App Compiles Instagram Data to Find Happiest City

Business Insider published an article called “The 20 Happiest Cities Discovered by Studying Instagram.” How did they determine which cities were the happiest? By looking at Instagram. Start-up Jetpac analyzes public Instagram pictures to compile city guides for its app users.  When compiling its data they looked at the number of photos with smiling or laughing people.

As a resident of the “happiest” city I was surprised and encouraged by the results. Our community is thriving in general, with numerous plans to keep us on track for building a better region. For instance, the city and county are developing common economic goals in order to attract and retain global talent.

Did you know that St. Louis has 18 Fortune 1000 companies and is a leader in Agricultural Biotechnology with Monsanto’s corporation headquarters here? Culturally, we are a diverse group of people. And the city has the assets of a larger city with the affordability and sense of community of a smaller city. Jetpac’s use of big data to analyze the photos is equally compelling.  A computer normally has a hard time figuring out and judging the emotions of people in images. Jetpac uniquely gages their happiness levels.

So which cities made the cut? Check out the list and see if you agree or not by letting us know with your comments.

No. 1: Saint Louis, MO

No. 2: Kansas City, MO

No. 3: Columbus, OH

No. 4: Indianapolis, IN

No. 5: Pittsburgh, PA

No. 6: San Antonio, TX

No. 7: Minneapolis, MN

No. 8: Jacksonville, FL

No. 9: Detroit, MI

No. 10: Raleigh, NC

No. 11: Nashville, TN

No. 12: Chicago, IL

No. 13: Charlotte, NC

No. 14: Baltimore, MD

No. 15: Tampa, FL

No. 16: Denver, CO

No. 17: Dallas, TX

No. 18: Phoenix, AZ

No. 19: Boston, MA

No. 20: Houston, TX

 

Read more at: Business Insider.