The U.S. Department of Commerce this month awarded $504M to develop “tech hubs” in a dozen oft-overlooked regions, part of a broader federal push to build economic powerhouses and open up thousands of good jobs beyond the superstar cities.

Created through the CHIPS and Science Act, the hubs will help develop advanced industries in places like central Indiana and upstate New York, building coalitions of research institutions, colleges, companies, and community groups.

The Big Idea: The central premise is that you can’t have sustained economic growth without bringing up the skills and job prospects of local residents, and conversely that you can’t have economic mobility without innovation and vibrant industry.

“What’s really important and exciting is the marriage of economic growth and economic mobility,” says Jon Schnur, CEO of America Achieves, which was the lead champion of the initial funding for the tech hubs. “Too often people think about economic mobility without looking closely at where the hockey puck is going in terms of what sectors of the economy and occupations are growing.”

America Achieves provided substantial technical support for six of the successful tech hub applicants. Schnur says those pitches were successful because they were built around local need, expertise, and opportunity. “This is so different from what you think about a federal program,” he says. “The energy level in these communities is so high.”

Even so, the tech hubs, along with other workforce development initiatives in the CHIPS and Science Act, face two central challenges:

  • The first is continued funding, with Congress not fully funding many of the programs authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act.

It actually cut the National Science Foundation’s budget by $800M this year and is considering cutting its education programs again, threatening efforts to help community colleges prepare workers for emerging technology sectors. Additional funding may yet be forthcoming, as CHIPS and Science initiatives have broad bipartisan support both in Congress and local communities—but little is certain in this election year or beyond.

  • The second challenge is getting the timing right for education and training. You don’t want hundreds of graduates before there are jobs, or vice versa.

The tech hub in Tulsa, which hopes to generate 50K jobs, shows ways to potentially address both timing and funding challenges. The hub focuses on next-gen drone technology, building on the region’s history and relative strength in aviation tech. The education efforts will first address existing workforce shortages in the aviation field, while preparing longer-term pathways to upskill workers into advanced drone tech specifically.

It’s an approach that can deliver economic mobility today, while building a pipeline for more specialized jobs once they’re available. Community groups are central partners, working to ensure that the efforts benefit Tulsa’s large Indigenous and Black populations—which have both a history of thriving in the region and of oppression and neglect.

On the funding front, the Tulsa hub is tapping into philanthropic support to extend the impact of federal dollars. The George Kaiser Family Foundation, for example, has committed to providing $50M in sustained funding for the Tulsa Innovation Lab, which is leading the hub, and $10M for wraparound supports for working learners. 

Across all the hubs, the federal funds are designed to attract philanthropic and especially private investment. “This funding is best seen by local tech hubs as catalytic funding. It’s seed capital for the first five years rather than implementing a federal program,” says Schnur.

If they’re successful, the tech hubs will show companies and investors that places like Tulsa can drive and sustain innovation. 

The Kicker: “Sometimes to be able to attract the attention of investors you have to show a certain critical mass and potential,” Schnur says.