The future of innovation will rely increasingly on integrated, multidisciplinary, and multi-domain partnerships that span and connect research, development, and deployment at speed and scale. This panel focused on the regional place-making strategies to build—bit by bit, qubit by qubit, molecule by molecule—the semiconductor, quantum, and bioscience industries of the future.
In the final panel of the Indiana-Illinois Competitiveness Conversation, Council on Competitiveness President & CEO The Hon. Deborah Wince-Smith reflected on the strides that the Indiana-Illinois Innovation Corridor has taken to become a nationally and globally recognized hub for innovation, including embracing the ethos of “radical collaboration”—a theme that has emerged in all of the Council’s Competitiveness Conversations held in bourgeoning innovation powerhouses. The friction between innovators across institutions—whether universities, laboratories, or industry—in some parts of the country is smoothed out in the region by the need driven by resource constraints to collaborate to solve global problems.
“The rivalries we sometimes see between universities and national laboratories are not present here in the Indiana-Illinois Innovation Corridor. This is a competitive advantage.”
The Hon. Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness
The Indiana-Illinois Corridor innovation ecosystem is driving economic growth in the region, as well. Key investments like he $4 billion Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park and the $450 million in federal incentives for SK Hynix are just two standout examples. These investments have driven research and an influx of jobs, creating greater economic opportunity for those living in and moving to the Corridor, both now and into the future.
The local venture capital network has also grown since 2014, Ms. Wince-Smith noted, surpassing the national growth rate and providing a local source of much-needed investment in new capital-intensive industries. A 70 percent increase in business filings in Indiana and a nearly 100 percent increase in Illinois since 2017 signals a post-pandemic resurgence in business activity. This comes on top of the two state’s already strong economic figures, with Indiana having the highest GDP growth in the Great Lakes region and Illinois’ $876 billion economy coming in at 5th in the nation.
Ms. Wince-Smith emphasized the importance of maintaining this momentum and preparing for the future in a competitive global landscape. She called for a future-oriented discussion among the panelists about how the Indiana-Illinois Innovation Corridor can continue to thrive amid ongoing competition for investment, talent, and labor.
Ms. Wince-Smith opened the panel discussion with an exploration of the Indiana-Illinois corridor's future potential in the industries of “Chips, Qubits, and Molecules.” Argonne National Laboratory Director Paul Kearns kicked off, expressing optimism about the future of the region and suggesting it might evolve into a "Beyond Silicon" center.He also noted that while leading in cutting-edge technologies is crucial, the region’s existing strengths in agriculture, energy, and transportation must also be woven into its economic tapestry of future long-term, sustainable success.
However, as Purdue University Executive Vice President for Research Karen Plaut framed it, “Chips, Qubits, and Molecules” are to advance sectors like transportation and agriculture that are traditionally thought of as low-tech.She also raised the important point that innovation must go hand-in-hand with responsible stewardship of natural resources, giving the need for improved energy management and more efficient water usage in biomanufacturing as examples.
“When we think of chips, qubits, and molecules, I consider them to be backbone technologies.”
Dr. Karen Plaut
Executive Vice President for Research,
Purdue University
Vice President for Economic Development & Innovation for the University of Illinois System Jay Walsh stated that success could not be built from one sector alone; the entire interconnected infrastructure picture needs to be taken into account. He warned that without robust energy infrastructure, the ambitious dreams for the region could crumble. The panel advocated for a diversified energy portfolio, including novel technologies and techniques—from investing in small modular nuclear reactors, to integrating solar panels with farmland, to taking advantage of the synergies between food, energy, and water.
Dr. Kearns was optimistic about the future of energy in the region and nationwide. He mentioned Argonne’s collaboration with TerraPower, one of two companies selected by the Department of Energy for its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program that as an example of how innovations like TerraPower’s sodium-cooled reactor called Natrium will pave the way for a nationwide rollout of a new generation of reactors. With this and other advanced nuclear and small modular reactors under construction in the United States, Dr. Kearns believed that the shift towards innovative nuclear solutions for the country’s growing energy appetite is already underway.
