Baltimore-Towson ranks 4th on Forbes’ list of America’s ‘New Tech Hot Spots’

Forbes magazine has named the Baltimore-Towson region fourth in its list of “America’s New Tech Hot Spots.” Washington, D.C., is listed number one.
The list compiled by Forbes was created with the help of the Praxis Strategy Group, which looked at growth in STEM employment in “the 51 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas” from 2001 to 2012. Since 2001, STEM employment in the Baltimore-Towson area has increased by 17.9 percent.
Here’s the thing: without the raw data (you know, numbers), it’s a bit difficult to place that percentage in any sort of meaningful context.

What we do know is the Baltimore region continues to pop up on lists citing it as a The Next Best Thing in tech.
In May, Praxis issued a similar report placing Baltimore at number five on a list of “Best Metropolitan Areas for Technology Jobs.” Simply Hired‘s report in July placed the Baltimore-Towson region as the best place to look for tech jobs in the U.S.
This makes sense for a tech scene that, while underdeveloped, is slowly aligning the necessary bigger pieces (early-stage capital, a technologically-savvy workforce, government agencies like TEDCO emphasizing and financially supporting technological innovation).
And there are certainly plenty of things for which this city’s tech community can be proud, as Technically Baltimore wrote just before the new year.
But more important is providing people sufficient reasons to remain in Baltimore. It’s not enough to be bullish for the sake of, as Dave Troy points out in his digital roadmap for the city.