Choose Washington Blog
Washington economy snags top honor.
If there were an Olympics for businesses, Washington would be on the podium right now. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation has released its 2017 State New Economy Index and Washington took the #3 spot, ranking just behind California and Massachusetts....
The bookworm capital.
You'd think that in this world of smartphones, digital assistants and tablets that Seattle, the epicenter of high tech, would take a backseat when it comes to something as old school as reading and writing. But the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural...
Allen Institute maps the living brain.
The human brain is beginning to give up its secrets, one cell at a time. Thanks to the groundbreaking work of the Allen Institute for Brain Science, researchers have found a way to map living brain cells in real time. So far, the researchers have sequenced the genetic...
You really can go home again.
Airborne Environment Control Systems is coming home, so to speak. The startup, which has already captured $200 million in business, signed a five-year lease with the Port of Port Angeles with aggressive plans to expand and grow in the company's new hometown. It's not...
Washington leads blueberry production.
Washington State is having another bumper crop of blueberries. Ranking No. 1 in the country for overall blueberry production, this year's harvest is projected to top 132 million pounds. In 2016 total harvest was about 120 million pounds, six times what it was just a...
Make it an even 100.
Amazing what just three years will do for an economy. Since Geekwire started tracking out-of-town tech companies that set up technology engineering offices in Washington State, the list has doubled in size. Yesterday's announcement that Baidu was opening a new...
Amazon widens footprint in Seattle.
With all the headlines about creating a second headquarters in another city, Amazon is nevertheless leasing more office space and still growing in downtown Seattle. They have signed one of the biggest office space leases in Seattle history in the new Rainier Square...
Nano-scale chemistry may be the future of power generation.
One of Washington State's top-tier research institutions, the University of Washington, has received a grant to study new materials that can generate power. Dr. Daniel Gamelin's team spend time researching and analyzing the unique behaviors of chemicals at their...
State lands grant to create maritime cluster for the future.
The Washington State Department of Commerce was awarded a $500,000 grant through the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) program to support Washington Maritime Blue 2050, a statewide vision for creating and expanding...
State snags $900,000 STEP grant.
Washington did it again! For the sixth straight year, the state received a U.S. Small Business Administration's State Trade Expansion Program) grant. The $900,000 is the highest amount awarded from a total $18 million handed out nationwide. Commerce will use the funds...
Either way that’s a lot of bread.
The community of Rosalia in Whitman County may be small - population about 565 - but it's a major player in the international grain markets. According to the Washington State University Extension Office, Whatcom County is the highest wheat-producing county in the...
Drones to the rescue.
With hurricanes and wildfires devastating huge swaths of the country, a small operation in the small town of Bingen along the Columbia Gorge is sending their drones to help with hurricane rescue and firefighting teams. The high resolution surveillance cameras flying...