Alejandro Mejia Mejia is a Multimedia Journalist for Action News Now.
He can reached at [email protected]
The conference brought together government officials, educators, and industry decision makers together to collectively tackle the issues of economic development for northern California.
CHICO, Calif. – The 25th annual Economic Forecast Conference was held at Chico State University Thursday.
The conference, which is hosted by the North State Planning and Development Collective, brings together educators, government officials, and decision makers from various industries to tackle the issues of economic development for northern California.
Dr. Robert Eyler, the President of Economic Forensics and Analytics who also is a professor at Sonoma State University, tells Action News Now that if a business has a need to expand, they should look at neighboring cities. However, Eyler says that businesses trying to get the attention of people throughout the county should be the main goal.
“We have to think beyond those borders in terms of customer base,” said Eyler. ” I might not be able to do that alone in Redding, but can I find someone to partner with or can I find more resources that gets me marketed outside of this area to bring that income here?”
The North State Planning and Development Collective says that in 2023, the collective’s regional economic impact across northern California came in at an estimated $91.6 million, with 408 jobs that were created.
One of the main topics discussed during the conference was how the use of artificial intelligence could help benefit small businesses.
Action News Now spoke with Dr. Elka Walsh, the Transformation Lead for Worldwide Education at Microsoft, about how artificial intelligence can help with productivity and effectiveness.
“How can the university, the college, the industry come together and create those opportunities for innovation to support new businesses and businesses that are here in the community to grow and benefit from the A.I. tools that will help them develop new services and new products,” said Walsh. “But also helping them with productivity so that they can be able to do more and be more productive and more effective.”
Walsh says that working with higher education students on A.I. tools now can make the tools more efficient and effective in the long run.
Officials say that studies have show that 77% of companies are either using or exploring the use of A.I. in their businesses, with 83% of companies claiming that A.I. is a top priority in their business plans.
According to the National University, artificial intelligence is projected to contribute nearly $15.7 trillion to the global economy by the year 2030.
Dr. Elka Walsh, the Transformation Lead for Worldwide Education at Microsoft, says that working with higher education students on A.I. tools now can make the tools more efficient and effective in the long run.
Alejandro Mejia Mejia is a Multimedia Journalist for Action News Now.
He can reached at [email protected]
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