Top Emerging AI Hubs and Talent

Do the world’s best AI Engineers and Researchers live in San Francisco? The “human network effects” of SF have long been tech’s heartbeat. But, the Covid years led to a somewhat widespread exodus of top talent from SF to Austin, Miami, NYC, etc. Is AI bringing top talent back to SF? In short, yes. It appears so–at least, for AI/ML talent. Let’s take a look. _______________ Methodology: Our data science team took a look at all Software Engineers, Applied AI/ML Engineers, and AI/ML Researchers across Pave's customer base of 8,500+ companies. This amounted to an analysis sample size of 93,614 incumbent data points. We then classified each of the incumbent data points as either “in” or “not in” the San Francisco Bay Area. Lastly, we compared the findings across the three analyzed job families. Note – this analysis showed me firsthand that the true AI/ML Research talent pool is extremely small. And SF is the chosen home base for these bleeding edge AI experts. _______________ Findings: ✅ 22% of the software engineers in Pave’s dataset are in SF. Sure, this is partially due to the confounding force of many Pave customers being tech companies with large Bay Area footprints. This said, the "22%" benchmark nonetheless sets the stage as a point of comparison for AI Engineers and AI Researchers. ✅ 30% of the Applied AI/ML Engineers in Pave’s dataset are in SF. ✅ 50% (!) of the AI/ML Researchers in Pave’s dataset are in SF. AI/ML researchers are concentrated in SF at a ~2.3x rate more than that of software engineering generalists. _______________ Takeaway: At this point in time, AI talent (both Applied AI engineers as well as AI Researchers) is more heavily concentrated in SF versus Software Engineering Generalists who are more distributed around the globe. In particular, AI Researchers have an extremely high concentration in SF. This makes sense given that many of the world’s bleeding edge frontier models and AI companies are mostly HQ’d in SF. (OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity, etc.) Not to mention the SF footprints of the AI-leading juggernauts like Meta, Alphabet, NVIDIA, etc. I’d also hypothesize that there are disproportionately concentrated pockets of AI talent in a few other key AI powerhouses including London (Deepmind), Paris (Mistral), and New York (lots of talent migration between SF and NYC). We will keep a pulse on the AI labor market as the sector evolves. But for now…long live SF? #pave #ai #benchmarks

Did the entrepreneurship scene in Seattle slow down after Techstars announced its closure? Not really! Although Seattle fell 10 spots to No. 20 in Startup Genome’s annual “Global Startup Ecosystem Report,” a ranking of the leading startup regions in the world, I think it is the beginning of a new era. As one door closed, others swung open. Several founder communities, accelerators, and incubators sprung into action to support builders of AI beyond SF. ↳ Incubators and Funding: City and state leaders are working together to create a new AI-focused incubator in Seattle, with $800,000 in funding to support startups. The AI2 Incubator has already spun out over 20 AI companies, including startups acquired by Apple and Baidu, Inc. The AI2 Incubator also revealed that it will operate and help fund the new center, billed as the “AI House.” The idea is to host a physical space for AI-related events and a place for founders, investors, researchers, and nonprofits to interact. Some other incubators: → Comotion Labs - UW CoMotion → Creative Destruction Lab - Seattle → Madrona Venture Labs → Nucleate Seattle → Pioneer Square Labs → WASHINGTON INNOVATION NETWORK - Life Science Washington Institute → WASHINGTON TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY ASSOICATION → Maritime Blue Innovation Accelerator → The AI Furnace 🧨🔥 - They've achieved amazing milestones such as 15,000 community members, 50+ founder/researcher meetups, 10,000+ connections between founders building in AI worldwide, and more! → AI Tinkerers ↳ Talent and Expertise: Seattle ranks second nationally in AI talent density, with top engineers and researchers at the University of Washington and the Allen Institute for AI. The city is home to cloud computing giants Microsoft and Amazon, which sell essential tools and services that power AI and machine learning applications. ↳ Startups and Innovation: Seattle is home to a growing number of AI startups, including Signify, which recently raised $2.1 million to build out its software platform for manufacturers. Other AI-focused startups in Seattle include Lexion, WellSaid, Xembly, and OctoML. And let's not forget the investors – angel investors, venture capitalists, and crowdfunding platforms. In my recent visit to the Seattle Tech Week 2024, I had the opportunity to interact with some amazing women in tech and investing. → Elizabeth Liu, CEO of Crowd Cow → Elisa La Cava, Principal, Trilogy Equity Partners → Yoko Okano, Founding Partner, First Row Partners → Amy Mezulis, Co-Founder & Chief Clinical Officer, Joon Care So it's clear that Techstars' departure was not a death knell for Seattle's entrepreneurship scene, but rather a chance for new players to shine and for the community to come together stronger than ever. What are your thoughts on Seattle's emerging ecosystem for AI founders and investors? #seattle #AI #artificialintelligence #technology #USA

AI's Global Reshuffle: Why Emerging Markets Led by India & Africa, are the New Powerhouses The global economic landscape is undergoing an unprecedented reinvention, driven by the exponential rise of Artificial Intelligence. Countries like India, the nations of Africa, the Philippines, and Latin America are not just adapting but actively shaping the AI future. This isn't just about technological adoption; it's about redefining economic trajectories and leveraging immense human capital. For decades, India has been a global IT and BPO backbone. Its 5.4 million-strong IT-BPM workforce has been instrumental for enterprises worldwide. Now, AI is propelling India from a service provider to an innovation partner. With India projected to produce 18 million STEM graduates by 2027, India is poised to meet the surging global demand for AI, data science, and cloud expertise. Africa is poised for the next big leap and is uniquely positioned to become an "AI-first" continent. Its young, adaptable population is ready to leapfrog traditional development stages. By 2035, Africa will have the largest and youngest workforce globally, with its working-age population projected to grow by an astounding 450 million people. This demographic dividend, combined with a strong mobile-first culture, means AI can directly address critical challenges. AI could add a staggering $2.9 trillion to Africa's economy by 2030. McKinsey further estimates that the at-scale deployment of generative AI alone could unlock $61 billion to $103 billion in additional economic value across various sectors in Africa. This massive potential for wealth creation and development solidifies Africa's position as a future AI powerhouse. While "this decade belongs to India”, the next decade is undeniably Africa's. The continent's vibrant tech hubs and burgeoning talent in AI, analytics, and engineering are not just consuming technology but creating it, building solutions tailored to their unique contexts. Beyond India and Africa, the momentum is equally strong: ▪️he Philippines' BPO sector, employing over 1.8 million Filipinos, is rapidly upskilling its workforce in AI and automation, evolving towards higher-value, more complex service offerings. ▪️Latin America, with countries like Colombia, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina boasting a tech talent pool of over 2 million IT professionals, is leveraging AI for industrial optimization, fintech innovation, and digital public services, driving regional growth. This global rebalancing signifies a profound shift. Global enterprises are no longer just seeking cost efficiencies but true innovation partners and diverse talent pools. AI is reinventing the future of emerging growth markets. Be part of it and enjoy the ride. Love your thoughts! #AI #EmergingMarkets #India #Africa #Philippines #LatinAmerica #FutureOfWork #Innovation #DigitalTransformation #GCC #TalentDevelopment #GlobalEconomy Avnish Sabharwal Mirafe Gebriel Marcos Jimit Arora