Strengthening the Monterey Bay Technology Ecosystem with a particular focus on Advanced Air Mobility (AAM).
The Tri-County region of San Benito, Santa Cruz and Monterey counties is home to one of the highest concentrations of AAM activity in the world, with the three leading passenger eVTOL companies prototyping, testing and/or manufacturing within the region, along with a global leader in hydrogen fueled passenger aircraft, a global leader in hybrid fueled “heavy payload’ drone manufacturing, and large scale vertical users of AAM technologies in the domains of marine science, defense, agriculture and infrastructure inspection. Within this largely agricultural region are multiple defense installations, public & private colleges and universities, marine science research institutions and several smaller MSAs. The 2021 Monterey County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) identified AAM as a strategic opportunity, as did the region’s Investment Plan for the Regions Rise Together (RRT) Initiative, a visioning document used in several federal and state grant applications.
As an emerging field of technologies that incorporate advanced materials, energy storage, and manufacturing, AAM market growth is constrained by two factors that align with activity and potential job growth in the Tri-County region. The first is the creation of a skilled labor force to manufacture, service and pilot AAM aircraft; to operate/service aircraft in specific vertical markets; and to build the ground-based infrastructure to support the operations of point-to-point passenger transportation and industrial applications such as Ag-Tech. The second is a policy framework to allow these new typologies of aircraft to operate safely within the highly regulated world of aerospace and traditional passenger air service.
The Monterey Bay Tech Hub is a coalition of regional stakeholders who recognize the need for collective action to strengthen the opportunity for AAM-based economic growth and job creation in the Tri-County region.
