U.S. to make tech hubs in middle America with $500 million investment

The United States government is seeking to transform the metro areas of Central America into the next hotspots for technological innovation with an initial investment of $500 million.

On Friday, the Commerce Department announced its first notification of a funding opportunity, or NOFO, for the Regional Technology and Innovation Center program, known as Tech Hubs. The process begins for eligible groups across the country to apply to be designated as Technology Hubs. This designation gives them the opportunity to leverage funds to make their regions attractive places for entrepreneurs and technologists to live and work.

“America leads the world in technology innovation. But the sad reality is that our technology ecosystem is very concentrated,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told reporters on a briefing call Thursday, noting that 80% of American venture capital money is invested in San Francisco. Bay Area, Northeastern and Southern California. “There’s a lot of potential for technological innovation across the country. We have in the US the best research institutions in the world. That’s indisputable. And, frankly, many of them are in the heart of America, far from the coast.”

Congress authorized $10 billion for the program between fiscal years 2023 and 2027, of which $500 million is available for distribution this year. Under the current funding opportunity, a total of $15 million in planning grants will be made available to applicants designated as Technical Centers. Later this year, five to 10 selected technology centers will be awarded grants of between $50 million and $75 million each to help build capacity in their region, according to a Commerce Department official.

President Joe Biden Request to save $ 4 billion for Tech Hubs in next year’s budget.

Eligible applicants are groups Consist of at least one entity of each From the following categories: institution of higher education, subdivision of local or state government, industry or company in technology or related manufacturing, economic development group, labor organization or workforce training group.

By law, Tech Hubs must focus on a specific set of key areas of technology, which include artificial intelligence, robotics, natural disaster prevention, biotechnology, cybersecurity, energy efficiency and more. The department must designate no less than 20 technical centers by law.

The hope is that the injection of money will help regions across the country become major centers of innovation and create more well-paying jobs across a larger swath of the country.

“President Biden is very clear on one point, which is that everyone in America deserves a fair economic opportunity, no matter where they live, and they shouldn’t have to move in order to get a good job,” Raimondo said. “No one should leave their family, support system, or network to move to New York or San Francisco just to get a good job.”

Raimondo also framed the program as an important investment in the national security of the United States. She pointed to the nation’s current efforts through the Chips and Science Act to invest in domestic semiconductor manufacturing, which became an urgent bipartisan priority when the pandemic highlighted just how fragile the computer chip supply chain was. That’s because most advanced chips aren’t produced in the United States, and the industry’s reliance on chips made in Taiwan makes the supply chain particularly vulnerable, given tensions with China.

Raimondo said the United States has “ceded our leadership in manufacturing and innovation to this important technology. We are now in a difficult situation where we have to catch up.”

“Tech Hubs is about making sure that doesn’t happen again, and ensuring we stay ahead of the curve in other core technologies, from quantum to artificial intelligence to biotech,” she said.

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