- Silicon Valley tech workers are migrating to New York City for the social scene.
- Even with high rents, New York attracted the most tech talent from the Bay Area in 2022-2023.
- Some tech workers have said they want a life after working late, making New York appealing.
Young tech workers fed up with Silicon Valley are heading east for the ambiance and the dating scene, and they don’t mind paying more for it.
New York City attracted more tech talent from the Bay Area than any other city between 2022 and 2023 despite having the highest rents in the country, according to a report from SignalFire, a venture capital firm.
The Big Apple is attracting tech investment as well. In 2022, Silicon Valley companies took in almost $75 billion from VC investors, according to The San Francisco Chronicle. Meanwhile, companies in New York secured nearly $30 billion, making it the country’s second most lucrative tech hub.
Millennials and Gen Z workers told the Chronicle that they saw more potential in New York’s social scene, which became a factor in their decision to move east. San Mateo County, which includes part of Silicon Valley, declared loneliness a public health emergency earlier this year.
“I always thought New York could be a much more fun city than San Francisco,” Sanchit Gupta told the Chronicle. “I also thought dating there would be a lot better.”
A self-described “night-owl,” Gupta told the Chronicle he was looking for something to do with his extra income. Kai Koerber echoed those thoughts, describing why he chose the city that never sleeps.
“Living in the Bay Area, things kind of shut down around 10 p.m.,” Koerber told the Chronicle. “So, if you’re in tech and want to kind of live a fun life in your 20s, while also building life-changing technology during the day, New York is kind of the place to be.”
For Gupta, at least, it worked out. Later this year, he plans on marrying someone he reconnected with in New York, he told the Chronicle. Even so, he still thinks he’ll head back west in the future.
