A new report details the startup hubs around the world growing the fastest, with several U.S. cities cracking the top 20.
Venture capital data firm PitchBook recently introduced its Global VC Ecosystems ranking, a look at both the most developed markets for venture capital activity and cities seeing the fastest growth. The top startup cities based on size and maturity are the usual hot spots: San Francisco, New York, Beijing, Shanghai, Los Angeles, Boston and London.
But in its ranking of the fastest-growing cities for venture activity, PitchBook's report uncovers where startups are quickly gaining momentum.
Topping the list is Dubai, followed by Detroit, the fastest-growing U.S. city on PitchBook's report.
The next-fastest growing U.S. startup cities are Raleigh, North Carolina; Houston; Indianapolis; Miami; Philadelphia and St. Louis.
U.S. cities make up 35% of the fastest-growing startup markets in the report. Europe and U.S. cities combined make up 65% of the list.
PitchBook ranked cities by "growth score," analyzing one-year, three-year and five-year growth rates for VC deal, exit and fundraising activity. The goal was to provide a multi-year look at each city's startup growth to avoid outlier years where a city saw one or two mega deals.
By ranking cities by fastest growth, the report identifies areas of "potential upside" for venture investors, PitchBook said, even if those cities have less developed startup ecosystems compared to traditional tech hubs. The report aims to highlight "VC clusters that have been growing in recent years," identifying places "growing their VC activity at a faster rate than more established, expensive and saturated locations."
Among the top cities based on size and maturity of their venture ecosystems, PitchBook ranked nine U.S. cities in its top 20 global ranking: San Francisco; New York; Los Angeles; Boston; Washington, D.C; Seattle; Austin, Texas; San Diego and Denver.