Silicon Valley, Boston and Austin may have some new competition–and not just from Bangalore, Shanghai and Singapore.

The latest kids on the tech block are places like Twin Falls, Idaho; Oklahoma City; and Jonesboro, Ark. These are among the smaller cities or rural areas of the United States where information technology companies have been locating or expanding facilities.



The companies, ranging from IT services start-up Rural Sourcing to computer giant Dell, can save on wages in these communities, thanks partly to inexpensive housing there. And in some cases, the companies are pitching operations in midsize America as an alternative to shipping work abroad.



A key to what’s been dubbed “homeshoring” is tapping a little-noticed talent pool. Kathy White, Rural Sourcing’s founder and an Arkansas native herself, argues that technology professionals in major metropolitan centers often come from smaller communities. “We’re just reaching the ones that don’t want to leave,” she said.



To be sure, states like Oklahoma, Arkansas and Idaho aren’t stealing the show when it comes to generating tech jobs. California ranked as the top state by far in terms of new IT positions posted on major job boards in December, with New York and Illinois also among the leaders, according to a study from job search service NimbleCat.



California’s Silicon Valley–long the center of the technology world–continued to bleed jobs last year, but saw venture capital investments increase by 15 percent. The state now accounts for 35 percent of the nation’s venture capital, up from 14 percent a decade ago.



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