A new report from the National Science Foundation documents $49 billion in federal science and engineering support to higher education institutions in FY2023. We break it down geographically.
Recent analysis offers insights into what the five states with the fastest-growing oil & gas career opportunities bring to the table as potential locations for workers.
Minnesota’s economic landscape is as diverse as its workforce, which has created a solid foundation for companies to start, grow and prosper. In fact, CNBC recently ranked Minnesota the #6 best state for business.
President and COO of Minnesota-based Polar Semiconductor Surya Iyer detailed what sets Minnesota apart: “If you have a state that has a good education system, which has a pipeline that can supply engineers and technicians to you, and you have infrastructure and an economy that’s booming … a place which is growing tremendously fast, attracting young people, attracting the future leaders of the country — that’s where you want to be.”
Minnesota is also consistently ranked one of the happiest and healthiest states in the U.S.
Whether a new company is choosing a Minnesota location or a long-standing business is looking to expand its production — more companies are seeing transformational results and discovering why Minnesota is the Star of the North.
Mercedes-Benz in May announced it would move corporate, technical and R&D jobs from Farmington Hills, Michigan, to the Mercedes USA headquarters complex in Sandy Springs, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metro area, which will become the company’s North American headquarters. Site Selection first covered the Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) headquarters move to Georgia from New Jersey in spring 2015, when the company also signed on for naming rights at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The headquarters facility opened in 2018. The new move, which includes the establishment of an R&D hub “near Sandy Springs,” is expected to add 500 jobs to the approximately 800 jobs the company already has established in metro Atlanta.
“This strategic investment in the Atlanta region,” the company announced, “will also allow the company to leverage the rich engineering talent pool around institutions like Georgia Institute of Technology and create new opportunities to collaborate with the region’s thriving startup ecosystem and established tech sectors.”
Independent reports from a number of news organizations say the company is closing its Farmington Hills office and moving financial services jobs from that location to its financial services business center at AllianceTexas in Fort Worth, Texas, which opened six years ago this month.
The Reshoring Initiative led by Harry Moser this week released its 2024 annual report that finds 244,000 U.S. manufacturing jobs were announced in 2024 via reshoring and foreign direct investment (FDI). Among other findings:
“Reshoring by U.S. headquartered companies outpaced FDI by foreign headquartered companies by the largest margin on record in 2024.”
Computer & Electronics, Electrical Equipment (including EV batteries and solar), and Transportation Equipment led the way by industry sector
“Texas, South Carolina, and Mississippi are top 2025 states for reshoring and FDI.” The newly published annual economic development guide from Conway Custom Content corroborates this finding, noting that FDI accounts for 6% of Texas employment, among other facts.
“Asia remains the largest source of reshored + FDI jobs, while South Korea, China, and Germany led among individual countries.”
“Tariffs are now a key motivator: Cited in 454% more cases in 2025 vs. 2024.”
“Reindustrializing America is impossible without reshoring, FDI, and strong industrial policy,” said Moser, president of the Reshoring Initiative, whose appearances in Site Selection include this 2017 piece the last time major tariffs were a major concern. “Our data shows tremendous progress, but the U.S. must address workforce shortages and manufacturing cost disadvantages to maintain this momentum.”
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Continuing the I-75 thread from the top of this newsletter, the 1967 image of the Lester and Virginia Maddox Bridge above, part of the I-75 stretch through northwest Atlanta, shows a bare concrete structure above a modest riverbank. Today (below), it spans both the lush and scenic Chattahoochee River and the picturesque West Palisades Trail in Paces Mill Park, part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. The change reflects the evolution of one of the busiest Interstates in the Southeast and the region’s growing emphasis on environmental preservation and outdoor recreation. I-75 carried an average of more than 419,000 vehicles a day through Atlanta in 2024. The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area saw more than 3.1 million visitors in 2023 bring an economic impact of more than $236 million. — Evan Secor
Top photo courtesy of U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration; bottom photo by Evan Secor
