By Lucy Wyndham
When you think tech, you think the West Coast; San Mateo and San Francisco.
However, according to the New York Times, the Dakotas and North Dakota in particular are set to be the next big tech battleground. While international news has focused on the big-ticket work going on in Silicon Valley, businesses across the Dakotas have started to flourish in the new digital investment playground. As developments and services located out of the states have shown, the digital industry is set to flourish – in a big way.
Dakota-based services
Much of the modern digital economy is based on the prevalence of services. Software as a service (SaaS) is where independent software is developed and delivered onto hardware and licensed to individual consumers, typically on a subscription basis. Appropriately enough for the Dakotas, SaaS has been seen in the sort of equipment used in the great outdoors. Drone experts SUAS News report on Thales, a MacKenzie-area company that specialize in UAV usage to help map for both civilian and private company purposes. A quiet revolution is ongoing in the state with regards to drone tech and the software platforms they run, and Thales are showing an intriguing way forward for the further proliferation of this tech.
Breaking ground
As Thales soar overhead, developments are creating solid infrastructure elsewhere in the region. Kota TV reports that Rapid City has seen the ground broken for the construction of a new super-high-tech complex to house, among others, real estate venture Property Meld. The relatively low cost of property in the area, and a liberal approach to tax rates and the development of new internet and other digital infrastructure, means that these developments are far more feasible than they are in Silicon Valley. Where the state lacks is in its connectivity and the internet speeds offered – however, that’s all set to change, too.
Internet improvements
Internet speeds in the Dakotas aren’t great. The Argus Leader reports that only 28% of South Dakota residents have access to high-speed internet, and only 88% of residents are covered by availability. That’s a 12% gap where people have no option but to use older protocols, and a huge barrier to digital business. This is set to change with federal infrastructure spending which should bring about a change in scenery when it comes to connection speeds. Unfortunately, the Argus Leader also estimates that some communities in South Dakota will remain unserved. This is a considerable bone of contention for state leaders and will be something argued for in the near future, before the new cabling starts to make its way into the cities and towns of the Dakotas.
Widespread coverage will help to bring all citizens of the Dakotas into the modern day, and help them to enjoy broadband coverage to its fullest extent. That, in turn, will provide new talent for the companies and businesses that are staking their future on the new Silicon Valley.