Analysis says Connecticut ranks high in tech innovation

March 24--Connecticut may not be as synonymous with innovation as Silicon Valley or North Carolina's Research Triangle, but according to personal finance website WalletHub, the Nutmeg State is among the best in the nation when it comes to having an environment in which new technologies can grow.

WalletHub ranked Connecticut ninth in its analysis of 18 key metrics that encourage technology innovation. Connecticut only ranked in the top 10 among five of the 18 metrics, but Jill Gonzalez, an analyst with WalletHub, said the state did especially well in what she termed as areas of "human capital."

"It has the eighth-highest AP exam participation at almost 42 percent," she said. "It also has the sixth-highest number of utility patents at 8.35 per 100,000 residents."

Connecticut also finished sixth in research and development spending per capita at $2,844. It also had the eighth-highest research and development intensity, a measurement that examines the ratio of total research and development performed and compares it to a state's gross domestic product.

Bruce Carlson, president and chief executive officer of the Connecticut Technology Council, said the state benefits from its number of colleges and the research funding they attract.

"In order for there to be technology and innovation, there has to be a strong educational environment," Carlson said, "We've got a lot of college students, a lot faculty members who are not only coming up with innovative ideas, but obtaining patents for them."

But sometimes the level of highly skilled workers in Connecticut isn't enough of a lure, he acknowledged.

Farmington-based conglomerate United Technologies Corp. announced Monday that it plans to invest $300 million to develop a digital accelerator in Brooklyn, New York, that will create 250 new jobs. Work at the new facility will be focused on developing software for UTC's products and services.

"Our investment in digital innovations will make travel better, people safer and urbanizing cities more comfortable and connected," said Greg Hayes, UTC's chairman and chief executive officer. "As we look to the future, our Digital Accelerator is an important step to assure we have the talent and skills to integrate digital solutions into our products and services to provide greater value to our customers."

United Technologies Digital is recruiting high-tech professionals specializing in product management, software development and data science for its new Brooklyn facility.

Carlson said it is understandable that major technology companies such as UTC and General Electric are investing heavily in major urban centers. Although Connecticut has a highly educated workforce, Carlson said "there is wide disparity between our talent pool and the number of jobs that need to be filled out there."

But while the pool of technology innovation talent is deeper in Boston and New York, the cost of doing business in the two cities that serve as bookends to Connecticut is high, he said.

"The cost of space there is three to four times higher than what it is in Connecticut," Carlson said. "Some people look at our geography as problematic, but in this case it is beneficial."

As an example of Connecticut's lure to technology companies, Carlson cited the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, which opened a state-of-the-art genomics research facility in Branford in 2014.

"One of the reason why they choose it (Branford) is the workforce there," he said.

Branford has an established track record of being an attractive home for bio-medical companies, starting with companies such as Neurogen and CuraGen, which were founded in the community in the 1990s.

Call Luther Turmelle at 203-680-9388.

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