You’ve probably heard it before, Austin is a cool place to live. But can a city renowned for its rewarding quality of life also compete against major economic regions based on smart business logic? In Austin, the answer is yes.

“When you get right to it, Ambion is in Austin because it’s easy to recruit scientists to live and work here.”
—Matt Winkler, Founder, Ambion

“Top 20 Boom Towns”—Austin places fourth in ranking of 318 metros by their capacity to generate high-wage jobs.
—Business 2.0

“Best Place for Business ”—Austin ranks third among 150 U.S. metro areas as best place to launch a business or career.
—Forbes

“Top Business Climate ”—Texas trimphs in this ranking due to pro-business measures, ease of doing business, overall business costs, actual capital investment and the state's fiscal health.
—Site Selection

Austin is a metropolitan region of 1.4 million persons that thrives on a balance of technology, business services, education and government.

As the geographic center of Texas and the home of both The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas System, Austin is the technological driver for biomedical and pharmaceutical innovation around the state.

With its highly trained workforce, well-recognized quality of life and vast experience in manufacturing and research and development, Austin can serve the needs of the medical device and pharma industries in a unique way. Today, Austin boasts approximately 85 companies in the medical product, pharmaceutical or bioscience areas.

This year, the Milken Institute included Austin in its ranking of the top 12 biotech and life science centers, in company with such powerhouses as San Diego, Boston and the Research Triangle. The study noted that clustering innovative activity is imperative and that only a handful of metropolitan areas have succeeded on a scale necessary to ensure industry sustainability in their regions. The rankings were based on the biotechnology innovation pipeline as well as the economic outcomes of the biotech sector.

Among the companies that helped Austin make the short list are:

Young. Creative. Productive.
A diverse economic mix and a robust, trained workforce were key factors in Business 2.0's 2004 ranking of Austin as one of the top four "Boom Towns" among 318 U.S. metropolitan areas.

Ask CEOs, entrepreneurs, educators and researchers why the Austin region has stayed hot through more than two decades of business trends and you'll hear one common theme. Workforce. It's all about people, and Austin's supply of unmatched employee talent is certainly no accident. As the business and government epicenter of Texas, Austin is a highly efficient workforce generator.

Educational Attainment of Persons 25 Years or Older, 2006

A Large, Fast Growing, Youthful Population Maximizes The Labor Pool
Fast growing, largely because of its draw as a destination to migrating talent, metro Austin's population is 1.5 million in 2006. The 1990s saw a 48% increase in population, and growth has been averaging 3% annually since the 2000 Census. The 2000 Census indicated that only four U.S. metros saw greater total net migration than Austin between 1995 and 2000.

Nearly half of the region's population, 46%, is in the peak working years between the ages of 18-44 (compared to 38% nationally). The median age of the Austin metro is four years younger than the national median (32.5 years vs. 36.4 years).

High-Tech Employment Base

Employment in High Tech Industries

Workforce Training Resources
The Austin area features several training providers including the Austin Community College, the Skillpoint Alliance and WorkSource. These organizations have developed customized training programs for the semiconductor, automotive, healthcare and information technology industries. The Austin area workforce training community has shown a unique ability to adapt to the training needs of the private sector and has funding systems in place to support the changing needs of business in the future.

The Battelle Institute’s latest state-by-state assessment of bioscience initiatives showed that Texas is one of the leading states when it comes to bioscience education. Texas ranked second in the nation for the number of bioscience graduates and ranked third for university expenditures in biosciences.

Within a 100-mile radius of Austin, you’ll find 39 colleges and universities—including a world-class research institution, the University of Texas at Austin, one of the nation’s largest universities.

Colleges & Universities in the Austin Metro Area

Degrees Awarded in Select Science Fields, Austin Metro Area Institutions, Year Ending June 2005

The University of Texas at Austin
Annual research expenditures at UT Austin exceed $300 million. The university ranks in the top 10 for the number of science and engineering doctoral degrees. UT Austin’s world-class programs include bioengineering, nanotechnology, bioinformatics and pharmaceutical research. UT’s College of Pharmacy is one of the premier institutions of pharmaceutical education and research in the country. The university supports more than 90 organized research units. A sampling of those impacting Austin’s future in bioscience technology development and commercialization include:

