Honoring a city, town, region, or community within the state of Indiana that champions tech

Tech ecosystems are nurtured by people, but the home of tech hubs are our cities, towns, regions, and communities. Investing in where we live helps create more opportunity and attracts more talent. Now, more than ever, we have to continue to create opportunities within all Hoosier counties.

The Rising Tech City award honors a city, town, region or community within the state of Indiana and celebrates the projects and the people behind them who have championed the location’s advancement with particular emphasis on tech friendliness. The emphasis is on developing compelling places where diverse, tech-skilled people want to live.

As we continue to foster the tech hub of the Midwest, we are seeing more and more areas of Indiana developing a tech presence.  The Rising Tech City award highlights areas in Indiana that are committed to building and growing a tech presence. We’re seeing expansion in all major cities, along with more growth in our rural networks. More and more, tech is becoming a staple across the state, not just in metropolitan locations. 

The City of Fishers took home the inaugural award with a clear commitment to being a tech industry leader. The community’s decade-long campaign to become a major tech city in Indiana did not go unnoticed. This long-term plan has helped build on the foundation in Central Indiana and beyond. At the end of 2019, Fishers was designated as the new headquarters for California-based PerceptIn, an organization focused on autonomous cars. This is a direct result of the 2017 launch of the Indiana IoT Lab, and we expect more and more companies to take notice over time.  

As all of our 2020 nominees are proving, investing long-term in Indiana tech will ensure local and state-wide opportunities and growth. It will also drive more entrepreneurship and startups, helping to nurture the tech ecosystem. 

This year’s nominees include:

  • #FortBenTech Campus and City of Lawrence — The Lawrence #FortBenTech campus celebrates an ecosystem of 25+ tech companies at a former military base 10 miles northeast of Downtown Indy.
  • City of Bloomington —  Bloomington is home to Indiana’s fastest-growing coworking space. The Mill is the City’s new launchpad for tech startups and entrepreneurs.
  • City of Evansville — Purposeful quality of place projects foster an entrepreneurial, tech-driven environment in the City of Evansville.
  • City of Indianapolis — The city of Indianapolis is the Midwest tech capital in attracting tech companies, in growing a tech workforce, and in our own operations.
  • City of South Bend — The City of South Bend works with an incredible group of public, private and nonprofit partners to improve technology access and education across the region, including the South Bend Technology Center, which opened in 2019.

The 2020 Mira Award winners will be announced live on a special broadcast during the 21st gala on Thursday, June 18, with presenting sponsors Eli Lilly and Company, Genesys, Infosys, Raytheon Intelligence & Space and Salesforce. Thousands are expected to watch the live broadcast on social media platforms and via Zoom VIP room watch parties.

Get more information about the broadcast here. Join us on June 18 for the unveiling of the Rising Tech City Mira Award winner.