Venkat Janapareddy describes what makes Boston a perfect environment for startup companies.

1. W h y i s t h e B o s t o n S t a r t u p
S c e n e s o S p e c i a l ?
venkatjanapareddyventures.com

2. Intellectual Capital
Academia, Innovation, Diverse Industries and Ideas
Boston is a hub of academia. In total there are 74 colleges and
universities in the Boston area, which equates to 265,000
students. 8 of these universities are research institutes, that
pump $7 billion into the economy each year on research and
development. These universities play a part in making Boston
one of the leading cities in innovation. There is even an
innovation district in Boston that is currently growing rapidly.

3. Venture Capital
Venture capital is the money
provided to seed, early-stage,
emerging, and emerging growth
companies. In 2012 $3 billion
was invested in venture capital
in Massachusetts, compared to
$14.1 billion in California and
only $1.8 billion in New York.
However, the venture capital
investment per capita in 2012
was greater in Massachusetts at
$454 per person, than in either
California, $368 per person, or
New York, $92 per person.

4. Advisors, Angels, Accelerators
Angel investor: an affluent individual who provides capital for a business startup,
usually in exchange for convertible debt or ownership equity.
Accelerator: fixed-term programs that include mentorship and an educational
component that end in a public pitch even or demo day.
The proximity of Boston to NYC is a huge advantage. With thousands of startups
and mature companies in New York, there are many advisors and angels who are
eager to invest in emerging Boston startups.

5. Successful Companies
Large companies that are
already established in Boston
are very helpful for startups
because they often invest in and
sometimes even purchase new
companies. Startups are able to
plug into these larger
companies to help them grow.