The Baltimore area was chosen as one of 31 federal tech hubs on Monday, providing hundreds of millions in funding to make the region part of a national effort to advance America’s tech industry through competitive grants.

The Baltimore tech hub will focus on the combination of artificial intelligence and biotechnology — what’s been dubbed “predictive healthcare” — to use artificial intelligence on health data to improve outcomes, clinical decision-making and produce new therapies and drugs. The Baltimore region effort is now eligible for nearly $500 million in federal funds over five years that the Greater Baltimore Committee estimates will generate $3.2 billion in economic impact and 52,000 jobs by 2030.

The tech hubs, authorized by the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, will be located across 32 states and Puerto Rico — in both urban and rural regions, the U.S. Economic Development Administration said. President Joe Biden and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo made the announcement on Monday.

The story continues at The Baltimore Banner: Baltimore named one of 31 federal tech hubs, with focus on AI and biotechnology

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