Baltimore shows off top tech programs with "so much new momentum"

BALTIMORE -- From artificial intelligence (A.I.) to robots to manufacturing, Baltimore continues its work as a newly designated federal tech hub. 

Leaders at the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration got an inside look at some of Baltimore's top tech programs on Wednesday. 

"Baltimore has so much new momentum," said Mark Anthony Thomas, the President and CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee. "They want to better understand our assets so they can strengthen their potential to create new companies and create talent opportunities." 

Wednesday's visit was nearly a year after Baltimore was named one of 31 federal "Tech Hubs,"  thanks to the CHIPS and Science Act.

Baltimore is a "Tech Hub"

Baltimore City has been named a "Tech Hub" as part of a highly competitive federal program to expand manufacturing across the country, making the city eligible for millions of dollars in funding. 

"We're actually focused beyond CHIPS and on the products of science, but it's a $10 billion program that the Economic Development Administration has been running," said Eric Smith, the Tech Hubs Director at the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. 

Smith was on hand to learn more about the components of the Baltimore Region's Tech Hub proposal and visit several anchor institutions involved in the tech initiative. 

"This is really a moment for people to see it firsthand so they can truly say that we're at an inflection point and that innovation and growth are going to be a major part of our future," Thomas said. 

"Solving a lot of problems"

Morgan State University and other programs brought leaders inside their labs where the work is happening. 

"And so for them to actually be here finally and tour the campuses and our innovation is such an important step toward the long-term partnership," Thomas said. 

"And I do think equity is at the core of what's happening here, and because of Baltimore, because of the surrounding counties, because of the history and because of the resources in the city, I think it's really solving a lot of problems," Smith added. 

The visit allows tech leaders and innovators to show off their work with the hope that one day it will push the city further into the future.

"We believe that bringing the making and delivering of these technologies back to the U.S., that's going to have the opportunity for this type of economic prosperity to be really inclusive and really bring back a lot of that wealth into communities that haven't been able to participate in that growth," Smith said. 

The tech hub and those part of the visit are made up of businesses, colleges and universities, as well as local governments.

"It really highlights these places in the U.S., like Baltimore, that have incredible assets, resources and capacity for economic growth based on innovation," said Smith.  "And this hub is going to come together to do that with technology."