Santa Barbara, in addition to being a popular tourist destination, has become a hub for young and developing businesses, notes Kenny Slaught, with dozens of promising, new companies founded in recent years. Many, including AppScale, LastLine, TrackR, and Salty Girl Seafood, have come directly out of the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). Over $200 million has been raised from private investors for area startups in the last year, giving the Central Coast nearly twice the investment in innovation per capita than the greater Los Angeles area, a much larger market. While some may give in to the temptation of moving to Silicon Valley or Hollywood, local entrepreneurs recognize the importance of building a business in an environment which promotes growth. This results in the region being one of the best places in the country to launch and cultivate startups, with remarkable biotech, medical, technology, and scientific businesses like Inogen, Raytheon, Sonos, and BioIQ getting their start here.
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