Medellín, The new Silicon Valley

Tech and innovation hub: Medellín is the major hub for technology and host to the World Economic Forum’s first Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in Latin America.
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Medellín is recognized in the world as one of the most innovative cities or as “The Silicon Valley of Latin America” ​​since in 2012 The Wall Street Journal chose it as The City of the Year among the smartest on the planet, within the framework of the City of the Year contest, organized by ‘The Wall Street Journal’ and Citigroup, beating New York and Tel Aviv in the final.

Medellín, the second most populated city in Colombia, is beginning to position itself as a Silicon Valley of South America thanks to Ruta N, a complex in which several technology companies are installed. This center was born in 2009, promoted by the Medellín Mayor’s Office and other companies, to promote the development of innovative technology-based businesses, for which the city and country authorities promoted a series of incentives to attract investment. Thus, the technology company Hewlett-Packard, the Kimberly-Clark corporation, one of the world leaders in hygiene products, or the Canadian animation company Pipeline Studios are among the big names that have chosen Medellín as their Latin American headquarters.

“We started as a bet for the city. Now we are an organization with legal independence that seeks to strengthen and consolidate the fields of science, technology and innovation from human talent, from investment funds for entrepreneurship projects,” they explained Directors of Ruta N. “This is the decade of Latin America. The future is ours” .

This complex, in the north of the city, once completed will occupy 115 hectares and will be one of the largest technology centers in Latin America.