroit itself, so growth has occured in the burbs. It's only been the past decade Detroit is starting to witness this tipping point of hires and expansions being in the city itself. Consequentially, investors that had otherwise stayed clear of Detroit are becoming confident with investing in the city, now that they're realizing the metro has a large ecosystem

I was wondering if Chicago has crossed a similar tipping point, where companies and investors that wouldn't have even considered us are now rethinking their decision. The amount of VC funding Chicago has attracted seems to be a sign of that, but are there any other markers that might indicate this

Great question. I would add the "growth in residents with at least a bachelor's degree" and "growth in residents making $100k+ with head of household under 45."

1. In 2016, 38.5 percent of the city’s population 25 or older had at least a bachelor’s degree, a jump from 29.3 percent in 2006, according to the American Community Survey. Crain’s reported that that increase is higher than the country’s other four largest cities and is more than twice the national increase of 4.3 percent.
   
2. Between 2010 and 2016, the city of Chicago gained more households in a key category—total income of more than $100,000 with the head of household under age 45—than any city in the country except for far larger New York, according to newly analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data.

Yup. In the case of Chicago, a lot is in financial/banking services, insurance, consulting, etc. That can actually be a very good thing as creating the tech is just one part of the equation. The other part is the actual business ideas, management, marketing, execution, etc. As a tech person, I feel like I've grown a lot more in terms or being able to run my own company because of my role in a non tech company to be completely honest. I did not get that in my other roles at tech companies as much. I think a lot of people in my same boat CAN create for more "talent" for startup and new company creation. Chicago in this regard isn't that much different than NYC but NYC is far ahead in this whole startup thing and what not.

By the way in 2019, the LA area took in $7.8B in VC funding. Thru the first 6 months of 2021, Chicago area took in $3.9B and some change. Who knows if that same velocity will hold in the 2nd half of the year but the pace for Chicago could set it equal to what LA was at in 2019. Who knows if it'll even come close but we'll see, and what 2022 has in store. But when you think about it, it's actually potentially amazing. Chicago area thru the first 6 months basically outraised, in publicly known deals, what all of 2020 did by about $1B. The vast majority of these companies, by the way, are located in the city proper.

The thing about "tech" is that the public is really only intune to what they are using. From that perspective z having the Facebook, Apple and Google of the world there is a good thing for attracting even more talent. However, there's a lot of good talent in most of the major metro areas who have a lot of economic activity that requires, these days actual tech (i.e. finance, insurance, retail operations like Wal Mart, medical, etc).

By the way, Lightfoot recently led a coalition of CEOs and others to try and get companies to open in Chicago even though some have been a little. A little page out of the books of mayors like Rahm. Let's see if it's at all successful.

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/comm...ce-lands-cisco

August 13, 2021 08:00 AM AN HOUR AGO

Old Post Office lands Cisco

In a deal that's been two years in the making, the IT giant is leasing about 135,000 square feet.

A.D. QUIG

Cisco still exists?

Cisco brands Chicago ‘midwest hub’
 

Tribune coverage
By LISA DONOVAN
CHICAGO TRIBUNE |
AUG 13, 2021 AT 8:00 AM

Technology firm Cisco Systems announced this week it’s moving its regional offices in Rosemont to downtown Chicago where the city will serve as the company’s Midwest “hub,” officials tell the Tribune.


Jobs span across sales, sales engineering, services, collaboration and operations roles, according to a Cisco spokesman. The Tribune reported in 2019 that Cisco was negotiating rent on 130,000 square feet of office space in the long-vacant old post office. The new Cisco space can accommodate 1,200 employees.

A top Cisco official called the move a win for recruitment efforts: It’s easier to attract young tech-savvy professional workers.

“Chicago is an amazing city and offers everything we wanted for our Midwest regional hub. It’s business-friendly, has a booming tech and innovation ecosystem, and offers access to a dynamic pool of talent,” Gerri Elliott, Cisco’s executive vice president and chief customer and partner officer, said in a statement.

LOL....If by having revenue of almost $50 billion is still existing, then yes.

I mean it's got a quarter trillion dollar market cap...

It's currently the 42nd biggest company in the planet by market cap...

CoinFlip moving headquarters to Old Post Office

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/greg...ilding-chicago

Glad to see the OPO continue to fill up! Also glad to hear that Chicago is not getting left behind the crypto boom. As one of the world's premier financial centers, we should definitely be paying a lot of attention to this.

Great to see. Here is a nice recent summary of some of the crypto related businesses in the area - there are many more https://www.chicagotribune.com/busin...v3y-story.html

From the article, I did not know that FTX set up an office in the West Loop, that is big news.

I can't find the reference, but I read somewhere that Chicago/IL had the most crypto ATMs of anywhere in the US. Athena Bitcoin is a CoinFlip competitor and is also headquartered in the Chicago: https://cointelegraph.com/news/athen...to-el-salvador

Uber opens new office at Old Post Office

https://chicago.suntimes.com/busines...ght-eats-rides

nice to see offices filling in. 100% remote work all the time can't be truly productive for a company, works for some, but I'm sure most will adopt a hybrid model like Uber just did.

Nothing new in the article

But remember this sitting empty for years trying to come up with a plan for this beast. It was so big most all thought half of it would have to come down for a rehab because it would be simply too big to fill.

Imagine if someone said it could be 90% leased!





https://www.chicagobusiness.com/cool...t-offices-2021


October 14, 2021 01:25 PM |



The Old Post Office: Best reuse of a historic building



As part of our Coolest Offices 2021, we spotlight the largest historical redevelopment in the nation, a building erected in 1921 and spanning three city blocks.

Crain's Coolest Offices 2021



The Old Post Office sat vacant for two decades, but in the largest historical redevelopment in the nation, the building, erected in 1921 and spanning three city blocks, is now a thriving work hub.

Nearly $1 billion has been spent restoring, replacing, replicating and cleaning significant architectural features and readying the 2.8 million-square-foot limestone structure to accept new tenants.

The unprecedented overhaul was spearheaded by developer 601W Cos. in conjunction with design giant Gensler and general contractor Bear Construction, along with historical consultants, preservation experts and civil engineers.

Since November 2019, companies such as Cisco Systems, CoinFlip, PepsiCo, Home Chef and Walgreens have taken up office and retail space in the iconic building. It is more than 90% leased, according to Jamey Dix, principal of leasing firm the Telos Group.


....


















http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...k7y-story.html




Uber opens new office in Old Post Office, making Chicago the center of growth plans for its surging freight business


By Robert Channick


Chicago Tribune |

Oct 19, 2021 at 3:44 PM


...


Uber now has about 1,500 Chicago office workers, with about half employed by Uber Freight, the company said. It plans to expand to more than 2,000 employees in Chicago.

...


“We’re in full hiring mode,” Lior Ron, head of Uber Freight, said Tuesday.



Uber is occupying about 310,000 square feet at the Old Post Office, including the entire ninth floor, parts of the eighth floor and a private rooftop deck. The company is subleasing about 150,000 square feet of its original space to other tenants on the eighth floor.



The new office features a full-service kitchen, executive suite, grand hall, restrooms, library spaces and other amenities. The roof includes event space and sports courts. But the biggest feature is simply the sheer size of the contiguous office.



“The floor plan allows us to actually have the entire team collaborate together on one floor,” Ron said. “It’s essentially like four football fields connected or like a skyscraper basically tilted on its back.”





Ron said the office will initially be open on a voluntary basis for Chicago employees, many of whom continue to work remotely. Uber is expecting most employees to be back in the office by the “beginning of next year,” he said.




In 2020, Uber Freight generated $1 billion in revenue, according to financial statements, and has accelerated to a rate that would produce $1.7 billion in annual revenue, Ron said.





“From a business perspective, Uber Freight has a lot of momentum,” Ron said. “We started from nothing just four years ago.”



Ron said the ability to “tap into the universities” and Chicago’s talent pool has enabled the business to recruit and ramp up logistics professionals quickly. The opening of a new technology hub at the Old Post Office will have “dozens of engineers” working alongside the operations staff, he said.



Another boost for the Chicago operation will be the $2.25 billion acquisition of Texas-based logistics firm Transplace, which was announced in July but has yet to close.


...

I think I had a Cisco modem in 1996 on my Packard Bell PC

now they own WebEx

the terrible clunky and not free version of zoom :D