Insider by Ben Bergman and Jordan Pandy Aug 31, 2023
'Where ambition goes to die': These tech workers flocked to Austin during the pandemic. Now they're desperate to get out.
• Many tech workers in California moved to Austin during the pandemic in search of a new lifestyle.
• Austin has also been portrayed as a growing tech hub, with companies like Tesla moving to the city.
• Some tech workers say they regret moving there, given its middling tech scene and "fake" atmosphere.
During the pandemic, Mike Chang, a 30-year-old founder and angel investor, moved with his wife from downtown Los Angeles to Austin. Like many others fleeing California, they grew weary of the state's high cost of living and the increasing crime and homelessness. They were excited to live in what they saw as a dynamic, fast-growing tech hub where they could afford a big house in a safe neighborhood.
But now, three years later, they are regretting their move.
"Austin is where ambition goes to die," Chang said. "We'd love to be in California."
Chang, who lived in the Bay Area prior to Los Angeles, is one of several tech transplants Insider spoke to who are having second thoughts about living in Austin.
During the pandemic, Austin became a hot spot for remote workers and coastal tech employees who were in search of more space, favorable tax laws, and a lower cost of living. At the same time, tech companies like Oracle and Tesla relocated to the Austin area, and other tech giants like Facebook and Google expanded their real-estate presence in the city.
Danielle Fountain, an Austin real-estate agent, saw a flood of tech workers arriving over the past few years, mainly because of remote-work opportunities — so much that The Hills suburb of Austin was nicknamed "Silicon Hills," she said. But as quickly as they came, many are leaving.
"I'm seeing a wave of people going back that could work from wherever when they came out here," Fountain said. "But now they're going back into the office."
Insider spoke to six workers in tech who recently left Austin or are trying to relocate (two of these workers spoke to Insider on the condition of anonymity because they didn't want to upset their employer). They cited several contributing factors, including extreme temperatures, traffic, overcrowding, and — perhaps most surprising — a middling tech scene that fails to live up to the hype.
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https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:eT87J6e4Y7EJ:https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-workers-moved-to-austin-regrets-2023-8&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
