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No. 2 most cost-effective tech market
KC is a highly competitive cost market for tech companies according to the annual CBRE Scoring Tech Talent Report. The study measured large metros with >50,000 tech workers and the markets costs for wages and office rent, which are the two most significant costs for a company.
CBRE, Scoring Tech Talent, (2024).

KC Outperformed National Average in AI and Machine Learning Investments
The Kansas City metro area allocated $7.8 million to AI and machine learning investments, representing 31.5% of the $24.8 million invested in technology companies. This significantly outpaces the U.S. average, where AI and machine learning account for just 14% of total investments.
KC Tech Specs, V07, (Data from PitchBook, August 2024).

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Jill McCarthy

Senior Vice President | Corporate Attraction
816.591.1834
With more than 25 years of experience, Jill leads the business development team.

Technology

Innovation and entrepreneurship is at the foundation of the Kansas City region and drives the tech landscape here. The industrious spirit of KC has led to innovations impacting the world in healthcare, finance, supply chain and logistics, animal health and bioscience, cyber security, engineering, telecommunications and more.

At a time when development and attraction of tech talent is a key driver of economic competitiveness, the Kansas City region recognizes the importance of cultivating the digital workforce of the future. The Kansas City region is embracing and even pioneering technological advancement. This will allow the region to be an asset for any company looking to gain a technological edge.


KC Technology Jobs KC Technology Companies 
 77,700  4,400+
 KC Tech, 2024  KC Tech  Specs 2023

Sectors

With the most geographically centric technology industry in the nation, Kansas City is a unique home for multinational corporations and startups alike. The crossroads of all the nation’s fiber, KC has long been a destination for innovators and pioneers. Kansas City’s tech sector is growing faster than the national average, directly contributing almost 10% to our regional economy. 

The diverse and well-balanced economy, network infrastructure and skilled workforce of KC makes it attractive to the technology industry. There are certain sectors with particular strengths in KC:
 
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Workforce of the Future

One in every 10 workers in Kansas City is employed by the tech industry. There are over 4,400 tech companies in our region, from nimble start-ups to global enterprises. The Kansas City Area Development Council works closely with the KC Tech Council to attract, retain and grow of technology companies and highly skilled tech talent. Human capital is one of the key drivers of economic competitiveness. The Kansas City region recognizes the importance of redefining the workforce of the future through education and attraction.

Already, more than 89,000 K-12 students are engaged in STEM programming through Project Lead The Way (a third of the entire metro high school enrollment).There are 38 public school districts and 14 private or charter schools in the region who have formal accelerated programming in STEM courses, and many of those inform and credential students for education and career pathways after high school. In the last four years, they also increased the number of K-5 STEM students from 120 to 52,446 regionally, while certifying more than 400 K-12 teachers in engineering, computer science and biomedicine.

KC offers a deep pool of talent in tech, with 2,000 annually receiving bachelor’s degrees or higher in computer science fields from regional universities and colleges while the surrounding six states offers an additional 6,000 computer science grads. Non-traditional coding programs in the KC region also provide more talent bandwidth: Disruption Institute, Girl Develop It Kansas City, Girls Who Code KC, and Kansas City Coder Dojo. Training leader General Assembly is also running a pilot program in Kansas City, its smallest market ever.

While the Kansas City metro population 25-years and older has increased 6% in the past 5 years, the population of highly educated individuals has grown at a much faster rate, 14.7%. Moreover, the educated foreign-born population in the Kansas City region has grown 22% in the past 5 years.

*Click below to expand for occupational data

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For more information contact:

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JILL McCARTHY
Senior Vice President, Corporate Attraction | KCADC
Email | LinkedIn
816.591.1834


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