About Columbia

A city in the state if Missouri, Columbia is the county seat of Boone and the 4th most populated and fastest growing city in the Columbian metropolitan area. Founded in 1821, this Midwestern city is home to the University of Missouri, the Stephens College and the Columbia College; hence it's a college town with a reputation for progressive politics, public art and persuasive journalism. This hub of learning has about 121,717 people jostling in its streets, lurking in cafes sipping espresso or hanging out in coworking venues in collaborative mode getting creative.

Columbia's economy is firmly entrenched in education, healthcare and the insurance industry with many souls employed by the government. Columbia's culture is dominated by music and the arts having one of the largest fine arts venues and a Museum of Art and Archaeology that displays about 14,000 works to keep the avid artsy and history buff smiling. Its iconic Ellis Library is home to over 3 million volumes of literature. For the architecture lover, there is an abundance of buildings in the downtown area or in the 4 historic districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places to catch your eye.

Missouri is lumped in with Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas as the "Silicon Prairie" for having a wealth of innovators, investors, entrepreneurs and talented minds within the area and for being the best cities for tech startups. The Missouri startup community is focused on building quality, high-paying jobs to leverage regional industries within its state making the most of its resources and talent. The startup scene of Missouri is evolving rapidly with a combination of talent and entrepreneurial spirit driving the momentum, and now that coworking venues have opened their doors, the tech-savvy souls have the perfect place to hang out in collaborative mode.