Mayor Lightfoot is committed to attracting new businesses—large and small—and creating an environment that supports and sustains entrepreneurs and workers who make Chicago their home.  

Under the Mayor’s leadership, Chicago has:

• • Reached an all-time record number of new and expanding corporate locations, including Google, Kimberly Clark, John Deere, Cisco, Tegus and The Scion Group, and named the “Top Metro” in America for corporate investment by Site Selection Magazine for the ninth year in a row.
  • Grown Chicago’s start-up scene, with the industry amassing more than $1 billion more in investments in 2021 compared to 2020.
  • Hit an all time venture capital funding record for local startups—$7.9 billion in 2021 alone.
  • Passed the #ChiBizStrong initiative, which cuts cumbersome regulations, provides real support to small businesses, and expands protections for workers. The program provided more than $10 million to small businesses hit hard by COVID-19. 
  • Expanded the most internationally connected airport in the U.S. and the number one port in the nation—O’Hare Airport.
  • Catalyzed the development of new housing near public transit and promoted vibrant, walkable communities through the passage of the Connected Communities Ordinance.
  • Achieved a record-breaking investment in fintech (financial technology) with more than a dozen Chicago-based fintech companies raising nearly half a billion in venture capital funding in the first half of 2022.