Venture capital is on the move — to New Mexico, Pittsburgh and points beyond

A new survey shows that venture capital investment – the stuff that fuels technology innovation – is growing in parts of the country where it has been largely unapparent. The survey from the National Venture Capital Association, based on data provided by Thomson Financial, found that while Silicon Valley remains the hotbed of seed capital, other regions are seeing it grow more quickly.

In New Mexico, for instance, venture capitalists put $128 million into 21 companies in 2007, the survey found. Compared to the investments made a decade ago, that’s an increase of 600 percent in the number of companies and of 375 percent in the amount of funding.

Or take Pittsburgh, the second fastest-growing region of the country in terms of venture capital investments over the last decade. In 2007, it was home to 44 new venture-financed companies – up 267 percent from 1997 – that collectively got $198 million, an increase of 513 percent).