Governor Maura Healey spoke to a packed house of business executives at the New England Council Breakfast on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, at the Boston Harbor Hotel. (SHNS)
BOSTON (SHNS) – Gov. Maura Healey on Tuesday touted her economic development proposal as a $1 billion state-funded “big deal” on the burgeoning climate technology sector, to be announced later this week. He said that the results of the study will show that it could have the following consequences: There are significant economic benefits as well.
Healey has long talked about making Massachusetts a world leader in the climate technology industry. The industry is using innovation to develop solutions to pressing climate-related challenges. The governor's economic development bill (H 4459), pending in the state Legislature, would provide $1.3 billion in public funding and tax incentives over 10 years to “develop a global climate technology ecosystem to drive and fight innovation.” This will give a major boost to this field. climate change. “
Healey told the New England Council at a Tuesday breakfast meeting that the Donahue Institute of Massachusetts would release an analysis of the proposal later this week. He said the proposed investments would show $16 billion in economic activity and 7,000 direct new jobs.
“That's more than a 12-to-1 return on investment,” Healy says. To her applause, she added: you? “
Healey's $1 billion climate technology proposal includes $700 million for the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, with $400 million in capital funds and $300 million in operating funds. The capital will be divided equally between a clean energy investment fund and an authorized offshore wind industry investment fund. Administrative support may also include workforce development, strategic partnerships and internships, the administration said.
The Clean Technology Plan also includes $300 million in tax incentives, including a $35 million annual offshore wind tax credit and a new climate technology tax incentive program worth up to $30 million annually.
The governor's economic development proposal, a bill often completed by the Legislature just before the formal business deadline of July 31, would reauthorize the state's life sciences initiative for $1 billion over the next 10 years. Become. And with Vertex Pharmaceuticals' headquarters in the Seaport looming in the background, Healey says climate change technology could become the new life science, an industry that will keep Massachusetts on the cutting edge. That's a possibility, he said Tuesday.
“We've done it in the life sciences and we've seen where it's taken us. We have all the ingredients to do it again with climate change technology, but in which states? are also highly competitive,” she said. “And now is the time to secure our lead and drive new levels of growth.”
Mr. Healy also detailed to the business community Tuesday morning the economic development bill's goals for tourism and the creative economy, the life sciences sector, advanced manufacturing, robotics, and applied artificial intelligence.
Healey acknowledged that other states have a clear lead over Massachusetts when it comes to developing generative AI. “The truth, of course, is that many of those developers came out of Massachusetts and then went west,” she said. But she sees an opportunity for governors to catch up in the applied AI field, which seeks to leverage AI to solve specific problems or perform specific tasks.
“The key is to apply AI to identify where and how to build resilience to treat diseases, solve big challenges, and build resilience for climate mitigation and decarbonization. These are real questions, and AI will help us find solutions. I want Massachusetts to lead on this, because we are. Because we should,” the governor said. “That's why he proposed $100 million to make Massachusetts the nation's AI application hub, creating our own lane of technology development to bring AI to every industry.”
The governor said the task force she formed to think about the promise and pitfalls of AI has been busy, convening more than 200 people from labor, higher education, government and at least nine different industries. .
“Real, actionable recommendations are what I have been asking for and are already starting to appear in just a few months,” she said, without providing further details.
Earlier this month, Attorney General Andrea Campbell issued an advisory to AI developers, suppliers, and users emphasizing their respective obligations under Massachusetts consumer protection law and calling for the technology's “immense potential benefits to society.” '', but also the dangers involved.
“However, AI systems have already been shown to pose serious risks to consumers, including bias, lack of transparency and explainability, and data privacy implications. Despite these risks, and consumers are rapidly adopting and using AI systems, now impacting nearly every aspect of their lives,” Campbell's office said.
