- Amber Atherton launched her startup in London however moved to the US in 2017.
- While constructing her enterprise, she lived within the UK, San Francisco, and New York.
This as-told-to essay is predicated on a transcribed dialog with Amber Atherton, 33, about dwelling in San Francisco, London, and New York as a startup founder. The following has been edited for size and readability.
I launched my firm, Zyper, in 2016 in London. I moved from London to Palo Alto in December 2017 after moving into Y Combinator, a prestigious accelerator program for startup founders.
Before the transfer, I spent a yr elevating a seed spherical and buying prospects in London. We have been constructing software program designed to assist manufacturers join with their high followers.
I’ve lived within the Bay Area, New York, and the UK whereas constructing and scaling Zyper.
In 2020, Zyper was acquired by Discord. I joined Discord for 2 years and lived in San Francisco. Then, in 2023, I joined a enterprise capital agency known as Patron as a companion. We make investments pre-seed stage throughout the gaming and client web area.
I really feel actually at house in California. While I’ve liked dwelling in London and NYC, the Bay Area has one thing particular. The Valley is unparalleled as a spot to focus, construct, and make investments sooner or later.
Y Combinator helped me make connections within the US, however after this system, I made a decision to maneuver my enterprise to New York
I first moved to Palo Alto in 2017 with two engineers and a product supervisor from Zyper. It was near Y Combinator’s workplace in Mountain View.
I’d grown up between Hong Kong and England, and did not know anybody in California, so I used to be fortunate to land in Y Combinator. It gave me a neighborhood of founders and mates.
I used to be struck by how suburban Palo Alto was. You may assume it is a fashionable metropolis of glass and metal, however it’s truly an American suburb with lawns and one-story homes.
During this system, we had common teaching, workplace hours with companions, social occasions with batch mates, and galvanizing visitor audio system. It was a supportive and aggressive atmosphere.
I bear in mind Y Combinator’s Michael Seibel giving us a speak about why we should always keep within the Bay Area after this system, highlighting the ecosystem and expertise right here. Lots of YC corporations are nonetheless headquartered within the Bay Area.
In January 2018, we started working with legal professionals on a “Delaware flip,” which meant shifting our domicile to Delaware to make Zyper extra engaging to US buyers.
I noticed that if we needed to develop, we wanted to be within the US full-time, as there is a larger market.
I thought of taking Seibel’s recommendation and staying within the Bay Area, however in the long run, we determined to maneuver to New York, which was nearer in time zone to the UK.
We nonetheless had a group in London however did not have anybody dwelling within the Bay Area.
New York was numerous however stuffed with distractions
I moved to New York in June 2018. It was powerful going from Palo Alto, a hyper-focused atmosphere, to a 24/7 metropolis with 100 million issues to do.
There’s a lot stimulation within the metropolis — theatre, artwork, museums. I bear in mind being distracted by the infinite alternatives to attend events and dinners.
Meanwhile, San Francisco, the place I moved in a while, is a tech city. Everyone’s at all times speaking about constructing companies, and it is simpler to satisfy buyers and potential hires.
New York has an awesome founder expertise pool and ecosystem, significantly in crypto and AI. As an investor, I do know incredible founders in New York who haven’t any drawback coping with the tempo and distractions. After the Bay Area, New York is the next-best market to put money into.
But if you wish to be laser-focused with out distractions, you may’t beat the Bay Area. About a yr into my time in New York, I noticed we should always in all probability transfer again.
We closed our New York and London places of work on the finish of 2019 and moved our enterprise to San Francisco.
London’s the place Zyper began, however the market is not as huge
Within Europe, the UK is extremely considered a spot for technical expertise, and there are numerous success tales within the fintech area.
A giant benefit of the UK is that it has a few of the greatest universities on the earth, so there’s a number of nice tutorial expertise.
I nonetheless go to the UK twice a yr, which helps me keep linked with the scene and observe traits out there. The UK is a troublesome place to scale an organization that is not fintech or rooted in academia.
Market dimension is the obvious purpose. The VC and funding ecosystem is greater within the US, significantly in Silicon Valley, plus there’s a big distinctive expertise pool, so there is a faster trajectory from elevating a pre-seed spherical to hiring the folks you should attain milestones.
There’s additionally a cultural urge for food for threat within the US that is not as robust within the UK. The very DNA of America is the American dream. Particularly within the Valley, there is a propensity for in a short time backing “zero-to-one concepts” and creating one thing fully new.
When I lived within the UK, I felt the tempo was slower, however I feel the tech ecosystem has improved. There are extra angel buyers and VC funds now, however the expertise pool within the UK remains to be smaller than within the US.
I feel Brexit was a disgrace as a result of it was once simpler to deliver European tech staff over to work in UK.
I am unable to see myself making a full-time return to the UK, however you by no means know what the longer term holds.
Silicon Valley is particular, and I plan to remain
I moved Zyper to San Francisco proper earlier than the pandemic hit.
During the pandemic, there was a time when some folks left the town for Miami and Austin, however I’ve since seen optimistic indicators of restoration and an inflow of founders again to the Bay. AI corporations like Nvidia are primarily based right here and driving innovation within the subsequent computing wave.
The subsequent Silicon Valley is Silicon Valley.
There are different rising markets, like Korea, Brazil, and China, however I feel there’s one thing very particular concerning the ecosystem and historical past of Silicon Valley. The largest software program corporations have been constructed right here.
The solely crimson flag for me could be politics getting in the way in which. It’s good to have an unbiased physique regulating AI for client safety, but when politicians overregulate or overtax the way in which AI is working, it’d decelerate technological development and doubtlessly hinder financial progress.
I feel I’ll stay right here for the remainder of my life. If you might be obsessive about constructing, investing, and the way forward for client conduct, Silicon Valley is irresistible.