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5 reasons to be bullish on Chicago’s startup ecosystem in 2025
- Chicago has the potential to be a top city for building a startup, due to its affordability and diverse range of industries and engineering talent.
- Chicago saw some big wins in 2024, especially in relation to IPOs and M&As, and deal activity is expected to accelerate in 2025, driven by enthusiasm for AI.
- A strong technical community is a priority in Chicago with a focus on bringing builders together in the same room and creating spaces for them to collaborate.
- Chicago is making a bold bet on quantum computing, becoming leaders in hardware innovation, networking capabilities and software development.
- Chicago's early-stage deal activity surpassed the total for both 2019 and 2020 by the end of Q3 2024, with VC dollars also expected to be higher than 2023.
- Chicago is ranked #2 among non-coastal cities for early-stage companies that have raised at least two rounds of funding since 2022.
- Chicago maintains its position as the #1 city for corporate relocations and the state has the second-highest number of Fortune 500 HQs, which benefits the startup community.
- Drive Capital and other firms are doubling down on investing in early-stage opportunities, with new programs and incubators helping investors uncover fresh deals.
- Major company moves to Chicago included 440 companies expanding or relocating to Illinois, leading to 12,900 new jobs, with Google also set to bring 2,000 employees to the Loop in 2026.
- Chicago's ecosystem needs to retain more talent, increase early-stage funding, and encourage founders to dream bigger but its foundation is strong and the momentum is here.
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