On the Planty ring-park there is a sculpture of two mathematicians playing chess. Nobody photographs them — too quiet for Instagram. But it's people like these — graduates of AGH, the Economics University, the Jagiellonian — who explain why Kraków became a European business services hub.
Rynek 13 — a Google office in a medieval building
Stand on the Market Square and find number 13. Under that address is Google's Kraków office — one of the world's largest companies in a 13th-century tenement, a few metres from the Cloth Hall. It's a useful starting point for understanding Kraków's business story: a global firm, a historic centre, AGH graduates as employees.
The mathematicians sculpture on the Planty — a monument to the graduates who didn't leave
Where the business districts are
Centre and Market Square area — Google (Rynek 13), consulting offices, smaller tech company headquarters. 5 minutes on foot from anywhere.
Zabłocie (15-minute walk from centre) — former industrial buildings converted to offices, co-working spaces and galleries. MOCAK is here for the same reason: creative economy. Less touristy, more functional.
Armii Krajowej / Bronowice area (20 minutes by tram) — large business parks: Bonarka for Business, Quattro Business Park. IBM, Capgemini, UBS and others have offices here.
Czyżyny / AGH area — the city's technology centre. AGH campus, incubators and startups that grew out of the university.
Universities as the engine — AGH, UEK, UJ
AGH (al. Mickiewicza 30) — Academy of Mining and Metallurgy, one of the best computer science faculties in Central Europe. University of Economics (ul. Rakowicka) — graduates staffing finance and analytics departments across global firms. Pedagogical University, Agricultural University, PWST — completing the talent pool that Kraków offers recruiters. Over 100,000 students in the city.
Companies in Kraków 2026 — a short list
Technology: Google, IBM, Cisco, Motorola, Nokia, EPAM, Comarch (HQ). Finance and BPO: HSBC, UBS, Shell, Revolut, Aon, State Street. Aviation: Lufthansa, Sabre, Ryanair IT. Consulting: Capgemini, Accenture, Infosys. Over 280 business service centres in total.