Only 10% of State and National Governments Distinguish Startups from New Businesses
Tuesday, 20 January 2026
A practical startup economic policy framework for governments that want venture-scale companies Governments around the world love the word entrepreneurship. They put it in press releases, name departments after it, fund “innovation hubs,” and cut ribbons in front of coworking spaces that end up being networking clubs for service providers seeking customers. What almost none
- Published in Startup Ecosystems
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What Sinks Startups AND Democracies: The One Thing Founders and Voters Are Starting to See Might Save Us
Monday, 19 January 2026
We trained a generation to build tools, not understand consequences. Technology keeps revealing just how dangerous that gap has become. American courts have been undergoing an experiment by way of a study that might (should) heavily influence everyone in appreciating how important it is that decision makers are well informed. Finally seeing more light with
- Published in Economic Development, Insights / Research
The Missing Infrastructure of Entrepreneurship: A Policy Guide for Cities and States
Tuesday, 26 August 2025
Governments keep insisting they’re “supporting entrepreneurship,” yet the tools they fund are usually the bureaucratic equivalent of a pep rally: innovation hubs with free Wi-Fi, pitch competitions, and motivational speakers who read the same three startup books as everyone else. These things create the appearance of activity but deliver outcomes only for the handful of
- Published in Economic Development, Startups
Innovation Isn’t Real Estate: Why Startup Hubs Waste Money
Thursday, 21 August 2025
The garage myth keeps fooling policymakers Innovation is not a real estate play, and your innovation district is likely disappointing entrepreneurs. Yet cities, universities, and corporations keep pouring millions into gleaming new “innovation spaces” and “hubs,” mistaking glass walls and free Wi-Fi for entrepreneurship. To some extent, understandably; startup folklore inspires us with stories of
- Published in Economic Development, Startup Ecosystems
Regional Collapse We Keep Pretending Isn’t Happening
Thursday, 07 August 2025
Something’s gone wrong in the way we structure governance; so wrong that it’s now normalized for elected leaders to turn to govern through coercion rather than consensus So wrong that the people who actually build and sustain the economy (workers, founders, educators, families) are often the last ones consulted about how that economy is governed.
- Published in Economic Development, Regional Development
Stop Funding Accelerators. Invest in Venture Studios Instead.
Monday, 04 August 2025
The most underwhelming moment for an entrepreneur in a startup ecosystem is the ribbon-cutting on yet another accelerator. Confetti flies, politicians pose, local media snaps a shot of the logo on the wall, and everyone goes home to wonder why venture capital still doesn’t show up. If you’re not familiar with why your region isn’t
- Published in Economic Development
Startups Are Not Small Businesses: A Texas Startup Policy Blueprint for Unlocking Capital
Tuesday, 08 July 2025
Published in collaboration with the TexCap Policy Institute, this new white paper is more than another call for “more startup support.” It’s a public policy intervention – one Texas desperately needs if we want to lead the nation in innovation, venture capital, and the next generation of job creation. We titled it plainly:Startups != Small
- Published in Economic Development