• The Biochemical Institute
• The Center for Biological and Medical Engineering
• The Center for Molecular and Cellular Toxicology
• The Center for Nano and Molecular Science and Technology
• The Imaging Research Center
• The Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology
• The Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences
• The Institute for Neuroscience
• The Institute for Theoretical Chemistry

Technology Transfer and Commercialization
UT Austin’s Office of Technology Commercialization has broken away from its formerly conservative approach to tech transfer and is now pushing hard to get UT innovations to the marketplace. This top ranked research university with hundreds of labs and research units on campus now aims to become a leading university in the commercialization arena that produces a serious impact on the Austin and Texas economies. UT Austin’s associated programs include the Austin Technology Incubator, the Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology and IC². IC² sponsors a degree in science and technology commercialization, and the university’s prestigious business school trains graduates on the enterprise of technology.

Patent Activity
Austin outpaces much larger and more economically diverse regions such as Phoenix, Seattle, Denver and Raleigh-Durham according to a Patent and Trademark Office analysis of patent activity for the decade of the 1990s. This demonstrated capacity for generating new ideas has only increased since the period of that study. During 2006 Austin inventors received over 2,300 patents—amounting to more than 150 patents per 100,000 residents and outpacing the national rate of 30 patents per 100,000 residents. UT is the fourth most patent-earning university in the country.

“The leading global regions to keep an eye on in coming years are San Diego, California; Austin, Texas; Cambridge, England; Bangalore, India; and Shenzhen, China.”
— Ross DeVol, Milken Institute Global Conference, 2003.

Austin boasts proven telecommunications, transportation, electric and water capacities to satisfy diverse kinds of operations ranging from sensitive data center operations to semiconductor manufacturing, as well as Fortune 500 firms and international businesses. A major metro economy, combined with the seat of Texas government, also means Austin businesses enjoy world-class business services in legal, accounting and public relations. From its major world-class research institution, The University of Texas at Austin, to its high profile as a focus of venture capital investing, Austin supplies business the fundamental framework for innovation and growth.

Favorable Real Estate Market
Opportunities abound for growing companies with long-term expansion plans. Thanks to an abundance of office and industrial space and a wide variety of environmental characteristics, the region can accommodate nearly any operation, large or small.

As of third quarter 2007, Austin had more than 7 million square feet of vacant office space and a 12% office vacancy rate. An additional 5 million square feet of inventory is under construction. The industrial market offers over 7 million square feet of vacant space, including clean room space, and a 10% vacancy rate. Ample Class A space is available in a vibrant downtown as well as a variety of suburban markets. In addition, the area has several campus-style facilities that are available for lease. The Greater Austin Chamber can help your company locate the site that fits your needs.

Centrally Located and Well Connected
Austin is positioned for business efficiency, midway between the two U.S. coastlines and centrally located relative to the major Texas cities of Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas/Ft. Worth. It also resides along I-35, the major U.S./Mexico/Canada trade route.

Austin is linked to the world by a modern international airport (opened in 1999) served by 11 major airlines, over 300 daily arrivals and departures and direct flights to 99 destinations including six foreign cities. The airlines include America West, American, Continental, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, Midwest, Northwest, Southwest and United. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport also has a nearly 300,000 square foot cargo port that is one of the most sophisticated in the nation. Eight general aviation airports serve the region.

Non-stop Jet Destinations 2007

Cost of Living
Compared to other major business centers, Austin is well known for offering affordable living. But that's understating the case. Austin is affordable compared not just to major business centers, but to the national average as well. The National Association of Realtors reports that the median home price in Austin was $163,800 in 2005 while the national median was $219,000.

Cost of Living Index, 1st Quarter 2006

Affordable Real Estate

Average Real Estate Rental Rates, 1st Quarter 2007

Competitive Labor Costs

Average Annual Salaries, May 2006

What better balance can a city offer than being both the 'Best Place for Business and Careers' and the 'Live Music Capital of the World'? Austin pleases all in rankings ranging from 'Best City for Relocating Families' to 'Best Cities for Singles'. Other assessments consistently recognize the region as among the most inventive, creative, wired, rockin', educated, fit and loved.

• Affordable and diverse neighborhoods, from urban lofts to hill country estates
• A climate made for outdoor enjoyment and recreation nearly year round
• Many professional and amateur sports venues and events
• More fine restaurants and clubs per capita than any other U.S. city
• A lush environment highlighted by parks, lakes and trails
• A creative culture that supports the arts, music and the theater
• Year-round festivals and celebrations for people of all ages