2022-OKCID-Impact-Report-d1s

THE REGIONAL

IMPACT OF

THE OKC

INNOVATION DISTRICT

| PREPARED 2022 IMPACT REPORT

FOR: THE INNOVATION DISTRICT COMMUNITY | PREPARED BY:

OKC

THE OKC

INNOVATION DISTRICT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

- REPORT OVERVIEW -
- LETTER FROM THE CEO -
- OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT TIMELINE -

- STUDY AREA -
- DISTRICT ASSETS -

REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ECOSYSTEM BUILDING & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

BUSINESS & EDUCATION
INDUSTRY E V E N T S & C U LT U R E
MARKETING & CONNECTION
ECONOMY & STARTUP FUTURE IMPACTS
ACTIVITY

EMPLOYMENT
& LABOR

PUBLIC &
PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

REPORT OVERVIEW

The Oklahoma City Innovation District, sitting in the heart of the entire
Oklahoma City region, continues to be set up for the development
of innovation and technology-based business in 2022. This District,
designed to be an epicenter for collaboration, innovation, opportunity
and economic growth, convenes divergent industries to create
opportunities for next-level innovation, while also positioning the
Oklahoma City Region as a leading competitor for new companies, jobs
and talent in a global economy.

The OKC Region alone accounts for 91 percent of Oklahoman’s
academic research and development activity, and it is also the center
for the state’s economic activity, accounting for 40 percent of all
establishments and 43 percent of all jobs in Oklahoma. This report
highlights these strengths and opportunities, as the OKC Region
seeks to diversify its industries for the future by building upon
the successes of its past from the state’s historically leading
industries.

Source: Waymaker 2.0 Cluster
Employment Analysis & High-
Level Innovation Assessment
for the Oklahoma City
Innovation District
by Waymaker
Group

LETTER FROM THE diversification and more, and we will do Oklahoma City is steadily becoming a national
O K C I N N OVATION
DISTRICT so at an even larger scale. As part of its force in the advanced industries we’ve

PRESIDENT & CEO mission, the Innovation District focuses been fostering for years, and we are now

KATY BOREN on connecting neighboring communities collectively aligning around an innovation

On September 2, 2022, I was sitting on a in Northeast Oklahoma City to the rapid culture together that will continue to drive us
Zoom call, which isn’t anything out of the
ordinary for me in our post-COVID world; economic growth happening in the District forward.
however, the thing that made this Zoom
call extraordinary is that it was televised with robust STEM education and workforce
through the White House on national TV,
and President Biden and the U.S. Secretary training that readies residents for the I hope you enjoy reading about the Innovation
of Commerce, Gina Raimondo, were on the
other end. exciting STEM careers on the horizon. District’s progress and feel the energy behind

Never when I founded the Oklahoma City the vibrant future ahead.
Innovation District as its first President
& CEO in 2019 did I think I would find In this year’s report, we want to bring our
myself in a situation like that. To say that
our ecosystem has changed since then key stakeholders up to speed on all that we
would be an understatement. We have
grown in ways and at a pace I could not have accomplished and all that is coming
have imagined, and as you will see from
the highlights in this report, 2022 has to the Innovation District. As you explore it,
taken our growth to even higher levels,
as the OKC Innovation District is on the I hope that you feel the excitement, energy -Katy Boren
verge of moving from a several-thousand-
dollar operation to a several-million-dollar and influence our ecosystem has offered OKC Innovation District President & CEO
operation.
to Oklahoma’s innovation economy and to
With these new operational levels,
we will continue to create a vibrant, Northeast Oklahoma City. PERKINS + WILL
inclusive, engaging place that facilitates
collaboration and innovation, grows ideas -Research & Analysis
and entrepreneurs, and creates jobs in our -Vision Casting
city’s advanced industries of life sciences
& biotech, aerospace & defense, energy -Land Use & Strategic
Development Planning

THE BROOKINGS STUDY: THE MAPS 4 OPPOR

-Industry Collaboration Oklahoma City’s MAPS
-Technology become a nationally r

-Entrepreneurship model for economic deve
-Mixed-Use Density Innovation District MAPS
-Diversity & Inclusion an ideal application of the
- transformative public inv

spur private investment
and improve li

THE CONVERGENCE DEVELOPMENT: I N N OVAT I O N
DISTRICT
400,000+ square feet of space dedicated TIMELINE
to shared technology for 3D imaging &
printing, biomedical work, research labs,
office space, a hotel, retail space, an
open-air community environment and
the MAPS 4-funded Innovation Hall.

RTUNITY: GRANT FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

program has In 2022, the OKC Innovation Distirct
recognized received historic levels of federal
elopment. The funding that included $7.2M in EDA Build
S 4 projects are Back Better funding and $8.4M in State
e MAPS model
vestments that of Oklahoma ARPA Funding.
t, create jobs
ives.

REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

BUSINESS &
INDUSTRY

ECONOMY & STARTUP
ACTIVITY

EMPLOYMENT
& LABOR

PUBLIC &
PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

RESEARCH &
DEVELOPMENT

THE OKLAHOMA CITY INNOVATION DISTRICT’S

TOP INDUSTRIES

CONSTRUCTION
M A N U FA C T U R I N G

& TRADE

R E TA I L 7%
9%

UNCLASSIFIED 35% EDUCATIONAL
BUSINESS SERVICES

11%

12%

G O V E R N M E N T, 26%
FINANCE &

REAL ESTATE

H E A LT H C A R E
SERVICES

Sources: the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber | Copyright 2022 Data Axle, Inc.
All rights reserved. Esri Total Residential Population forecasts for 2022

130+

NEW BUSINESSES

in the OKC Innovation District in 2022

THE TOTAL NUMBER OF BUSINESSES IN THE
OKLAHOMA CITY INNOVATION DISTRICT
GREW FROM ~750 IN 2021 TO 880 IN 2022.

Sources: U.S. Patent & Trademark Office via FRED, Waymaker 2.0 Cluster
Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment for the
Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group, and the Greater
Oklahoma City Chamber | Copyright 2022 Data Axle, Inc. All rights reserved. Esri Total Residential Population forecasts for 2022

Oklahoma City is home to numerous industries, which all promote the growth of local
business and Oklahoma’s economy. The Innovation District itself is as diverse as they
come, boasting an ecosystem containing academia, aerospace & defense, alternative
energy, bioscience, healthcare, retail and research, all of which has helped lead
Oklahoma to continuously rank in the top 30 of U.S. states for the origination of
patents with 659 originating in the state in 2021. Hence another industry of
growth in the Oklahoma City - Entrepreneurship. The city has caught the
attention of ambitious entrepreneurs from all over the world, many of
which get their start in the Innovation District, or find key funding
opportunities within the District’s assets.

Throughout Oklahoma City’s vibrant innovation ecosystem,
there are tools to help all business succeed. The low
cost of living & labor, the central location in middle-
America, award-winning schools, low taxes
and regulations have all turned OKC into an
investment paradise. The minds that have
found their way into settling in the OKC
Innovation District are some of the
greatest minds in the State,
adding to the myriad of key
assets and industries that
position the city for
premiere growth in
innovation and
technology.

OKLAHOMA CITY HAS RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT SUCCESS IN THESE

KEY INDUSTRY CLUSTERS

AEROSPACE BIOTECH ENERGY

Specialized in employment in The biotech industry cluster consists Oklahoma City’s energy cluster has All three target industry clusters
Oklahoma City’s aerospace cluster, of 260 establishments, which an LQ of 4.35, which signifyies a high have higher shares of employment
with a location quotient (LQ) of employees 3,365 workers engaged degree of specialization in this area
1.08, signifies a concentration of in: chemical, pharmaceutical and with a concentration of employment in higher-skilled and middle-
employment 8 percent above the medical product manufacturing; more than 4 times the national skilled occupations than the
national average. Average annual testing and laboratories; and research average. Average wages in the overall regional economy, with the
wages in the aerospace industry and development activities. energy industry cluster are $140,835, biotech industry cluster holding
cluster are $110,931, which is above This industry cluster has a LQ of 0.38, which is the highest of any of these especially highly concentrations in
the regional average of $61,444, signifying a low level of employment four clusters and more than twice the higher-skilled occupations. While
and makes this cluster an attractive, concentration (only 38 percent of regional average. the overall Greater Oklahoma
high-wage target for economic the national average), but the cluster City Region is projected to create
development efforts, has experienced recent strong Each job in the energy cluster mostly lower-skill jobs over the
growth, with employment growing supports 2.80 jobs in the larger next five years, three of these
Each job in the aerospace cluster by 33 percent and the number four targeted industry clusters
supports 2.74 jobs in the larger of establishments growing by 49 regional economy (aerospace and biotech) have
regional economy percent since 2016. With average created and are projected to
annual wages at $103,582, this is continue to create more middle-
Location quotients (LQ) are ratios well above the regional average of skilled and higher-skilled jobs,
that allow an area’s distribution of $61,444, giving the biotech industry which will only continue the
employment by industry, ownership, and cluster high-wage employment success of Oklahoma’s innovation
size class to be compared to a reference opportunities. ecosystem and the development of
area’s distribution. If an LQ is equal to the OKC Innovation District.
1, then the industry has the same share Key selected subsectors within the
of its area employment as it does in the biotech industry cluster include:
nation. An LQ greater than 1 indicates
an industry with a greater share of the ---R&D in physical, engineering
local area employment than is the case and life sciences, with 1,019
nationwide. Industries with an LQ over jobs and an LQ of 0.44.
1.2 are generally considered specialized ---Pharmaceutical preparation
and may indicate the existence of a manufacturing, with 604 jobs
comparative advantage in that industry. and an LQ of 0.58
---Testing Laboratories with 399
jobs and an LQ of 0.48.

