Key factors in urban innovation

The FT has an interesting article today on 'Mapping the innovative city'. Below are the key factors in urban innovation, point four of which I have seen working in practice with numerous KB members.

A good mayor

Mayors in Barcelona, Munich, Turin and Bogota have radically influenced their respective cities’ futures through tenacious and intelligent intervention. Measures have included the reduction of red tape, zoning and construction restrictions, and the careful balancing of social, business and cultural agendas.

Ethnic mix

Cities with a lively, tolerant, changing and cosmopolitan population tend to attract the best people. But big cities need to be wary of ghettoising new arrivals to the peripheries, a problem that has blighted Paris.

Education

Although Richard Florida plays down the link between education and start-ups, every successful city, from Bangalore to San Francisco area, has a good university at its core or nearby.

Intensity

Urban innovation is not just about the numbers of tech companies; the trick is to get them communicating with each other.

This means bars, coffee shops, shared offices and communal public spaces. Innovation often comes through serendipitous meetings, so tech clusters need places for unexpected encounters.

Cool bars attract bright young people, and the proximity of the creative industries helps both groups to spot new opportunities and emerging trends.