CHIPS and Science Highlights: Regional Innovation

The passage of the much-discussed “Chips and Science Act” (CHIPS+) promises an injection of more than $50 billion to energize the U.S. semiconductor industry. This is a catalyzing moment. And yes, it represents an实际上，投资比阿波罗计划略大。

由CHIPS+资助和授权的新计划的一长串包括国家科学基金会技术创新和合作伙伴局（NSF Tip）的旗舰计划，这是第一个以来在NSF创建的新董事C+C音乐工厂在图表中达到了顶峰。NSF区域创新发动机计划（通俗地称为NSF发动机），现在由国会正式授权，加入了其他机构的区域集群开发计划的一系列积极投资。这些当代计划包括经济发展管理局的重建更好的区域挑战和良好的就业挑战，这代表了15亿美元的拨款。

CHIPS+ also includes an additional authorization (if not funding) for the EDA’s work to develop regional innovation capacity across the country, including two major elements: a $10 billion regional tech hub program with outposts in every EDA region and a $1 billion tech hub development program intended “distressed communities” (originally included in the Recompete Act).

These three new programs, NSF Engines, Tech Hubs and Recompete, plus existing programs like BBBRC and GJC, represent a massive proposed investment in building regional innovation clusters. Both legislation and时代精神dictate that these investments will be distributed across the country, virtually guaranteeing geographic inclusion. But as regional innovation ecosystems and cluster development efforts become the dominant mode of economic development strategy, we would do well to consider the degree to which these efforts drive broad wealth creation, creating inclusive opportunity in our communities.

但是该法案最不讨论的影响可能是最具变革性的。Chips+ Investment在正在进行的叙述上引起了人们的惊叹，联邦政府已有效地宣布集群发展是华盛顿在支持当地经济发展努力方面的主导方式。

This mode of targeting the co-location and creation of like-minded firms in a close geographic area was pioneered by Michael Porter, the father of modern competitive strategy. These groups, or clusters, of companies in a particular industry, share critical infrastructure like equipment, space, and talent in ways that maximize regional efficiency and increase firm productivity. “A cluster,”波特说”,让每个成员好像grea受益ter scale or as if it had joined with others without sacrificing its flexibility.” Building targeted, relevant, and world-class research and commercialization capacity at Universities was added as a prerequisite tenet over time. Modern cluster development theory–the economic development philosophy so central to CHIPS+–is the practice of engaging universities, government, corporations, capital providers, and entrepreneurs as stakeholders to create comparative local advantage in a global context by driving the development of a cluster of innovation-led companies.

Cluster development, however, is not always executed in an inclusive and equitable way, and it’s easy to see why. Today, many communities approach cluster development as a conversation between R1 universities, corporate executives, top government staffers, and elite economic development leaders. While these approaches are effective in driving short-term resources and focus to support these efforts, they often omit the voices and views of communities that have been systemically left behind–those that they allude to as benefitting from the increased productivity, efficiency, job creation, wealth creation, and research activity that these efforts promote. For instance: the creation of “good jobs” (and especially “good jobs” in STEM fields) is an oft-measured outcome of cluster development efforts, but识别为黑人和西班牙裔的人仅占STEM领域就业的9％和8％，，，，respectively. This is a stark outcome that lays bare the failure of traditional economic development efforts to engage diverse communities in the work of cluster development. This will not change unless time and resources are dedicated to starting conversations that are shrugged off today.

Conversely, when communities that have experienced disinvestment start new innovation and small business support efforts, they seldom turn to the institutions that have left their communities underserved for decades. It is more common for grassroots efforts to emerge, led by determined local leaders, as they did in Kansas City with the development of礼物。，，，，La Placita， 这前景业务协会，，，，前景，，，，and others (these represent just a few of many such efforts in Kansas City alone).

这种自下而上的方法导致了充满活力，创新且富有良好的小型企业生态系统。在这种情况下，信任（非资助）是驱动企业家生态系统的基本货币。然而，建立信任是一个固有的耗时，复杂的过程，很少由政府计划，慈善事业或其他任何人资助。

So how might cluster building efforts more scalably and thoughtfully engage in the trust building activities that are required to make their work more inclusive and equitable? How might the institutions leading cluster development conversations invite engagement in the process of cluster selection, when the cluster in question seems inaccessible, and therefore irrelevant to large swaths of their communities? How can we integrate the systems that have been created to support small businesses and those that support innovation-driven enterprises in ways that emphasize their interdependence, as is characteristic of trueecosystems？这些是我们下一代集群开发工作必须解决的问题。

Today, as we begin to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, we can see the ways in which the impact has brought to light long-present inequities. For instance:只有8.6％的PPP贷款分发给了黑人拥有的企业，，，，but then again,Black-owned firms experienced persistent challenges in accessing capital relative to white-owned firmslong before COVID, controlling for similar levels of creditworthiness. Yes, underserved communities were disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the systemic problems that these recent failures represent have been present for many years.

也许更令人不安的是，我们将继续为未来建立，而没有考虑到任何地方和每个人都来自所有人。新技术的扩散通常受旧系统的影响，这意味着建立创新生态系统的关键基础设施正在扩大。如今，有20％的低收入，黑人，西班牙裔和乡村的美国人缺乏宽带的机会- 这实际上代表数字红线。显然，达到公平创新成果的挑战既紧急又是系统性的，就像我们的解决方案一样。

当我们进入集群发展和注册的年龄ional innovation ecosystem building, we can take comfort in knowing that geographic diversity has been designed as a condition of our investments. But to build a system in which innovation truly can come from anyone, anywhere will take trust-building. It will take time, care, and a willingness to engage unusual voices in coalition efforts. We will need to carefully consider how these efforts might have a more equitable impact than past movements to grow high-tech and deep-tech companies, in order to be successful.

就像我们在地理多样性中设计的那样，我们有机会将这种方法设计为这些新的区域创新资金机制。同样重要的是，我们有机会在全国各地的社区中主动回答这些问题。考虑到这一点，这位作者提供了一个谦虚的预测 - 我们下一代的突破创新集群将是那些最具有效发展的社区的人。