Each job in the biotech cluster
supports 2.54 jobs in the larger

regional economy

Oklahoma City’s Key Industry
Cluster Developments

Since 2016, the performance of the Greater Oklahoma City
Region’s three key industries, or industry clusters, have been
mixed. The OKC Region’s energy cluster has experienced declines
in employment, and throughout 2021 during the COVID-19 recession,
employment in that industry remained below the 2016 and pre-COVID-19
levels. In contrast, the aerospace & biotech industry clusters all experienced
strong growth during that time, and each of those categories increased in
employment across the OKC region during the COVID-19 recession, while each
projected to continue to grow over the next five years.

In terms specialized talent across these industry clusters, the Greater OKC Region is highly
specialized in the energy industry and has above average concentrations of employment in the
aerospace industry; however, the region currently has a low concentration of employment in biotech,
but it did experience strong growth in both employment opportunities and the number of businesses
established in biotech recently.

Each of these three key industry clusters – aerospace, biotech and energy – have substantial spillover effects
for the Greater OKC region, as well. Each job in the aerospace cluster supports 2.74 jobs in the larger regional
economy, each job in the biotech cluster supporting 2.54 jobs, and each job in the energy cluster supporting
2.8 jobs.

Source: Waymaker 2.0 Cluster Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment for the
Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group

The Oklahoma
City Innovation
District ecosystem’s
economy is made up of many
of Oklahoma’s key industries,
and the Aerospace & Defense sector
has maintained its growth and top spot
as the largest sector in both employement
and economic impact in the OKCID’s
ecosystem (and in the State), with bioscience,
alternative energy and other logistic industries also
playing major roles in the market.

With an impressive corporate presence, innovative incentives
and a low-cost of doing business, the varied economy in the region
positions the Innovation District for dynamic synergies and for helping
diversify the regional economy through the attraction and growth of
innovative startups, which is a critical economic imperative for Oklahoma City
in the upcoming years.

The Innovation District is also becoming a hub for new businesses in Oklahoma’s
economy. Because of the District’s strong research community, alongside the ability to
hire talent affordably with good quality of life, Oklahoma City is catching the attention of
ambitious entrepreneurs, and while those entrepreneurs are looking to be a part of OKC’s thriving
strartup economy, some of the OKC’s key venture capitalists are also looking to flood the market with
investments both locally and around the globe. In 2022 alone, more than $315.1M in OKC-based funding
was invested into the global economy in companies around the world.

Sources: Crunchbase.com, Waymaker 2.0 Cluster Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment for the
Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group and the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber | Copyright 2022 Data Axle,
Inc. All rights reserved. Esri Total Residential Population forecasts for 2022

$4.67B+

HOW MUCH 11 OKC-BASED COMPANIES
SPENT ON ACQUISITIONS IN 2022

$ 2 1 5 . 3 MMORETHAN

+ IN FUNDING WAS INVESTED ACROSS
OKLAHOMA CITY’S STARTUP
ECOSYSTEM IN 2022,

(SEED FUNDING, GRANTS, POST-IPO DEBT AND DEBT FINANCING)

$124M+
THE AMOUNT 12
OKC-BASED
STARTUPS
WERE
ACQUIRED
FOR
IN 2022

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

IN OKLAHOMA

• Since 2014, the rate of new
entrepreneurs in Oklahoma has been
above the national rate

OKLAHOMA CITY HAS A HIGHER SHARE OF REGIONAL PRIVATE • The opportunity share of new
SECTOR EMPLOYMENT IN NEW FIRMS, LESS THAN 5 YEARS OLD, entrepreneurs was higher in Oklahoma
compared to the rest of the nation in
12% 10%COMPARED TO 2020

FOR THE REST OF OKLAHOMA, AND A COMPARABLE SHARE • In recent years, the number of jobs
(29% COMPARED TO 30% FOR THE REST OF THE STATE) OF created by startups in Oklahoma has
been above the national level
EMPLOYMENT IN FIRMS WITH 50 EMPLOYEES OR LESS

• In recent years, the share of startups
that survive at least one year has been
higher in Oklahoma compared to the
national level

Oklahoma City’s
Entrepreneurship Ecosystem

The Oklahoma City Innovation District is building an
environment for entrepreneurship to thrive.
How so? By putting in the big pillars, drivers and
investments that attract venture capital and take the state’s
current level of VC funding to levels that have never been
reached in Oklahoma. The District is continuing to convene the
right parties that help commercialize technology and research,
leveraging its ecosystem to help those innovation pipelines increase.

Improved technology transfer programs, significant applied research and
entrepreneurship programming position the District for entrepreneurial activity;
However, these strengths are still in their infancy stages and have not yet translated
into a wellspring of new companies despite Oklahoma itself being well positioned to
support entrepreneurial development, as the state has a wealth of entrepreneurial activity.
According to the 2021 Kaufman Foundation’s State Report on Early-Stage
Entrepreneurship in the U.S., Oklahoma is ranked second in the nation, behind Florida,
in the Kauffman Early-Stage Entrepreneurship Index.

