Six more regional Tech Hubs are set to receive a combined $169 million in federal funding, signaling the EDA program’s survival despite fears it might be cut. 

The catch: It’s the leanest funding round in the program’s history.

The latest round of projects chosen for investment highlights the Trump administration’s priorities when it comes to key emerging technologies, with awards pledged to cohorts focusing on advanced energy, manufacturing and quantum.

“Once fully implemented,” said EDA Deputy Assistant Secretary and COO Ben Page in a press release, “these projects will spur long‑term economic growth, strengthen domestic supply chains, and drive America’s leadership in critical technologies that will define global competitiveness for decades.”

6 Tech Hubs land millions

Launched by the Economic Development Administration under Biden as part of 2022’s CHIPS and Science Act, the program has already awarded more than $500 million across a dozen consortiums. The prior awards are listed on the EDA’s website with the caveat that they “do not necessarily reflect current investment priorities.” 

The agency did not immediately respond to Technical.ly’s request for comment on its selection criteria or on guidance for hubs that have yet to receive implementation awards.

EDA Tech Hubs timeline

The 31 regional coalitions designated in 2023 as Tech Hubs have experienced an uncertain path over the past few years.

After earning the title from the Biden administration, these regions gained the chance to compete for hundreds of millions of dollars to support their specialized sectors, all aimed at strengthening the tech ecosystem over the next decade.

In 2024, twelve of those regions split a cumulative $500 million award, while the 19 remaining hubs each received $500,000 Consortium Accelerator Awards to support program development.

Then things got complicated. 

A $210 million funding slate intended for six Tech Hubs in 2025 was canceled later that year following a Trump administration critique of the process.

At the time, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he directed the agency to “revamp” the program, pledging a revised version designed “to prioritize national security, project quality, benefit to the taxpayer and a fair process.”

In September 2025, a notice to submit funding proposals went out to the unfunded hubs, seeking grant requests to accelerate US manufacturing, commercialization, and (a new addition) warfighting capabilities.

Those efforts led to the July 2026 disbursements, bringing the total funding awarded through the program to more than $650 million.

Refined pitches for a new administration

Administration changes and early bumps along the way changed the pitch for several Tech Hubs.

Despite the transition, the “core of EDA has remained the same” — bringing innovation to market to boost local economies — Lakey Boyd, chief economic officer at the Greater Baltimore Committee, told Technical.ly last year.

Still, when it came time for its Phase 3 pitch, the Baltimore Tech Hub pivoted slightly to focus on three main components: a biomanufacturing facility expansion in Harford County; venture development led by Baltimore-based tech commercialization firm Early Charm Ventures; and workforce development led by the Maryland Tech Council, in collaboration with Harford Community College and life sciences workforce platform BioBuzz.

That strategy didn’t land the region funding in this round, and Philly’s precision medicine pitch didn’t hit the mark either. For two other hubs Technical.ly previously spoke with, a shift in pitch may have worked.

At the Bloch Quantum Tech Hub, regional innovation officer Jean-Luc Cambier said Trump administration support for quantum is a clear priority, which likely helped it land funds this time around.

It’s a similar story at the Critical Minerals and Materials for Advanced Energy Hub in Missouri. 

Compared to the Biden administration, regional innovation officer Kwame Awuah-Offei previously told Technical.ly, “the [Trump] administration’s emphasis on critical minerals and materials is sharper.”