The Sacramento Regional Technology Alliance (SARTA) today released 2014 progress reports showing strong Sacramento region tech industry growth.
The Sacramento region's med tech, ag tech and clean tech industries in 2013 added jobs and revenue at an impressive rate, according to the SARTA MedStart, AgStart and CleanStart Progress Reports, which were released at today's SARTA TechEdge Celebration Luncheon in Sacramento. There now are more than 530 tech companies in the Sacramento region.
The Sacramento region med tech sector in 2013 showed more than 20 percent growth in jobs, from less than 5,000 in the previous year to more than 6,000. The total number of med tech companies now totals 137, a net increase of 11 from the prior year.
The total number of Sacramento region med tech companies has grown in each of the past five years with the biggest increases in telehealth and related healthcare information technology. Thirty percent of the area's med tech companies were founded in that same period.
"The groundwork laid by SARTA over the last six years is now showing huge value and we're shifting to a new phase of more robust growth in telehealth, while continuing to build strong foundations for growth in molecular imaging and regenerative cures," said Cary Adams, SARTA MedStart chair.
SARTA's first AgStart report shows 70 Sacramento region ag tech companies. The region is home to research and production facilities for a significant share of the world's leading seed breeders; five of the six global bio-ag companies; and a large number of grower cooperatives, food processors and emerging technology innovators.
Area ag tech companies have earned nearly $750 million in financial exits in the past 18 months, a sign of the Sacramento region's strength as an incubator for globally relevant ag tech innovation.
The Sacramento clean tech sector in 2013 hit a new record of more than $2.2 billion in total revenue for the 99 identified companies, a five percent increase over the previous year, while employment grew to more than 3,400 employees, representing six percent growth. Total clean tech employment in 2013 was five times higher than the 650 jobs SARTA identified in 2004.
Industry analyst Clean Edge also recently identified the Sacramento region as the #6 most active clean tech metropolitan area, ahead of Boston, Austin and Chicago but below the top three of San Francisco, San Jose and Portland.
"With the clean tech job and revenue growth we've seen over the past ten years, we're increasingly confident that we'll soon hit our goal of 10,000 jobs," said Gary Simon, SARTA CleanStart chair. "The region now has an unbroken six-year record of growth in jobs and revenue in clean tech companies."
"We're proud of the tech sector's growth but even more excited about what it means for Sacramento's future," said Meg Arnold, SARTA CEO. "We expect continued growth and are confident that the tech industry's role in our regional economy will expand significantly moving forward."
The SARTA TechEdge event was attended by more than 600 and featured a keynote address by Andy Miller, president and chief operating officer of San Francisco-based Leap Motion TM and a member of the Sacramento Kings ownership group.
SARTA was established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2001, and is accelerating the growth and development of the technology sector in the nine-county Sacramento region by linking technology leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, service providers, community organizations and educational institutions. For more information, visit sarta.org.
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