I hate to say I told you so, but - just kidding! - no I don't.
Toronto may have cracked the top 20 on Amazon's list of potential cities for HQ2, the e-commerce giant's soon-to-be-built second headquarters, but the chances of us actually winning are still pretty slim.
Analysts and sports-betting sites have long favoured Atlanta as most likely to be chosen, followed by Austin and Boston (with some variation.) Nashville and Washington are also proving popular across the board.
Toronto, on the other hand, is tied for last place with Miami on at least one betting site in the race for Amazon's new $5 billion headquarters (and the estimated 50,000 high-paying jobs that are expected to come with it.)
Atlanta is the new favorite to land Amazon HQ2 (@BovadaLV):
— OddsShark (@OddsShark) January 22, 2018
ATL +500
Washington +800
Nashville/BOS +1000
Austin +1300
Northern VA +1500
Philly/Chicago +1600
Montgomery County/PIT +1700
Dallas/LA/Denver +1800
Raleigh +1900
Indy/NYC/CLB +2000
Newark +2200
Miami/Toronto +2500
Bovada puts the odds of Toronto winning at +2500, writing that "the current chill in relations between Canada and the United States, stemming from stalled trade talks and the uncertain future of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) could ultimately eliminate Toronto from the competition."
Toronto does, however, bring a lot to the table for a thriving tech company; just ask Google's Sidewalk Labs. To be chosen as one of the top 20 cities out of 238 across the continent is an honour in and of itself.
Unfortunately, as the only Canadian city on Amazon's list of finalists, tech talent and rapid growth might not be enough to offset the political firestorm to our south.
The Irish betting site PaddyPower puts the odds of Toronto winning at just 16/1, with Atlanta and Austin tied for first place.
You can hold out hope for HQ2 in Toronto, if you want to, but you may want to consider holding your bets as well.
by Lauren O'Neil via blogTO
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