Today, the Biden administration announced a massive dose of funding to the tech industry—the president named 31 “tech hubs” across the U.S. and Puerto Rico in an effort to spur economic growth.
The president announced the news in a White House fact sheet, with the funding secured through the CHIPS and Science Act signed in 2022. Each tech hub can receive up to $75 million from federal and local government, public and private universities, nonprofits, and unions. Biden’s hope is that these tech hubs will spur economic growth in their respective states, adding to his commitment to Bidenomics, which aims to grow the middle class through trickle-up economics.
“Tech Hubs awardees were selected to represent the full diversity of America, selected from more than 370 applications spanning 49 states and four territories,” the White House wrote in the fact sheet. “The Tech Hubs will bring the benefits and opportunities of scientific and technological innovation to communities across the country, with nearly three-quarters significantly benefitting small and rural areas and more than three-quarters directly supporting historically underserved communities.”
According to the fact sheet, these tech hubs will produce research, products, and technology relating to nearly every section of the industry, including AI, semiconductors, and biotechnology. In Rhode Island, for example, the Ocean Tech Hub will be studying the ways that AI and machine learning can be used in maritime applications with support from the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation. Likewise, the State University of New York at Binghamton is leading the New Energy New York Battery Tech Hub to bolster the region’s battery supply chain.
The funding is the latest from Biden’s CHIPS and Science Act, which was signed in August 2022, and also committed NASA to the International Space Station until 2030. Biden has also championed clean energy and tech innovation outside of the CHIPS Act, with plans revealed earlier this month to fund clean hydrogen production with $7 billion in funding. The president is no friend of Big Tech, however, as his FTC appointee Linda Kahn has attempted to wage war on giant tech corporations like Amazon.