2026, where is the best place in the world to create a startup?

China if its not politically sensitive. Singapore otherwise.

Overall probably still SV. But depending on the circumstances China, Singapore, Dubai are all good. The physical location matters so little from a business perspective now though. So I think it's actually more of a lifestyle choice vs a business one.

In 2026, the 'best place' isn't a physical city like SF anymore, but the jurisdiction that offers the best AI-compute subsidies and clear data privacy frameworks. We’re seeing a massive shift toward 'distributed hubs' in places that prioritize NPU-native infrastructure. If you're building hardware-adjacent software, look where the energy is cheap and the AI regulations are stable. The physical location is becoming secondary to the digital infrastructure you're plugged into

Agree that physical location matters less, but timezone overlap is underrated.

For US-focused startups building engineering teams, LATAM is worth a serious look. Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico have strong developer talent pools, and the timezone alignment with US business hours means real-time collaboration without the async overhead of APAC.

We've seen LATAM dev salaries rise 20-30% over the past two years, but there's still a significant cost advantage compared to US remote rates. The catch is understanding country-by-country dynamics — Argentina's economic volatility creates different dynamics than Brazil's more stable market.

Incorporate in Delaware or SG for legal/fundraising, but consider LATAM for engineering. The talent density in São Paulo and Buenos Aires rivals many US tech hubs now.