The Defense Tech Corridor.
Why billions in stealth venture capital are quietly transforming the warehouse districts north of Austin.
Read the ReportFigure 1. Capital Inflow
This Week in the Silicon Hills
Silverton Partners closes $250M Fund VII
The oldest VC firm in Austin doubles down on early-stage B2B SaaS.
Meta subleases 100k sq ft downtown
Consolidation continues as Big Tech re-evaluates physical footprints.
City Council approves new transit bond
Project Connect timeline shifted by three years due to inflation.
Tech salaries stall, housing dips
For the first time in 40 months, the median tech salary in Austin remained flat.
Austin By The Numbers
Q3 Venture Funding
$1.2B
-15% YoY
Corporate Relocations
14
Year to date
Median Home Price
$540k
-8% from peak
Office Vacancy
18.2%
Downtown CBD
The Corporate Relocation Guide
Moving a business to Texas is no longer a simple arbitrage play. Between skyrocketing property taxes and a hyper-competitive talent market, the math has changed.
Our comprehensive guide breaks down the true cost of operating in Central Texas, contrasting the marketing myths with the financial reality.
- The reality of the Texas Franchise Tax
- Where to lease: Domain vs CBD vs East
- Calculate your relocation payback period
The Silicon Hills
Operator Tools
Calculators and models built for founders running businesses in Austin. No sign-ups required. Fully functional offline.
SF to Austin Salary
Calculate parity adjusting for cost of living and zero state income tax.
Startup Burn Rate
Model runway based on current cash and monthly net burn.
Franchise Tax Estimator
Roughly calculate your Texas Margin Tax liability.
Travis Co. Property Tax
Estimate commercial tax burden for facilities.
Seed Dilution
Cap table modeling for early-stage rounds.
Raising in Austin
The local VC ecosystem has matured from a handful of seed funds to a network capable of leading Series B and C rounds.
However, the expectations differ wildly from Sand Hill Road. Austin investors historically index heavily on capital efficiency, path to profitability, and B2B utility over consumer hyper-growth.
View the VC Directory How to Pitch Local Funds| Firm | Focus Stage |
|---|---|
| 8VC | Seed / Series A |
| LiveOak Ventures | Seed (Texas Only) |
| Silverton Partners | Seed |
| Next Coast Ventures | Series A / B |
We don't publish PR fluff.
The Journal of Austin is an independent digest covering the intersection of business, policy, and technology in Central Texas. We don't use AI-generated copy, and we don't believe in utopian tech narratives that ignore civic reality. We deal in hard data and plain English.
Read our Editorial StanceDelaware C-Corp vs Texas LLC
The standard Silicon Valley advice is to always incorporate as a Delaware C-Corp. If you're building a bootstrapped services or SaaS business in Austin, that advice could cost you thousands in unnecessary franchise taxes and filing fees.
Read the analysis →The Hidden Property Tax Burden
Relocating for the 0% state income tax? Ensure you model the 2.2%+ commercial property tax rate in Travis County. For asset-heavy businesses, this often entirely negates the income tax savings.
Understand Texas Taxes →The Friday
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Commercial Real Estate
Downtown (CBD)
The traditional anchor. High Class A vacancy rates mean heavy tenant improvement allowances for new leases.
View DataThe Domain
The "Second Downtown" in North Austin. High density, newer builds, favored by enterprise tech (Amazon, Indeed).
View DataEast Austin
The creative and early-stage startup hub. Converted warehouses and boutique mid-rises with premium price per sq ft.
View DataEthics and Standards
Journal of Austin Standards: