Industry Report Spotlights North Carolina Tech Investments

Matthew Sasser, National Affairs Pro

Last fall, the state's chief technology officer walked into a classroom of Richmond County high school students and asked the question: “Did you know that there are currently more than 21,000 cybersecurity jobs open in the state of North Carolina alone?”

Jim Weaver, the state's information technology commissioner and chief information officer, had just delivered a carload of supplies and equipment to computer science students in one of North Carolina's rural counties.

“No matter what career field you choose, you have to learn how to use and leverage elements of information technology to be successful,” Weaver says. “Take your classes seriously. Get the credits. Do your best. That's what will set you up for success.”

Based on data from the North Carolina Technology Industry Report, shared with lawmakers and industry leaders on Wednesday, there may be no state more appropriate for those words to be spoken than North Carolina.

No county is left behind

Amid the frenzy of the final day of the brief session on Thursday, Senate Bill 743 didn't attract much attention.

“This is a great bill,” said Republican Rep. Jake Johnson of Polk. “It provides $1.5 billion from the federal government and allows every county to participate in the CAB. [Completing Access to Broadband] program.”

A few days ago, the committee meeting emphasized the need to eliminate county contribution requirements that prevent the 65 counties that initially did not contribute any local funds to the effort from securing the funding.

“We're at the cusp of a critical juncture because if we don't start projects or award projects until September or later, we'll have three months or less to complete $350 million worth of projects and providers won't have the luxury of asking for an extension,” Nate Denney, the department's deputy secretary for broadband and digital equity, told a House of Commons committee last week.

During the final hour of the House recess on Thursday, Johnson said it was crucial that the Senate consider SB 743 during one of its reconvened sessions, which was included in the adjournment resolution. Failure to do so would mean most North Carolina counties would lose access to federal CAB grant funding, he added.

Johnson said he has been consulting with Sen. Bill LaBone (R-Brunswick), who as chairman of the Senate Rules Committee largely directs the flow of legislation in the Senate.

Combined with funding from the American Rescue Plan, North Carolina has made great strides in ensuring broadband access and creating a future fit for a tech-centric workforce. NCDIT plans to launch the BEAD funding program in January 2025.

“Every company is a technology company, whether they realize it or not,” Johnson said.

Exceeding expectations

Brian Gregory, vice president of state government relations for Charter Communications and chairman of the North Carolina Tech Board of Trustees, said during his appearance at the national conference that North Carolina has become the envy of other states.

“The model we’ve had as a state is [in] “This is the best bipartisan way to launch a broadband subsidy program,” Rep. Gregory said during the opening session of the House Appropriations and Information Technology Committee on Wednesday.

The NCSTIR report is an “environmental scan” that shows how North Carolina compares to other states on a range of technology indicators, said Brooks Raiford, president and CEO of the North Carolina Technology Association.

Between 2017 and 2022, North Carolina will add more than 50,000 tech jobs to its economy. There are 11 counties in the state where tech jobs account for more than 6% of total employment. Only 55% of open tech jobs in the state require some higher education.

North Carolina remains the leader in female tech employees, with women making up 37.1% of the industry's workforce, second only to the District of Columbia. Just over 50% of people who graduate from STEM programs in the state stay in North Carolina, Raiford said, adding that the state isn't experiencing a “brain drain.”

The Raleigh-Cary-Durham-Chapel Hill metropolitan area is consistently ranked among the most popular and innovative areas for technology in national rankings, Raiford added. [Raleigh and Durham] It’s in the top 10. Imagine what it would be like if they were one of them.”

Raiford emphasized that Wilmington is “punching its teeth” and that despite being a city of fewer than 300,000 people, it has consistently been ranked as the best entrepreneurial ecosystem in the world.

Weaver, the state's technology chief, said it's a “culture change” that digital government services have been ranked among the National Association of State Chief Information Officers' top priorities.

“This isn't necessarily about technology,” Weaver said. “We have to start thinking about, 'How can we serve North Carolinians differently?' … I think local governments are way ahead of us on this path.”

This year marks the first time artificial intelligence has appeared on the association's environmental scan list. Weaver said many of the good and powerful uses of AI are also dangerous, especially when it comes to data. He added that the AI ​​Framework document aims to address this issue.

“Data is key to the success of generative AI,” Weaver says. “Generative AI can't do anything on its own. It needs data, and we are the stewards of that data.”

Weaver said the department is taking a risk-based approach to all things AI, and a working group of various business and information technology leaders has been formed with the primary goal of keeping North Carolinians' data safe.

The rise of generative AI has raised concerns about power consumption. Data centers run at the state level can't generate the power needed for the new technology, Weaver said. Currently, power-hungry data centers deploy water-cooling systems to keep up with the wattage.

ncbroadband.gov provides a dashboard where the public can see current broadband projects and funding status, as well as expected completion dates.

If you have any questions, comments, or story ideas, please contact Matthew Sasser. [email protected] Or contact NC Insider. [email protected] or @StateAffairsNC