A major development this week for the city's booming tech sector, as USAA begins the move of all of the financial services giant's tech workers into a new office downtown, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Lew Moorman of the tech industry group TechBloc, says having hundreds of highly qualified tech specialists as part of the city's growing Tech District, where they can rub shoulders with tech specialists from the Pearl Complex, Geekdom, and other tech centers, is especially critical for the industry.
"Getting more critical mass in the downtown area who are working in the modern economy is a terrific thing, and there is no bigger tech employer right now than USAA in San Antonio," Moorman said.
USAA is one of the founders of San Antonio's vibrant tech industry. Even before Rackspace, before the National Security Agency opened its sprawling office on the west side, and before the U.S. Cyber Command and the 24th Air Force opened at Lackland Air Force Base, USAA laid the groundwork for local tech growth by recruiting tech specialists to its northwest side office, and by installing robust optical and fiber communication systems to support that effort. It was that basic infrastructure which was citied by other tech firms as the main reason they decided to locate in San Antonio.
Moorman says the concept of the 'critical mass' is more important in the tech sector than in almost any other profession, due to the evolving nature of the business.
"People want to go where their peers are, and where they can have a vibrant, fresh experience," he said. "I think this speaks to the momentum we are building."