Best States for AI Investment

The BGR Best States for AI Investment Index ranks all 50 states and D.C. based on their readiness and attractiveness for artificial intelligence investment.

The AI economy is reordering American competitiveness — state by state. Companies investing in data centers, AI research facilities, chip manufacturing and the talent pipelines that support them face consequential location decisions with limited reliable data to guide them. The BGR Best States for AI Investment Index changes that.

The Index ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia using data in more than 100 categories spanning five pillars, performing a comprehensive 360-degree evaluation of each state's AI investment environment. The five pillars are:

• Dynamic Economy
• Business Climate
• Data Center-Ready Environment (including Research & Startup Ecosystem, Data Infrastructure, Regulatory Friendliness, Energy Abundance & Affordability, and Synergistic Advantage)
• Workforce Advantage (including Workforce Governance, Human Capital, and Competitive Compensation)
• Quality of Place (including Cost of Living, Quality of Life, Public Health, and Public Safety)

Methodology: Data are distributed across 14 indicator groups and weighted to reflect the distinct demands of the AI economy. Each indicator is normalized and scored among all 51 jurisdictions before applying group and pillar weights to produce an aggregate total score and ranking. Rankings reflect only objective data; no surveying of states was conducted.

Client Application: Technology companies, data center developers, sovereign wealth funds, private equity firms, foreign governments, and other investors can use the Index to identify optimal locations for AI-related capital deployment, validate or challenge site-selection assumptions, and develop a data-backed narrative for stakeholders on where — and why — AI investment should flow.

More Information: To learn more about the Best States for AI Index, including pricing for a complete report showing the results for all 50 states and Washington D.C., contact Frank Ahrens at fahrens@bgrpr.com.

Impact Index

The BGR Impact Index shows which countries have the most clout in the U.S.

The BGR Impact Index analyzes 198 countries and special administrative regions using traditional and alternative data in 25 categories, including GDP, population, outbound FDI, lobbying spending, tourism spending, trade, athletic and cultural achievement, rule of law, human rights, mobility of students and more. The BGR Impact Index is the only ranking that factors in online news and social media conversation around each country. More than 10 trillion pieces of online data were analyzed over the course of an entire year.

Methdology: The data are spread among 25 indicator groups comprising 100 indicators. Each indicator is normalized and scored, among all economies with data, before applying respective weights for the aggregate total score. The maximum score possible for each indicator is 100. The rankings are based on the scores. To avoid the appearance of subjectivity, no surveying of countries was done.

Client Application: Countries can leverage this information to better understand their strengths and weaknesses and to execute their U.S. advocacy strategy with greater precision, ROI, intelligence.

Asia Investment Index

The BGR Best States for Asian Investment Index ranks all 50 states based on their desirability for Asia-outbound investment.

The Inflation Reduction Act and other recent U.S. government policies have spurred new investment and interest in the U.S. from South Korea, Japan, India and other Asian countries. This index gives Asian companies and governments the most comprehensive and up-to-date data to help them make U.S. investment decisions.
The Index ranks all 50 states based on data in 139 categories in 10 groups, performing an unparalleled 360-degree evaluation of each state. The data groups are:

• Economic profile
• Business climate
• Demographics & Asian assimilation
• Manufacturing advantage
• Connectivity & infrastructure
• Innovation & knowledge management
• Strength of workforce
• Competitive pay
• Cost of living
• Public health & safety

The Index includes 16 appendices that dive even deeper into the data, breaking down the heritage of each state’s Asian population, presidential election results, top foreign trading partners, internet access, crime and health statistics and other granular data.

Energy Security Index

The BGR Energy Security Index helps clients understand the risk associated with potential energy providers.

The index ranks energy-exporting countries based on data in 24 categories, including:

• Logistics performance
• Anti-corruption efforts
• Rule of law
• Proven reserves
• Energy use per GDP
• Electricity production by source
• Oil and gas consumption per country
• Passenger car (including EV) ownership
• Measurements of capacity, security, and stability.

Countries are weighted according to their share of world energy export value to produce the overall ranking.