Ohio's Innovation Districts

Innovation Districts

JobsOhio, together with the state of Ohio and partners, is investing over $3 billion to fuel the creation of three world-class Innovation Districts. The goal is to create sustainable ecosystems of ideas, infrastructure, and talent where the world’s top people and companies come to roll up their sleeves, complete, and grow.

Ohio’s Innovation Districts bring together three synergistic constituents:

1. Medical and research facilities: These facilities will become incubators for generating intellectual property. They will also drive patent production and the creation of spin-off startups.
2. Academic institutions: Will focus on STEM programs and degrees that create an ongoing, large pipeline of qualified, desirable STEM talent.
3. Private Corporations: Large anchors and early-stage companies that will benefit from STEM talent attraction and retention and the networking assets conducive to creating and commercializing new ideas. This will then boost economies in the surrounding communities and drive urban development.

These innovation districts are expected to inspire more than 45,000 new STEM graduates, fuel an estimated 60,000 new jobs, and generate up to $9 billion in annual economic impact to the state over ten years. JobsOhio is investing $300 million in these innovation districts – $100 million in each of the three.

• Cincinnati Innovation District: Launched in March 2020 as part of a first-of-its-kind partnership between JobsOhio, the University of Cincinnati, and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, this Innovation District aims to mint more than 15,000 STEM graduates and $2 billion in research that will apply ultra-modern technologies across multiple life sciences and computer science disciplines.
• Cleveland Innovation District: Launched in January 2021 in partnership with the Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland State University, MetroHealth Medical Center, and University Hospitals, this Innovation District will be a nucleus for healthcare innovation and community health, further energizing Northeast Ohio’s already robust biomedical research and commercialization capabilities.
• Columbus Innovation District: Launched in February 2021 in partnership with the Ohio State University and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, this Innovation District establishes inviting and amenity-rich places for leading educational and healthcare research organizations to collaborate in ways that lead to economic growth, discoveries, and impactful career opportunities within Ohio’s largest city.

The three innovation districts and the breakthroughs they foster promise to establish Ohio as a global leader in healthcare, life sciences, and technology – and the place to be for quality of opportunity and life. Community building in these districts is meant to create fertile ground for research and innovation leading to the commercialization of ideas, while keeping trained talent in Ohio. At the same time, this will fuel unprecedented urban renewal through significant investments in facilities and real estate.