Amazon picks 20 finalist cities for its next major HQ
After poring through 238 applications in the US, Canada and Mexico, Amazon has narrowed the list of cities for its next major headquarters to 20 candidates. Most of the centers picked by the Seattle-based company for its "HQ2," like Boston, New York City and Austin already have strong tech sectors. However, there were a few dark horse picks, including Columbus, OH, Raleigh, NC and Toronto, Canada. The 218 cities not chosen needn't hang their heads, said Amazon. "Getting from 238 to 20 was very tough -- all the proposals showed tremendous enthusiasm and creativity," said Amazon's Holly Sullivan. "Through this process we learned about many new communities across North America that we will consider as locations for future infrastructure investment and job creation." Still, a lot of communities will no doubt be crushed. Many went to a lot of trouble, including Kansas City Mayor Sly James, who purchased a thousand Amazon products for charity, and...