Wisconsin ranked in the middle of the pack, and behind Minnesota in the latest edition of the biennial report in categories such as high-tech workforce and high-tech investments.
Massachusetts, Colorado and California are the top states in the 2022 State of Technology and Science Index by the Milken Institute, a Santa Monica, California-based think tank that has been completed for 20 years.
Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi were ranked lowest.
At 24th* ibid., Wisconsin below Minnesota, 13th*Michigan, 17th and Illinois, 21St*.
The report, based on data from sources such as the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, used more than 100 metrics on five indicators to assess a state’s technological capabilities.
Wisconsin ranked in the bottom half of states in the percentage of jobs in high-tech industries and the percentage of salaries in high-tech. Minnesota ranked in the top 20 for those indicators.
“Both cities scored poorly in terms of net formation of high-tech businesses, with crude heading in the negative — perhaps indicating high-tech businesses are failing or moving out of the state,” said Charles Kesteven, senior analyst at the Milken Institute. .
Wisconsin ranked 27th* in relation to the Human Capital Index, Minnesota 7th* place Among recent PhDs awarded in science, health and per capita, Wisconsin number 20th* and Minnesota was 4th*. Massachusetts took first place.
“States like Massachusetts have hundreds of high-tech companies and a network of educational institutions,” Kesteven said.
Broadband access was another metric used to evaluate technology capabilities.
Wisconsin ranked 26th* into the approach while Minnesota was 13″th*.
“It doesn’t matter how great young people are if they really struggle to connect with education,” Kesteven said of broadband access.
A slight correction to the previous order
Wisconsin’s overall score on the report improved to 24″th* place out of 25th* two years ago
While states on the East and West coasts scored high, they showed weaknesses in companies and workers leaving for states like Colorado and Utah.
“Companies moving to the inner cities are doing a much better job of getting new talent, keeping people, and not having to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep someone happy,” Kesteven said.
While states previously focused on winning partnerships to help build a tech hub, they now recognize that it’s a multi-pronged strategy that includes attracting human capital, according to Milken’s report.
This year’s rankings were done in five tiers based on the difference in scores between the top and bottom performing states. Wisconsin is ranked third with Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Georgia, Idaho, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Vermont.
Minnesota, North Carolina, Virginia, Oregon, New Hampshire, Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania were in second place.
In the next report, in 2024, Wisconsin could ask to pay into that group, said Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council.
“Maybe I should say it’s a stretch, but it’s a goal,” he said.
With a few exceptions, Milken’s ranks generally don’t change much over the course of two years.
“Minnesota has historically been a little bit deeper than us because they went to such a rapid start in the 1980s and 90s for medical devices. They kept the common ground,” Still said.
Wisconsin has improved among counties as the percentage of population with at least one degree of climate.
More than $800 million was raised by startup companies in Wisconsin last year, setting a new state record, even though much of the money came from just a few deals.
Wisconsin remains well behind the nation’s top 10 states in angel and venture capital, which is only partly attributed to its population size.
