By Dr. Marlene Tromp, Boise State University President; Deborah Wince-Smith, Council on Competitiveness President and CEO; and John Wagner, Idaho National Laboratory Director
The path from imagination to insight, ingenuity, invention, and impact—in essence, innovation—has distinctly characterized the American journey. From the nation’s birth, Americans have fundamentally been about exploration, opportunity, and discovery; about new beginnings; about taking on big challenges.
This is Idaho’s history, and it has never been more true than today—as Idaho’s engine for innovation powered a gross state product (GSP) of 5 percent in 2023—the fastest growth of any U.S. state—coupled with a low unemployment rate of 3.4 percent. Idaho’s innovation economy is helping transform the state by attracting major private and public investment, which is seeding future innovations, companies, and jobs. The state’s economic success has captured national attention and positioned it as a key player in addressing pressing societal challenges and seizing emerging opportunities.
To understand better the dynamics underpinning Idaho’s innovation economy, and to catalyze even further growth, our three organizations—the Council on Competitiveness, Boise State University, and Idaho National Laboratory (INL)—partnered to host the Council’s latest Competitiveness Conversation. The Conversation unfurled on the Boise State campus and across the city, August 6-8, and brought together leaders in business, education, workforce, science, and government. Together, these leaders sought to uncover the best practices and policies driving regional innovation, attract national attention and greater support for the most promising regional initiatives, and develop strategies to scale and deploy place-based innovation best practices across the United States. Â
Idaho’s Exceptional Innovation Capability
Three industries are setting the innovation pace across the state and the Mountain West—each primed to change fundamentally how we live and work, and how we secure America in an era of turbulence and transformation: semiconductors, cybersecurity, and advanced nuclear.
Idaho’s emergence as a semiconductor powerhouse is a result of distinct, harmonious, intentional, and strategic collaboration between education, national laboratories, government, and business to develop the platform technology—and its workforce—supporting the innovation and growth in nearly every other economic sector, in every nation on earth. The core components of Idaho’s innovation ecosystem? First: a strong educational and research foundation, including institutions like Boise State’s Institute for Microelectronics Education and Research, which provides world-class training for the top tech talent that drives the industry forward. Similarly, INL and other local research institutions have been at the forefront of innovation, driving breakthroughs in materials science and other technologies that have revolutionized the industry.Â
Second, federal, state, and local governments play an important role. For example, with Boise’s mayor now chairing the mayoral task force for implementing the CHIPS and Science Act further solidifies Idaho’s position as a leader in this critical sector. And major federal investments—like the recent $6.1 billion CHIPS and Science Act grant to Micron—are a testament to the state’s strength and commitment to the semiconductor industry. This collaborative approach has attracted and enabled companies across the semiconductor industry—from large OEMS to suppliers of all sorts; from startups to global enterprises—to thrive in Idaho. And the industry’s success delivers impressive economic benefits for the state: in 2022, it generated $2.5 billion in GSP, creating 12,300 high-paying jobs with an average wage of $135,000—all metrics on a sharp upward trajectory.
Idaho’s cybersecurity industry is also a critical economic growth driver. INL, for example, is one of the nation’s premier cybersecurity facilities and has invested heavily in the Cybercore Integration Center. This state-of-the-art facility brings together federal agencies, private industry, and university partners to develop cutting-edge solutions for securing critical infrastructure and protecting against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. The Idaho state government has also made significant investments in cybersecurity infrastructure and initiatives, including establishing the Idaho Cybersecurity Task Force and the Idaho Cybersecurity Innovation Center. And Boise State has dedicated programs to produce a steady supply of skilled professionals in computer science, engineering, and cybersecurity.
And the growth of these industries and many others is limited only by imagination—and by the ability to power that growth with affordable, reliable, sustainable, and clean energy. Today, Idaho is a regional, national, and global leader in generating and delivering such energy. INL, the nation’s nuclear energy national laboratory, is at the forefront of innovation in research and development to extend the life of the nation’s current fleet of reactors and ensure the deployment of future nuclear reactors through advanced nuclear reactor design and fuel development. Notably, INL is pioneering research in the development of microreactors and small modular reactors (SMRs)—two technologies that may help meet the world’s growing energy demands and decarbonization goals. Moreover, Boise State’s Energy Policy Institute leverages strengths in policy, science, engineering, management, and economics to plan for a nuclear energy future.
Investing in Idaho and Its PeopleÂ
Idaho’s progress in semiconductor manufacturing, cybersecurity, and advanced nuclear technologies is due to its commitment to innovation. However, innovation is about more than technology or industry—it is about people.
As Idaho transitions to an innovation-driven economy, its residents will prosper. They will gain access to higher-paying jobs, opportunities to develop skills in emerging industries, and a dynamic economy that attracts entrepreneurs, inventors, and innovators who drive local economic growth and development. However, we cannot take any of this exciting growth for granted. We must continue to invest in education, workforce development, and research for the region to stay globally competitive.
As we reflect on the Competitiveness Conversations, it is clear Idaho and the Mountain West benefit from world-class research institutions, cutting-edge industries, and a highly skilled workforce—all positioning the region to become a major player in America’s innovation economy. We recognize the immense contributions the region is already making to the nation’s future, but also the remarkable potential that lies within the region.