Source: Waymaker 2.0 Cluster Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment for
the Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group

Oklahoma’s State Small
Business Credit Initiative

Just like many regions of Oklahoma, businesses in the
Oklahoma City Innovation District are benefitting from
State Small Business Credit Initiatives (SSBCI). State Small Business
Credit Initiatives give states, territories and eligible municipalities the
opportunity to build upon or create successful models for state small
business programs, including Capital Access Programs (CAPs), collateral
support programs, loan participation programs, loan guarantee programs,
and venture capital programs. In 2022, it was announced that Oklahoma’s total
SSBCI is $81,646,606, of which $16.6M is being ensured to socially and economically
disadvantaged individual owned businesses and $4.1M is being ensured to businesses
with 10 employees or less. The money will be distributed in 3 tranches, the first of which is

$24,026,474 that arrived in the state in late 2022.

Sources: The Oklahoma Department of Commerce and
Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science & Technology

$10B

IN NEW U.S. SSBCI FUNDING

• $500,000,000 for tribal governments

• $1,500,000,000 for programs that support $81,646,606
businesses controlled or owned by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals OKLAHOMA’S TOTAL STATE SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT INITIATIVE

• $1,000,000,000 in additional funding $32,740,289 $48,906,317
beyond a state’s allocation to support robust TOWARD TOWARD
programming targeting socially and economically LOANS
disadvantaged individuals INVESTMENTS

• $500,000,000 for technical assistance, including
transfers to MBDA for technical assistance to
minority businesses seeking funding through
SSBCI funded state programs

• $500,000,000 for very small businesses with
10 or fewer employees, including independent
contractors and sole proprietors

17K+

NEW EMPLOYEES

in the OKC Innovation District in 2022

THE TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN THE
OKLAHOMA CITY INNOVATION DISTRICT
GREW FROM ~18,000 IN 2018 TO 43,087 IN 2022.

Sources: Greater Oklahoma City Chamber |
Copyright 2022 Data Axle, Inc. All rights reserved. Esri Total Residential Population forecasts for 2022 and the Waymaker 2.0
Cluster Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment for the Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group

In June 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released employment data that showed the Oklahoma City Metro was
continuing its strong fundamentals, posting an unemployment rate of just 3.2 percent. This metric represents the 15th-
lowest unemployment rate for metros with more than 1M in population, and it is a stronger showing than cities like
Cleveland, which posted a rate of nearly 6 percent.

Oklahoma City’s job market continues to boom, and the region’s economy fared better in the Covid
Recession than other metropolitan areas, with employment falling on an annual basis by 3.3 percent in
2020 and then growing by 1.2 percent in 2021 with the region projecting to fully regain pre-pandemic
levels of employment between 2023 and 2024. Overall unique job posting activity in the OKC
Region has also fully recovered and has now surpassed pre-pandemic levels. The healthcare
and energy industries have had high levels of recent growth in job posting activity, while
unique job posting activity in aerospace and biotech have not recovered as strongly as
the broader regional economy yet.

But each of these industries call the Oklahoma City Innovation District home,
and the District has everything a prospective employee could want. The
District is in the heart of the thriving economic climate noted above,
and it is home to nationally-low tax rates, giving the District’s
businesses the opportunity to grow and expand. In 2022, the
Innovation District saw more than 17,000 new employees
enter the workforce in the District’s boundaries,
growing from 25,655 in 2021 to 43,087 in 2022.

The massive scale of Oklahoma City’s public
improvement projects, along with first-
class business and cost environments,
are also impacting the Innovation
District, and they have helped
stoke the District’s red-hot
economic engine to
continue propelling
Oklahoma City
forward.

When
people
interact in
collaborative
environments, it elevates how
they relate to their community
and to one another.

In 2022, the Innovation District’s vision to
continue fostering these types of opportunities
and a collaborative environment has not changed,
even after monumental partnerships were made in
2021.

Steps have progressed toward the unvieling of the 200,000
SF Convergence development, as well as the Innovation District’s
crowning jewel, Innovation Hall, as ground broke on the single,
standalone building located at the epicenter of the Innovation District.

Innovation Hall, which will be operated by the Innovation District, will be a public
space for events and people to use throughout the work day, as organizations can
use its auditorium and conference rooms for meetings or programs, as well as a space
to work on projects.

Innovation Hall will also be the home of a state-of-the-art 7,500 s/f Biopharmaceutifcal
Manufacturing Workforce Training Center, which will allow Oklahomans the chance to receive
training and companies from around the country to send their own staffs for training, as well. This
opportunity comes after Oklahoma City was chosen as one of 21 winners from the EDA’s Build Back Better
Regional Challenge, which awarded the Oklahoma Biotech Innovation Cluster approximately $35 million to
rapidly expand the City’s biotechnology cluster.

