Michigan eyes federal dollars to boost tech economy at innovation summit – By Clara Hendrickson (Detroit Free Press) / June 11, 2023
Snippets of Motown hits bookended the presentations at a recent summit in Detroit convening Michigan’s top economic and political leaders to hear pitches from across the state seeking federal dollars to spur the next homegrown innovation.
The Michigan Innovation Summit held at the recently rehabbed Book Depository — the former U.S. Post Office now part of a new Ford Motor Co. mobility district — was abuzz with tech enthusiasm and the prospect that U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) could pick a “tech hub” in the state for the federal investment.
The summit featured four contenders each with a different economic focus area: fresh water in northern Michigan, battery production in Grand Rapids, applied research in Lansing and mobility in southeast Michigan.