No. 36

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI

Just like its diverse neighborhoods, Chicago’s business culture has many faces: No single sector owns more than 14 percent of the economy. Still, with a 33 percent increase in tech employment from 2011 to 2016, it’s clear where much of the city’s entrepreneurial energy is being generated. Chicago is home to tech incubator 1871; in April, Betsy Ziegler became its first female CEO, replacing the ubiquitous Howard Tullman (an Inc.com columnist). Logistics software rivals Project44 and FourKites have had big rounds—the former a $45 million Series C in October, the latter a $35 million Series B last February. In 2017, when protein-bar maker RXBar was acquired by Kellogg for $600 million, it further validated the city’s bustling food startup scene. Up-andcomers now include Simple Mills and Tiesta Tea. But no matter how the startup world hums, people still talk about Groupon—or at least about Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell, the two co-founders who remain in town. Their latest projects, Tempus and Uptake, are each said to be valued at $2 billion or more.