NSF REGIONAL INNOVATION ENGINE

In 2022, the OKC Innovation District identified a significant National Science Foundation opportunity, an opportunity called a Regional Innovation
Engine (RIE). This NSF RIE grant opportunity is one that came out of the U.S. seeking to expand its’ talent pool for leadership in science,
technology, engineering and math research and development, and this opportunity is one that seeks to leverage U.S. resources,
creativity, and ingenuity, which Oklahoma City has plenty of. The NSF grant is one the OKCID is leading by convening numerous
partners and experts and identifying the right strategic proposal for Oklahoma and for this moment in time. Since starting the
process, the Innovation District has convened more than 50 key stakeholders from industry, several academic institutions from
across the state, as well as nonprofit and public organizations to capitalize on the NSF grant opportunity. At the end of
2022, the District’s application was chosen to go to on to the next phase of the grant process

OKLAHOMA CITY MINORITY FOUNDER ACCELERATOR PROGRAM

The OKC Innovation District, alongside partner organizations Northeast OKC Renaissance and i2E, launched
a minority business accelerator in 2022 called the OKC Minority Founder Accelerator Program. The
program intends to provide a platform that addresses: Parity for Minority-Owned Businesses in
OKC, Connection to the Innovation District and Oklahoma City, Capital and Technical Assistance
Access, Talent Retention and Recruitment Cultural Responsiveness, Cultivation of Innovation
and Education, Skills and Strategy Gaps.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE GRANT

In 2021, Oklahoma State University was awarded the largest grant ever given by
the Department of Defense to implement more STEM programs for schools with

economically disadvantaged or underrepresented students.
The OKCID will act as an implementation partner of the $6M grant.

CONVERGENCE DEVELOPMENT

In 2020, a private development, by Robinson Park and
other investors, named Convergence, was

announced. This 400,000+ square feet of space
will be dedicated to shared technology for
3D imaging & printing,
biomedical work, research labs,
office space, a hotel and
retail space.

OKC’S SIX CORE

BUILD BACK BETTER INVESTMENT PROJECTS

• 1) OU Health Stephenson​Cancer
Center for Therapeutics​

• 2) Oklahoma Biotech
Startup Program​

• 3) The University of Oklahoma​
Biotech Core Facility​

• 4) OU Health Stephenson​Cancer Center
Early-Phase Clinical Trial Network​

• 5) Oklahoma Bioscience​
Cluster Initiative​

• 6) Biomanufacturing​ Workforce
Training Center​

EDA Build Back Better
Regional Challenge

In 2022, the Oklahoma Biotech Innovation
Cluster (OBIC), led by the OKC Economic
Development Foundation, was chosen as one of
21 winners from the EDA’s Build Back Better Regional
Challenge. OBIC will receive approximately $35 million
to rapidly expand OKC’s community’s biotechnology cluster,
bolstering domestic resiliency within the biopharmaceutical supply
chain and making the cluster more globally competitive. The EDA
funding will build the Oklahoma Center for Development Therapeutics,
a program designed to address the cluster’s rate-limiting challenge to
commercialization, and it will also fund efforts including: the expansion of the
region’s clinical trials center to include more disease types and patients served,
an OKBioStart program to launch and grow biotech startups across Central
Oklahoma and a bioprocessing core facility and workforce program
preparing the region for biomanufacturing at scale.

Sources:
National
Institutes of
Health, OU Health
Sciences Center, the
Oklahoma Medical
Research Foundation and
Waymaker 2.0 Cluster
Employment Analysis &
High-Level Innovation Assessment for
the Oklahoma City Innovation District
by Waymaker Group

IN 2022

70.3%

OF OKLAHOMA’S NIH FUNDING CAME TO
ASSETS IN THE OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT
WHICH TOTALED OUT TO

$89,185,554

IN NIH FUNDING FOR THE YEAR.

,

The Greater Oklahoma City region has a track record of successful biomedical and clinical research institutions, and the industry has continued to display
consistent growth since 2010, as academic R&D has grown by 51%, outpacing both the nation and all but one of Oklahoma’s neighboring states, and as
life sciences R&D has increased by 41%, tracking with the national growth. The OKC Innovation District itself concentrates a substantial portion of the
Oklahoma City and State of Oklahoma research and development assets. Since 2019, Oklahoma has received $438,461,249 in National Institutes
of Health (NIH) funding, and nearly three quarters of state’s NIH investments flow into the Innovation District directly. In, 2022, NIH Funding
received by assets in the Innovation District increased by more than $40M from 2021 calendar year.

With the District’s high levels of research capacity within medical technologies and clinical research, as well as proximity to major
employment hubs, research and amenities, the OKCID has a plethera of strengths that make it research friendly, and these
strengths will only grow stronger as the District grows in density and diversity of innovation activiites, and as it begins to
connect to broader regional industry clusters. Drug development is a particular strength within the OKCID in areas
focusing on cancer, rheumatology, diabetes, biochemistry, immunology and hematology, among others. Because the
University Research Park, which includes the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF) and the Presbyterian
Health Foundation, is located within the District, several large life sciences companies such as Cytovance and
COARE Biotechnology are strategically located nearby.

Oklahoma City’s Bioscience presence is also generating national attention, as the companies
within this industry are providing both bioscience goods & services and education & research

testing. A key factor in OKC’s biotech boom is the powerful symbiotic relationship between
entrepreneurs, clinical researchers, academic investigators and public-private investors.
Firms in the Oklahoma City Bioscience sector boast annual revenues of more than $4.1
billion.

