Why Atlanta is ripe for innovation

September 15,2014

Atlanta is one of the best cities in the country to be an innovator.

It's the second most affordable city in the country, while entrepreneurs in other cities cram themselves into small "hacker hostels" to make ends meet. Over the past five years, the city attracted over $700 million in private investment through InvestAtlanta, and Atlanta added nearly $100 million to its cash reserves.

Equally notably, the city is re-embracing the social movements embedded in its history and is investing in historic landmarks, as seen through the launch of the Center for Civil and Human Rights and the expansion of the Sweet Auburn Curb Market on Edgewood. Even Outkast is back!

But some boats aren't rising with the tide. Children in Atlanta have only a 4% chance of upward mobility, and Atlanta has the highest income inequality in the United States. This creates a tale of two cities within the city I call home.