Q: Building upon Texas’ highly successful track record in economic development, what successes do you foresee for Texas in 2025 and beyond?

A: Texas is entering 2025 with great momentum, thanks to record-breaking economic achievements and surging job creation, coupled with an all-time high for number of Texans working and the largest labor force in our state’s history—now at more than 15.5 million. Not to mention, we are ranked as the eighth-largest economy among the nations of the world!

In order to see where we’re going, we need to look at where we have been. Looking at growth over the past decade, Texas dominated the nation in economic expansion with a 38.7% 10-year growth rate, growing much faster than the nation as a whole at 27.3%. As we look towards the next 10 years, I believe we can expect to see Texas similarly leading the nation in economic authority.

Building upon these successes and our numerous awards and accolades, in combination with the unwavering business advantages that make our state the best place to do business in the nation, Texas will remain a global leader for economic development and economic vitality into 2025 and well into the future!

Q: What are some of the ways Texas is innovating for the future?

A: Texas is not only the future of business, we are blazing new paths forward in economic development while also fostering the workforce of tomorrow here in the Lone Star State. We are doing this by cultivating robust tech ecosystems in regions across the state, supporting emerging and advanced industries and harnessing public-private partnerships to drive even greater innovation and new ideas.

Texas is focused on ensuring our workforce is prepared to meet the demands of rapidly evolving industries and positioning the state as a global leader in advanced technologies—from semiconductors and electronic components to rare earth mineral mining, artificial intelligence, life sciences, aerospace and more. Texas is already home to some of the world’s largest technology and innovation companies, and we continue to attract more and more industry innovators to our state.

We’re also guiding the future of the financial services and corporate operations industries here in Texas. With the historic announcement of the Texas Stock Exchange, and a developing fintech landscape, Texas continues to expand our financial prowess. Our strength in back office operations has caught the attention of many corporate headquarters, with relocations to Texas climbing to more than 300 since 2015.

Through initiatives in the Texas CHIPS Office (including the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Consortium and Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund) and the Texas Space Commission (including the Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund), Texas is prepared to lead the nation and the world towards the leading edge of innovation. Not to mention, the new Texas Jobs, Energy, Technology & Innovation Act (JETI) program is attracting large, capital-intensive advanced manufacturing projects to Texas communities. We recently announced the first project under this program, with more to follow!

By tapping into new collaborations among industry, higher education, economic development organizations and the public and private sectors, we are building a bigger, better Texas for generations to come.

Q: You recently celebrated your fifth anniversary as EDT’s Executive Director. What are some of your favorite memories or top defining moments for economic development in Texas over the last five years?

A: It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since my appointment by Governor Abbott! Truly it’s an honor and privilege to serve as the Executive Director of the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Office under the Governor’s leadership. It’s been such a wonderful adventure and an honor to work with the award-winning team here at EDT and all of our hard-working community partners all across the state! They are true public servants, serving the great state of Texas with passion, purpose and pride!

There have been so many defining moments for our office that have been transformative for our communities in the Lone Star State that it’s difficult to select just a few, but if I had to choose, I’d highlight:

• The notable investments in Texas from leading semiconductor manufacturers, including Samsung’s historic $40 billion investment, Texas Instruments’ $30 billion announcement and GlobalWafers’ $5 billion announcement, bringing critical semiconductor manufacturing to the U.S.
• The numerous successful International Business Development Missions that I’ve had the opportunity to join in: Israel (2020); England, France and Germany (2022 and 2023); U.K. (2024); India (2024); and Taiwan, South Korea and Japan (2024).
• The launch of a number of new, impactful programs including our newest EDT division, the Texas CHIPS Office, and opening the new State of Texas Taiwan Office.
• Small business is big in Texas! Our office stood up several new programs to help small and micro-businesses across Texas access assistance when they need it most: launching the Governor’s Small Business Freedom Council, the Texas Small Business Credit Initiative, Texas Micro-Business Disaster Recovery Loan Program, Texas Travel Industry Recovery Grant Program and others.

And of course, it’s been so exciting to continue to win the coveted Governor’s Cup award! We’re looking forward to the next award!