Alongside healthcare, Oklahoma has experienced particularly strong growth
in aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical engineering R&D, supporting
the state and region’s targeted aerospace industry, which increased
from $119,000 in 2000 to $15.8 million in 2020. The Oklahoma
State University Harold Hamm Institute for American Energy,
located in the hub of the District, functions as an accelerator
and collaborator to energy, aerospace, technology,
academic and investment partners. The facility is
home to the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for
Research and Education (OAIRE), focused on
bringing the state’s aerospace innovation
economy together under one umbrella.
Continuing to expand university
research and technology
commercialization activities
will be critical to
supporting the
region’s innovation
ecosystem and
developing
the
OKCID.

The Oklahoma City Innovation District hosts the Innovation District
Postdoc Society, which is made up of more than 100 post-doctorates
from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and the Oklahoma
Medical Research Foundation who work and research in the Innovation District.
Postdoc programs in the Innovation District are programs that allow PhD students
the opportunity to continue training as a researcher and to gain skills and experience
that will further their career. These programs are generally supported through grants,
donations and foundation funds, and Innovation District postdoc work typically contributes
back to funding resources, as well as directly back to the greater OKC Metro area,

benefitting Oklahoma City, Edmond and Norman.

Sources: National Institutes of Health, OU Health Sciences Center
and Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation

25+

POSTDOC RESEARCH SPECIALITIES IN THE OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT

Aging & Metabolism Neurosurgery

Arthritis Obstetrics & Gynecology

Biochemistry Oncology

Cancer Research Ophthalmology 119
POSTDOCS
Cardiovascular Otorhinolaryngology
WORKING IN THE OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT IN 2022
Cell Biology Pathology

Diabetes Pediatrics

Endocrinology Pharmaceutical Sciences 52%+ $6.5M+
LIVE NEAR IN FUNDING
Genetics & Human Disease Physiology THE OKCID RECEIVED IN 2022

Up 2% from 2021 Up more than $500,000 from 2021

Hematology Pulmonary

Immunology Radiation Oncology

Microbiology Rehabilitation Sciences

Molecular Biology Rheumatology

Multiple Sclerosis Surgery

Nephrology

EDUCATION
E V E N T S & C U LT U R E
MARKETING & CONNECTION
FUTURE IMPACTS

THE OKLAHOMA CITY REGION’S 2020

DEGREES & CERTIFICATES
GENERATED IN SELECTED OCCUPATIONS TO THE
OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT’S KEY INDUSTRIES
COMPUTER &
INFORMATION SCIENCES

12%

H E A LT H 51% 23% ENGINEERING
PROFESSIONS PROGRAMS

14%

BIOLOGICAL &
BIOMEDICAL
SCIENCES

Source: Waymaker 2.0 Cluster Employment Analysis & High-Level Innovation Assessment
for the Oklahoma City Innovation District by Waymaker Group

Sources:
OU Health
Sciences Center,
Waymaker 2.0
Cluster Employment
Analysis & High-Level
Innovation Assessment for
the Oklahoma City Innovation
District by Waymaker Group
the Greater Oklahoma City
Chamber | Esri forecasts for
2022 and 2027.

EDUCATIONAL
ATTAINMENT
IN THE INNOVATION DISTRICT

1.4% LESS THAN 9TH GRADE

DOWN 0.8% FROM 2021

3.4% 9TH - 12TH GRADE, NO DIPLOMA

DOWN 0.2% FROM 2021

19.8% HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE

DOWN 1.2% FROM 2021

4.5% GED/ALTERNATIVE CREDENTIAL

DOWN 2% FROM 2021

19.5% SOME COLLEGE, NO DEGREE

DOWN 2.3% FROM 2021

4.1% ASSOCIATE DEGREE

UP 1% FROM 2021

29% BACHELOR’S DEGREE
UP 4.1% FROM 2021

18.4% GRADUATE/PROFESSIONAL DEGREE
UP 1.5% FROM 2021

The Oklahoma City Innovation District is home to several nationally recognized academic institutions. At the core of these institutions
is the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC), one of only a few academic medical campuses in the U.S. to house a
comprehensive set of professional and medical schools, including colleges of dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, graduate
studies and public health. Given the interdisciplinary nature of health-related research, having these professional schools clustered in one
location—often sharing faculty and funding—is a significant advantage to the region, and it provides an unprecedented opportunity to
link clinical care and research to support commercial activity in health fields.

Since 2010, the University of Oklahoma and OUHSC have experienced a 66 percent growth in academic R&D, with life
sciences R&D increasing by 49 percent and engineering R&D by 35 percent. Oklahoma State University experienced 27
percent growth in R&D with strong growth in computer and information sciences R&D (183 percent). While Oklahoma
and the larger region are experiencing growth these areas, there is still a need for continued growth in the
Computer, Life Sciences and Engineering academic R&D areas to support the Innovation District’s ecosystem
development, but the tools are in place and the steps are being taken to do so and capitalize on the
District’s assets.

The OKC Innovation District is home to 10+ schools and colleges, including: Gene Rainbolt Graduate
School of Business, Oklahoma City University School of Law, OUHSC College of Nursing,
OU College of Pharmacy, OU College of Allied Health, OU Health and Science Center,
OU College of Medicine, OU Hudson College of Public Health, Oklahoma School of
Science and Mathematics and Oklahoma State University’s College of Engineering,
Architecture & Technology. Plus, the surrounding OKCID area is home to an
additional 14 other public and private colleges and universities including
Oklahoma City Community College, Oklahoma City University, Rose State
College and the University of Central Oklahoma, to name a few.

