The Biden Administration recently announced the designation of 31 communities across the country as Regional Innovation and Technology Hubs (Tech Hubs) through the Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, however, all five Tennessee regions that applied for the designation were not included.
The Tech Hubs program was authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act and is part of President Biden’s ‘Bidenomics’ agenda to grow the economy “from the middle out and bottom up.”
For too long, economic growth and opportunity has clustered in a few cities on the coasts.
Today, @POTUS and @SecRaimondo announced the designation of 31 Tech Hubs across the country that represent the full diversity of America. pic.twitter.com/OyLddrCleR
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 24, 2023
The 31 recently-designated tech hubs, according to the White House, were selected to “represent the full diversity of America.” More than 370 sites spanning 49 states and four territories applied for the designation.
“The 31 Tech Hubs focus on developing and growing innovative industries in regions across the country, including semiconductors, clean energy, critical minerals, biotechnology, precision medicine, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and more,” the White House said.
The five following regions from the Volunteer State applied for the designation:
- Chattanooga for quantum technology
- Memphis for supply chain and logistics
- Nashville for data storage and management in life sciences
- Tri-Cities region for synthetic biology
- Knoxville for clean energy and artificial intelligence
Tracy Boatner, president of the East Tennessee Economic Council, told Knox News in a statement, “We were disappointed that we did not receive designation. However, Tennessee currently has a thriving nuclear energy ecosystem with 229 companies located across the state. Here in East Tennessee, we have a thriving cluster of both existing and new nuclear companies.”
Boatner was appointed by Governor Bill Lee to serve on the Tennessee Nuclear Energy Advisory Council, which was created to “build upon the state’s legacy in nuclear innovation and drive continued investment to create a nuclear energy ecosystem for the future of Tennessee,” as previously reported by The Tennessee Star.
– – –
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Tennessee is one of the few states that has an element on the periodic table that is named for it (Tennessine). I would say that we are doing pretty well without any sort of federal “tech hub” designation.
This is yet another example of how the current administration is not fit to lead our country..