Gov. Phil Murphy campaigned on the idea of recreating and reinvigorating an “innovation” economy in the state — an initiative he has pushed throughout his six years in office.
The effort appears to be paying off.
This week, PitchBook ranked New Jersey third in the country for venture capital investment in the first half of 2024 — another milestone climb in VC investment that had dropped dramatically before he took office.
In the first six months of the year, New Jersey had $9.8 billion in VC investment (on 103 deals), a bit behind No. 2 New York ($12.6 billion) but well ahead of No. 4 Massachusetts ($6.9 billion). All three trailed No. 1 California ($40.4 billion), but that is expected.
The four states were the only states in the country to top even $3 billion in investment for the first half of 2024.
The $9.8 billion investment in VC money in the first six months roughly equals the total VC investment in the state for 2021-23 in its entirety.
Administration officials said the increases can be attributed to a number of things.
Broadly, Murphy’s continual push of the idea certainly has spurred interest, they said.
More specifically, they noted programs such as the unique Innovation Evergreen Fund, which was launched in 2022 by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority — giving the state a groundbreaking tool to increase access to strategic resources and venture capital.
Under the NJIEF, the state acts as an equity investor in startups, deploying up to $600 million into companies alongside professional venture capital groups.
The fund recently made a $1.5 million investment into TripWorks, an emerging New Jersey-based company.
EDA CEO Tim Sullivan told ROI-NJ the rise in rankings represents the collective emphasis the state has put on the process.
“From Day One, Gov. Murphy has been laser focused on reestablishing New Jersey as a global leader in the innovation and startup economy — and this new data confirms we are making huge progress,” he said.
“When young companies raise money to grow and scale, it means new jobs, new construction and faster growth. The investments made during Gov. Murphy’s time in office will position New Jersey for outsized job creation in the years to come.”
This push for innovation only figures to grow in coming years thanks to two other major initiatives.
In April, the state introduced the AI Hub at Princeton University with the first NJAI Summit.
The AI Hub aims to bring together artificial intelligence researchers, industry leaders, startup companies and other collaborators to advance research & development. It also will house dedicated accelerator space, advance the use of ethical AI for positive societal impact and promote workforce development to support new technology development.
All involved said the hub will work in collaboration with other New Jersey universities, community colleges and vocational schools. There will be a push for more New Jersey-based companies, too.
In May, Murphy announced NJ FAST, a new fintech accelerator housed at Stevens Institute for Technology in Hoboken — a unique collaboration between the school, the state (the EDA is investing $18 million), the private sector (Prudential Financial is a founding partner) and Plug and Play Tech Center (it may sound like an arcade, but it’s actually one of the top venture funders in the world).
A look at the Top 10 states for VC investment in the first half of 2024:
- California: $40.4 billion
- New York: $12.6 billion
- New Jersey: $9.8 billion
- Massachusetts: $6.9 billion
- Texas: $2.9 billion
- Colorado: $2.4 billion
- North Carolina: $1.7 billion
- Florida: $1.7 billion
- Illinois: $1.5 billion
- District of Columbia: $1.4 billion
