Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) have the extraordinary ability to both self-renew and generate all mature blood cell lineages. The ability to produce or expand patient-derived HSCs in vitro would greatly improve the outcome for patients with blood disorders that are currently treated with allogeneic HSC transplantation. Many laboratories have been working to identify the signals required for HSC emergence in their native environments to apply this knowledge in vitro. Recently, several signals traditionally known to underlie classical inflammation have emerged as essential regulators of HSC development. In this review we synthesize the findings that have established inflammatory cues as key regulators of HSC development.