UPDATED 14:51 EDT / AUGUST 28 2012

NEWS

Is Dublin the New Startup Hub?

For some time, we have been listening apropos Dublin for banking disasters and real estate dramas. Amidst all these unpleasant happenings, we noticed some good things happening, related to the technology business. And it’s that Dublin is emerging as a startup hub, as several technology companies are surfacing up having their roots back in Dublin. What’s even more interesting is that these startups are able to raise a good venture capital from the U.S. investors. Instead of their neighbor country London, Dublin is pallier with U.S., especially the Silicon Valley. Recently, BalconyTV announced a funding round from Lerer Ventures, Polaris Venture Partners, and Greycroft Partners. And just one week before that, LogEntries received investment of $1 million from Polaris Venture Partners, RRE Ventures, and a local firm Frontline.

So what’s it that makes Dublin a startup hotspot? Instead of so many financial goof ups, why it is able to attract U.S. venture capital? Tracing back to the history of Dublin in 1970-1980s, when technology giants like IBM, Digital Equipment Corp., Hewlett-Packard, and Microsoft made Foreign Direct Investment in the island’s economy, it propelled the technology and PC industry, encouraging several executive to train themselves for the so-called technological era. Followed by this, there came a wave of native Irish software startups, such as Baltimore, Euristix, Iona, Parthus, and SmartForce. Later, the intelligent minds were later hired by companies like Google, PayPal, and Salesforce, followed closely by Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. And now, the same pool of executives is helping to build the next generation of startups in Ireland, maybe as founders, advisers, mentors, or investors. This is a big reason that Dublin is able to gather a pool of money for its next wave of startups.

As the funding is growing, several companies have started their offices in Dublin, some of which include DFJ Esprit, Polaris, and Sofinnova. Moreover, the growth of venture-capital firms like SOS Ventures, Frontline, and Bloom Equity give the hint of further growth prospects. All in all, the overall scenario is quite overwhelming and optimistic.


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