In 2022, more than 3,800 students attended school within
the Innovation District’s 850-acre physical boundaries,
and 350+ of the undergraduate or graduate students
attending school in the OKCID also live in the
Innovation District, which is a ~50 student
increase from 2021. The area also has
a nationally acclaimed Career and
Technology system, which combined
with these other academic
institutions, serve more than
130,000 students across
the Innovation District’s
landscape from high
school through
graduate
school.

75+ A L LO C AT E D

HOURS OF ‘TEACH THE $350,000
TEACHER’ TRAINING
IN TIF FUNDING TO SUPPORT STEM EDUCATION
IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA CITY

• $47,850 to Urban • $49,500 to Freedom

Bridge City ​

​

1,660 • $2 5, 0 0 0 to C l a s sMatte rs​ • $50,000 to ST E AM

STUDENTS SERVED Engine

THROUGH THE NEOKC INNOVATION ACADEMY IN 2022 • $46,800 to Science ​

Mu s eu m of OK​ • $20,000 for a

Project Coordinator ​

• $49,240 to OKC

Community College ​ • $28,000 for marketing​

395 53% contractors

PARENTS & YOUNG WOMEN • $25,000 to Langston
TEACHERS SERVED PARTICIPATION
University ​

913

VOLUNTEER HOURS

In 2021, The Oklahoma City Innovation District launched the
STEM Education & Workforce Development Committee in Northeast
Oklahoma City, where the Innovation District is located. The SEWD
Committee oversees the allocation of $18 million over the next 25 years
to fund STEM education and workforce development programs in the
OKC Innovation District, enabling students and community members to have
the resources necessary to participate in the Innovation District’s workforce and
opportunities in the community. The SEWD Committee seeks proposals from entities and
organizations whose programming meets its criteria, and it looks for ideas from organizations
with proven track records, but also for new ideas from new places. The funds come from a
specific economic tool, the Innovation District Tax Increment Finance (TIF) District, which was
envisioned and framed by former OKC Ward 7 Councilman John Pettis, which works
with corporations and other entities benefitting from locations within the TIF District to also
allow people whose families have been there for generations to benefit too. A portion of the
Innovation District’s TIF money is thus required to support STEM education and workforce
development within the boundaries of the Innovation District.

The Oklahoma City Innovation District welcomed nearly 1,000 middle
school students from across the OKC Metro to its inaugural Innovation Week

program on September 13-15, 2022, in the Innovation District. The program
offered students the chance to experience diverse simulation activities spanning
STEM-focused industries to help spark students’ interests in various STEM (science,
technology, engineering and mathematics) career fields that exist across the state.

“I brought 18 students, and five left wanting to be scientists,” seventh-grade teacher Paulette
Hunnicutt said. “It’s one thing to introduce a concept, but for students to actually see and hear

an engineer say the things I’m teaching, it begins to click. Science is an avenue for these
students to travel the world.”

20+

ORGANIZATIONS AND BOOTHS INVOLVED WITH INNOVATION WEEK 2022

957
STUDENTS

ATTENDED INNOVATION WEEK IN 2022

70.1% 69.5%

OF STUDENTS OF STUDENTS
ARE FROM LOW- WERE MINORITY
INCOME FAMILIES
STUDENTS

45

OKCID VOLUNTEERS
HELPED AT INNOVATION

WEEK IN 2022

10

NORTHEAST OKC
COMMUNITY OR MINORITY
ORGANIZATIONS FEATURED
AT OKCID EVENTS IN 2022

5 0 +THE OKC INNOVATION DISTRICT HOSTED

PROGRAMMING OPPORTUNITIES IN 2022

10 MORE UNIQUE EVENTS THAN 2021 OFFERED.

The Oklahoma City Innovation District offers numerous events and programming to be a part of. Since 2019, the District
has hosted more than 100 different programming opportunities and more than 6,000 attendees at these events to create
a consistency of monthly activities for community members to enjoy. These events, such as Cocktails & Collaboration
happy hours and Walk Over Wednesday food truck events, are all managed by the Innovation District and have
instilled networking opportunities for professionals and community members in the area to make the connections
they need to advance innovation in Oklahoma City. The District has even added a community element to the
innovation ecosystem, with a series of volunteer days in partnership with local nonprofit, Restore OKC. While
the Innovation District manages its own programming with more than 40 events each year, there are a
plethora of other programming and event opportunities happening throughout the District hosted
by other organizations and entities, all of which can be found on the Innovation District’s online
calendar of events, the go-to event calendar for the District’s 850-acre landscape.

The Innovation District has also developed substantive programming around innovative,
cross-cutting technologies that span many advanced industry sectors, such as
life sciences and biotech, aerospace and defense, and energy diversification.
This programming spans from conferences, panels and speakers to student
showcases, symposia, working groups and seminars – all focused on
convening people to exchange ideas, collaborate and innovate.