Small modular reactors have uses beyond electricity production, and Walsh made the case for using this technology to transform industries. He gave the example of the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, which has recently acquired buses that run on hydrogen. If a small modular reactor could be linked to a hydrogen plant, the entire transit system could be made far more sustainable. Illinois already derives 55 percent of its energy from nuclear, among the highest in the nation. When combined with solar and wind resources, Illinois can lead the nation and the world in sustainable energy. And in addition to nuclear, corn-derived ethanol is another growth opportunity for the region.
Some of this diversification in the region’s agriculture may be driven by the growth of biomanufacturing, including through the Indiana Soybean Alliance and the establishment of the Illinois Fermentation and Agricultural Biomanufacturing Hub (iFAB), one of twelve federally recognized and funded tech hubs. The initial funding catalyzed significant collaborations between startups and established companies, with Walsh noting that the grant money that came in was greater than the total amount of money put in by the state.
Dr. Kearns pointed out the necessity of cultivating a robust pipeline of skilled workers to support the growing sectors that would sustain the region’s next economy. Long-term funding will be needed to create and maintain the mechanisms that turn students into skilled workers ready to enter the “Chips, Qubits, and Molecules” workforce. Walsh advocated for a greater focus on STEM at the K-12 level, noting how building an interest in STEM subjects early would make it easier for them to pursue science and technology-based careers later. Dr. Plaut also advocated for better science communication, which could lead to increased public support for new technologies and scientific investments. As she put it, “If we don't figure out more creative ways of changing that dialogue, we won't have the support we need for some of these technologies.”
“Innovation is all about people, and we have great people in this part of the country.”
Dr. Paul Kearns
Director, Argonne National Laboratory
“We need students to realize what we all know: technology is a lot of fun. And it can change the world.”
Dr. Jay Walsh
Vice President for Economic Development & Innovation, University of Illinois System
Argonne recently completed an $815M dollar upgrade to The Advanced Photon Source. The project, completed on time and without safety incidents, replaced the current electron storage ring with a state of the art machine and increased X-ray brightness by up to 500 times.
Ms. Wince-Smith then made the case for alternatives to four-year degrees, as skilled trades like pipefitters are a crucial component for any buildout of high-tech industry, and they are high-paying careers paths. She advocated for engagement with workforce boards to fill these needed jobs, taking advantage of federal funds that already exist to do so.
Walsh added that collaboration between educational institutions and manufacturers like John Deere is needed to ensure a prepared workforce. “We're not going to be able to get these high-tech companies to move forward unless their whole supply chain has the talent they need,” he said. And Dr. Plaut similarly advocated for an integrated approach across educational and industrial sectors to supply workers at all skill levels, saying, “It is going to take everyone, and it is going to take all levels to change that ecosystem.”
Dr. Kearns gave a concrete example of the importance of growing the skilled technical workforce at Argonne, which has a close relationship with organized labor, and doing so has been greatly beneficial. A recent $850 million project built with union labor, for example, surpassed design expectations and without safety incidents.
As the conversation moved on to the complex issue of inequality in the region, Walsh laid out a stark statistic: in Chicago, a three-mile distance can mean an eighteen-year difference in life expectancy. This is not just a gap in health outcomes, but a canyon. With such a significant problem, cooperation between partners in the region, the country, and globally would be a prerequisite to finding solutions.
Dr. Plaut then stressed that region has a critical role in tackling food security at home and abroad. Indiana has 82 percent of its land dedicated to agriculture, and Illinois has 75 percent. Beyond their sheer production capacity, each also is home to institutions with world-leading gene editing capabilities, giving them the tools to radically enhance crop resilience and productivity. By joining researchers with farmers, the region is poised to lead a new Green Revolution, bolstering local agricultural output and economic growth while providing solutions to global hunger.
Ms. Wince-Smith invited final thoughts on the Indiana-Illinois Innovation Corridor’s contributions to national competitiveness. All panelist agreed that the collaborative spirit in the region is what’s growing the thriving innovation ecosystem of the region. By learning to work cohesively as a region and competing as a whole, the Corridor’s industries, universities, labs, and governments have crafted a dynamic innovation hub with the promise to lead the world in “Chips, Qubits, and Molecules.”