tWhile many tech hubs across the country experienced a decline or stagnation in employment last year, Detroit saw considerable increased job growth, says a new report from Automation Alley, a business accelerator in Troy.
t“(Last year) was a banner year for the tech sector in metro Detroit,” said Ken Rogers, executive director of Automotive Alley. “We saw increased employment in high tech industries, new businesses opening up across the region, and the expansion of the entrepreneurial community in downtown Detroit.”
tThe 2013 Technology Industry Report — which compares the greater Detroit region to other high tech cities in relation to job creation, business creation, innovation, and education — found that as Silicon Valley’s tech sector lost 10,000 jobs last year, metro Detroit added 30,000. Not surprisingly, nearly 10 percent of total employment in the metro Detroit area is tech-related.
tThe state is also a leader in the advanced automotive industry, with employment in metro Detroit 6.5 times the national average. Likewise, the number of advanced automotive jobs in Grand Rapids is 3.5 times the national average.
tThe report also noted that metro Detroit claimed the third highest number of completed STEM degrees (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), following Chicago and Boston. The region also produced the highest number of science technologies degrees and engineering technology degrees and the second highest number of engineering degrees.
tOther tech hubs in the report included Grand Rapids, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Cincinnati, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas-Fort Worth, Indianapolis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Pittsburgh, San Jose-Santa Clara, Calif., Seattle, and St. Louis.
tFor more information abut Automation Alley, visit automationalley.com.
