Business: Companies who call Boston home
Boston is one of America’s oldest cities that mixes heritage with the future. Affectionately called Beantown or Route 128(also known as America’s Technology Highway), Boston has a lot to offer to both citizens and businesses. In this article, I’ll be talking about Boston’s history, why Boston is an amazing tech hub, and companies that were started in Beantown. Here, let’s take a look:
Boston
Before we get into the tech side of Boston, let’s first learn more about Boston itself as both topics go hand in hand with each other. Boston is a city with rich heritage and has been home to numerous famous events. Home to many famous sports teams and achievements, Boston knows how to rewrite history as we know it. Let’s take a look at both its history and it’s famed achievements.
History
Boston was founded in 1630 by the Puritans from England. The Puritans that settled in Boston were led by a man named John Winthrop. As Boston grew and prospered over the years long after the arrival of the Puritans, Boston was at the heart of tension with it’s fellow city Philadelphia in a fight between colonials and the British that would later spark the Revolutionary War. After the war, Boston kept growing in the 1800s and was one of the first states in the Union to abolish slavery. Now, Boston is a great city that has so much to offer with its numerous city expansions that provide Boston with more space.
City of Firsts
Boston is a fabulous city with many achievements. Here is a list of a few of Boston’s achievements:
- Home to the world’s oldest annual marathon, Boston Marathon in 1897
- First Underground Subway Station in 1897
- First Telephone in 1876
- First Public School, Boston Latin School in 1635
- World’s first public municipal library, The Boston Public Library in 1848
- First Public Park, Boston Commons in 1634
- Oldest American College, Harvard University in 1636
- “Shot heard around the world”-Start of the American Revolutionary War in the Battle of Lexington & Concord in 1775
- First Thanksgiving Feast in 1621
- First Full Face Transplant in 2008
- First Minicomputer and First Modern computer in 1960
- First Microwave Oven in 1947
- First Chocolate Chip Cookie in 1936
- Oldest School of Music in the US founded in 1867
- First Aerial Photo in 1860
- First Boston Cream Pie in 1856
- First State Constitution in 1780
- First Americans to Circumnavigate the Globe in 1790
- First Use of Surgery in 1846
- First Coined The Term “Ok” in 1839
Why is Boston a tech hub?
Boston gets overlooked by it’s fellow tech hubs in the West. However this doesn’t make it a terrible tech hub, the other hubs just get talked more often. While everyone’s eyes are on Silicon Valley, Seattle, and Los Angeles, Boston is an underdog and has a lot to offer.
Culmination of Global Talent
Boston is home to some of the best universities and schools in the world. Universities like MIT and Harvard bring bright students from around the country and world to innovate in fields like science, math, arts, and technology.
Affordability
Boston is a cheaper alternative to big tech hubs like Silicon Valley and New York City. It offers a similar environment for both startups and companies and is a great place to communicate with other industry experts. It allows entrepreneurs and companies to have a clear path to success as they don’t have to worry about the cost and pressure of survival in a large tech hub.
Workshops and Accelerators
Boston has many organizations and universities that offer workshops on business, entrepreneurship, and other related business topics. Accelerators and programs like TiE Boston, Startup Institute Boston, and General Assembly help teach the future of entrepreneurship and business to the public.
Companies started in Boston
Now, let’s talk about some of the companies that call Boston home. Here is a list of some Boston-born companies that have certainly made their mark in their industry.
Liberty Mutual
Liberty Mutual was founded in 1912 and offers a wide range of insurance products and services from personal automobile to fire.
Legal Sea Foods
Legal Sea Foods is an American restaurant chain of casual-dining seafood restaurants mostly located in the Northeastern region of the United States.
Fidelity
Fidelity Investments Inc., commonly referred to as Fidelity, is an American multinational financial services corporation.
DraftKings
DraftKings is an American daily fantasy sports contest and sports betting operator. The company allows users to enter daily and weekly fantasy sports–related contests and win money based on individual player performances in five major American sports (MLB, the NHL, the NFL, the NBA and the PGA), Premier League and UEFA Champions League soccer, NASCAR auto racing, Canadian Football League, the XFL, MMA, and Tennis.
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific is an American supplier of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, and software and services to healthcare, life science, and other laboratories in academia, government, and industry.
Staples
Staples Inc. is an American office retail company. It is primarily involved in the sale of office supplies and related products, via retail channels and business-to-business-oriented delivery operations.
Wayfair
Wayfair Inc. is an American e-commerce company that sells furniture and home-goods. Formerly known as CSN Stores, the company was founded in 2002. Their digital platform offers 14 million items from more than 11,000 global suppliers.
Formlabs
Formlabs is a 3D printing technology developer and manufacturer. The Somerville, Massachusetts-based company was founded in September 2011 by three MIT Media Lab students. The company develops and manufactures 3D printers and related software and consumables.
TripAdvisor
Tripadvisor is an American online travel company that operates a website and mobile app with user-generated content and a comparison shopping website. It also offers online hotel reservations and bookings for transportation, lodging, travel experiences, and restaurants.
iRobot
iRobot Corporation is an American technology company that designs and builds consumer robots. It was founded in 1990 by three members of MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Lab, who designed robots for space exploration and military defense.
Conclusion
Boston is an emerging tech hub that can provide top notch companies a place for them to work effectively to get to the next level. It’s culture and people allow for innovation to exist and thrive.