Corporate innovation centers, research universities, investors, start-up companies – these are the native elements of a successful R&D ecosystem. Georgia’s ecosystem is one of the state’s greatest strengths. is “one of the nation’s leading destinations for corporate research centers,” according to the Harvard Business Review. The 8-block area in Midtown Atlanta is home to hundreds of startups – plus dozens of innovation labs operated by international brands including Panasonic, Delta Air Lines, and Home Depot. Tech Square is also home to CODA, a 21-story building with 645,000 square feet of Class-T (tech) office space and 80,000 square feet of high-performance computing space. Research hubs are developing across the state. One is growing from the portfolio of public and private cybersecurity resources in Augusta, including NSA-Georgia, Unisys and the U.S. Army Cyber Command. The $100 million Georgia Cyber Center is the single largest investment in a cybersecurity facility by a state government to date, strengthening Georgia’s position as a national leader in cybersecurity. The Cyber Center’s first building opened in July 2018. The state’s research universities – which generate more than $2 billion a year in public and private R&D funding – work closely together through the , a national model for university research collaboration. Industry partnerships are an important part of the state’s research success. Georgia’s research universities are home to renowned centers of scientific exploration that attract experts from around the world. Some examples:

• The world’s largest university-based enterprise for vaccine exploration (Emory Vaccine Center)
• 1,600 scientists and engineers working across 8 labs and 15 field offices (Georgia Tech Research Institute) 
• 4 federally designated centers making new discoveries in glycoscience across the state (University of Georgia’s Complex Carbohydrate Research Center)