Though we're no longer set to be the home of one of the most technologically advanced neighbourhoods in the world, Toronto is still proving itself to be a huge force in the tech sector, and a hot spot for those in the industry.

The city's scene has now surpassed that of even San Francisco as far as growth, and is still expanding rapidly despite the pandemic, as indicated by new numbers on our tech worker pool.

According to new rankings from CBRE, which scores U.S. and Canadian cities on their tech talent, Toronto tops the list in Canada for 2020 with a ranking of 87.6, adding a staggering 36.5 per cent more workers in that industry betweeen 2014 and 2019, making for about 250,000 innovative minds — 8.8 per cent of the city's total workforce.

Even compared to major U.S. hubs, Toronto gained a significant edge as far as new graduates in the field, far outpacing all other Canadian cities with a ranking of 64.34 and coming fourth overall as far as tech talent between the two countries, just after the San Fran Bay Area, Washington and Seattle.

“In a year of unprecedented upheaval and transformation.... Canada’s top tech markets were largely unfazed by the pandemic with Toronto once again taking the No. 1 spot followed by Ottawa, Vancouver, Waterloo region and Montreal.”

— Shauna Brail (@shaunabrail) November 19, 2020

With billions being invested into new startups in the city each year, it's no surprise that people in the biz are flocking here, especially as tech companies are far less affected by the health crisis than other types of businesses.

Some — like Shopify, which has a burgeoning Toronto presence — have even benefitted from the uptick in things like online shopping and social media use.

"Through COVID-19, tech companies have generally fared well. Early on, ecommerce and social platforms experienced a boom as shelter-in-place measures went into effect, forcing everyone to rely on the tech around them to work and live," the new report reads.

"Success also extended to more specialized players in the realms of cybersecurity, IT infrastructure, gaming, and work-from-home enablers."

As people continue to work from home and rely on online options amid lockdowns, it's safe to assume that Toronto's tech sector will keep on flourishing as the city remains one of the top contenders in the industry.