As a guess, people are probably on average a bit sharper. But it's a weak signal. If it were strong, companies would just hire people from the BA without a tech screen, and rarely or never look at people outside the BA. Which is not the case.

I've not worked there and once dreamed of it as you did. On a few business trips, sat in on tech meetups. It is indeed glorious to sit in a large room full of nerds on any given evening. If you're still young and single, you should ride the ride for a few years.

At the same time, it seems like a terrible place to actually live your life, relative to other possibilities in the US.