The San Francisco Bay Area is enjoying a vibrant growth spurt, with tech and VC activity on the upswing.

Many conversations about the Bay Area's business climate are still framed in the context of the collapse of the Silicon Valley dot-coms.

But the Internet bubble burst years ago, and the Bay Area is experiencing an upswing in business, particularly over the past year, PR experts say.

"A year ago things were very sleepy," says Bob Angus, whose firm A&R Partners was bought ...