Alongside the District’s events and programs is a dazzling culture
and art scene found in and around the District. With three major
arts festivals each year and more than 50 independent
galleries showcasing local artists, Oklahoma City’s
exuberant art scene provides the perfect mix of
mainstream and off-beat art encounters. Plus,
traditional to multi-media art all live within
the Innovation District’s borders, including
the Oklahoma City Museum of Art,
Factory Obscura and Oklahoma
Contemporary - a contemporary
arts center where the art and
innovation of tomorrow
are forged through the
creative connections
between different
art forms and
ideas.

95+ SOCIAL MEDIA
8,200+ FOLLOWERS ACROSS ALL OUTLETS
INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM
EVENTS PUBLISHED ON THE AVG. FOLLOWER INCREASE OF 92% ACROSS ALL PLATFORMS FROM 2021
OKCID’S ONLINE CALENDAR
17,300+ ENGAGEMENTS IN 2022
OF EVENTS IN 2022
1,400+ STORIES SHARED IN 2022
EMAIL
1,400+ SUBSCRIBERS

UP 21% FROM 2021

29% AVG. OPEN RATE
3.8% AVG. CLICK RATE

WEBSITE
12,500+ UNIQUE USERS

UP 23% FROM 2021

42,000+ PAGE VIEWS

UP 29% FROM 2021

1 0PROMOTED

INDUSTRY & INNOVATION
SPECIFIC MONTHLY

MARKETING CAMPAIGNS
IN 2022

he vision of the Oklahoma City Innovation District is to create a next-level, innovation ecosystem that activates

Tcross-industry collaborations and translates them into commercialized ideas and economic growth. This
happens through transforming the area with new developments, exciting programming and events and
convening people at the hub of Oklahoma City’s innovation ecosystem.
Innovation District marketing efforts, and The Nucleus, the OKCID’s virtual ‘cognitive city,’ are were
place all of these things happen. The Nucleus specifically, is a state-of-the-art knowledge graph
software that maps the District’s assets and connects members to the information, industries,
people and programming they need to solve problems that all those in our ecosystem
are working on. The Innovation District uses The Nucleus at events and programming
opportunities as a networking tool and a connector to questions and ideas.

GROWTH IN 2022 600+ USERS
151% INCREASE FROM 2021

240+ ORGANIZATIONS REPRESENTED
426% INCREASE FROM 2021

80+ INDUSTRIES REPRESENTED
158% INCREASE FROM 2021

95+ IDEAS & CONNECTIONS
88% INCREASE FROM 2021

DISTRICT CONNECTIVITY

An enhanced, walkable bridge connection over I-235 at 10th
St. will reconnect the Innovation District and its surrounding
neighborhoods with Automobile Alley and the Downtown Oklahoma
City Business District. At street level, the bridge will include a park-
like area with sidewalks, grassy lawns, shrubbery and benches.

HENRIETTA B FOSTER CENTER FOR
MINORITY SMALL BUSINESS & ENTREPRENEURSHIP

In its renovations, the historic Henrietta B. Foster Minority Small Business and
Entrepreneurship Center will continue to be a place of importance with a new mission
to support current and aspiring local businesses to bring prosperity and redevelopment.
The center is set to open in 2025, and it will work alongside growing businesses to revitalize
important commercial destinations in the area, bringing services and activity to residents. The
center will be operated by Metro Tech, Northeast OKC Renaissance, Progress OKC and Small Business

Development Centers of Oklahoma.

WASHINGTON PARK

Sitting at the corners of NE Fourth and High Streets, Washington Park is a staple in the OKC Innovation District and
the Northeast Oklahoma City community. As updates are made to the park, it will become an even bigger key to District’s
connectivity. Current renderings of the updated park include a large pavilion, updated playground, basketball courts, an
amphitheater and more.

10TH ST. BRIDGE EXPANSION HENRIETTA B FOSTER CENTER FOR
MINORITY SMALL BUSINESS &
ENTREPRENEURSHIP

WASHINGTON PARK

THANK YOU

TO THE OKLAHOMA CITY INNOVATION DISTRICT’S FOUNDING & VISIONARY PARTNERS

WHO ELSE IS ON BOARD
FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER?

CONTACT KATY. BOREN@ OKCINNOVATION.COM TO L E A RN M ORE A N D G E T I N VOLVE D

The Oklahoma City
Innovation District’s
2.0 Strategic Plan

The Oklahoma City Innovation District was founded
2018, and the organization’s first four years have exceeded
expectations.

Even through a global pandemic, the Innovation District has been
committed to staying at the forefront of innovation, and the organization
continues to look toward the horizon. In 2022, the OKCID finalized its 2.0
strategic plan, and it is with that plan that the District looks to the even more
exciting work ahead.

In the coming years, the OKC Innovation District will continue its role growing
OKC’s innovation ecosystem, convening people and ideas for collaboration and
spearheading industry cluster development across the Greater OKC Metro
and across the entire State of Oklahoma.

WHERE COLLABORATION CREATEES INNOVATION