BizWorld Updates Monthly Draper Innovation Index U.S.
States Compete to Land in Top Ten of Best Places to Launch a Startup

North Carolina Reclaims 4th Place in DII US Top Ten
Colorado Falls to 5th
Oregon, Alaska, and South Dakota Decline
Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina Climb
California, Massachusetts, and New York See No Change
Wyoming Improves to 16th in DII US Top 20

Oakland, California – BizWorld announces the February 2025 update to the Draper Innovation Index U.S. (DII US), which evaluates each state’s innovation environment and entrepreneurship climate. Published monthly since 2021, the DII US provides the most well-rounded, up-to-date ranking of entrepreneurial locations, reflecting both traditional and emerging economic metrics, from taxes and regulations to venture capital investment, cryptocurrency friendliness, and blockchain investment trends.

“A growing number of states are either considering or implementing state-level bitcoin reserves,” said BizWorld Founder Tim Draper. “Texas, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, for instance, have current bills that will be voted on this year. In the context of a crypto-friendly presidential administration, state-level bitcoin reserves could be a powerful way for states – even smaller sates with smaller economies – to stand out on the national economic landscape.”

Top Takeaways from the DII US February 2025 Update

• Stronger new business formation trends pushed North Carolina back ahead of Colorado to 4th place in the DII Top Ten.
• Oregon fell by far the most in this month’s DII US rankings, declining 11 places – from 27th to 38th – due to poor cryptocurrency/blockchain-related venture capital investment trends and the worst overall new business formation statistics in the nation.
• Minimal overall venture capital investment growth and poor crypto/blockchain-related venture capital investment trends pushed Alaska down from 24th place to 29th.
• South Dakota fell two places to 18th due to weak new business formation trends
• Wyoming rose due to strong new business formation trends and positive overall venture capital investment growth.
• Washington remained in 19th place after seeing significant declines last month.
• Connecticut and Iowa both rose by 4 places; Connecticut benefitted from strong new business formation trends while Iowa benefitted from overall and cryptocurrency/blockchain-related venture capital investment growth.
• South Carolina’s strong new business formation performance helped it climb from 29th to 27th in the DII US.
• Pennsylvania also improved to 33rd thanks to a combination of above-average overall venture capital investment growth and decent new business formation trends.
• Strong performance in both overall venture capital investment growth and new business formation metrics pushed Maine up to 31st in the DII US.
• California (15th place), Massachusetts (22nd place), and New York (37th) remains stable in the February 2025 DII US rankings..

“Washington and Missouri fell across all three DII US scenarios,” said BizWorld Chief Economic Advisor Dr. Wallace Walrod. “In both cases, this was largely due to a lack of crypto/blockchain-related venture capital investment. With a new administration, one that has signaled interest in cryptocurrency regulatory reform, crypto and blockchain could become onramps and even superhighways to economic growth and prosperity – if states create the right regulatory, innovation, and economic climates for crypto entrepreneurs and investors to initiate and create this growth.”ndia is the world’s fifth largest economy by nominal GDP and both the UN and Goldman Sachs predict solid growth in 2025. India could rise much higher this year if its leaders embrace cryptocurrency, pro-growth small business-friendly policies, and economic freedom.”

The DII Global will release monthly updates to continually reflect the latest developments in global innovation and entrepreneurship, available here.

About BizWorld

BizWorld.org is a global non-profit organization based in Oakland, CA, whose mission is to equip future generations with entrepreneurial life skills to unlock their potential and create economic opportunity. Founded over 25 years ago by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, BizWorld.org programs teach students real-world 21st century skills and leadership that encourage them to become responsible leaders and entrepreneurs of tomorrow. More than 850,000 students in more than 100 countries have participated in BizWorld programs. https://www.bizworld.org/