As recent as a few years ago, many felt Texas had a promising chance to advance their career ambitions in tech. Gov. Greg Abbott courted Californians by promising "less government" and "smarter regulations," and in 2021, Houston ranked No. 2 for growing tech markets during the pandemic. However, the policies Abbott has pushed have led some to think Texas is now among the worst states to live and work.

But old Austin attitudes have clashed with the enterprising mindset of bosses in the tech industry. Founder and angel investor Mike Chang lamented to Insider that "Austin is where ambition goes to die."

Chang also shared his disappointment over a talent disparity between San Francisco and Austin, and other reports tend to agree. CBRE’s list of the top tech talent markets put Austin outside the top five while San Francisco enjoyed the No. 1 spot. A major reason for that is tech talent being almost 12 percent of total employment in the San Francisco Bay Area, whereas the average is 5.6 percent in other cities.