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

Texas Reclaims 3rd in the DII US as North Carolina Falls to 4th
Virginia Jumps to 8th as New Hampshire Drops to 10th
Missouri, Vermont, Washington, and Oklahoma Enjoy Largest Monthly Gains
Hawaii, Kentucky, and Tennessee Also Rise
Montana, South Dakota, and Alaska See Largest Drops
Illinois, Minnesota, Nebraska, and New Jersey Also Fall
New York Falls to 36th

Oakland, California – BizWorld announces the November 2024 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.

“Missouri, Vermont and Washington saw the largest jumps this month,” said BizWorld Founder Tim Draper. “In all three cases, improved business formation statistics were a major reason why. This points to something important. While policymakers and other government leaders can do a lot to build a welcoming entrepreneurial environment, it’s ultimately up to the entrepreneurs themselves to start businesses and innovate, as well as early-stage investors who fuel this critical economic growth.”

Top Takeaways from the DII US November 2024 Update

• Due to a strong performance across multiple metrics, Texas returned to 3rd place, pushing North Carolina down to 4th.
• Virginia rose to 8th place, leapfrogging New Hampshire in the DII US Top 10, due to stronger business formation statistics and higher growth in Crypto/Blockchain-related investments.
• Missouri enjoyed the largest monthly increase, benefitting from in Crypto/Blockchain-related investments and strong business formation.
• Vermont rose 5 places due to strong overall venture capital investment growth.
  With some of the strongest business formation statistic performance, Washington and Oklahoma increased by 5 places and 4 places, respectively, in the DII US.
• a fell from 18th to 26th in the DII US because of poor business formation statistics and a lack of Crypto/Blockchain-related investment growth.
• Alaska, Nebraska and South Dakota all fell down the charts due to below-average business formation trends and a lack of growth in Crypto/Blockchain-related investments.
• Weak business formation pushed New York, the third largest state economy, down from 35th place to 36th on the Balanced rankings.
• Increases in overall venture capital investment growth helped push Hawaii from 49th to 47th in the DII US.
• Also improving 2 places, Kentucky shifted from 42nd to 40th in the DII US driven largely by its performance in business formation statistics.
• Tennessee inched further up the DII US Top 20, as decent performance across all monthly indicators allowed it to rise from 15th to 13th.
• Illinois, Minnesota, and New Jersey all fell by 2 places in the DII US, weighed down by weak crypto/blockchain-related investment growth and business formation statistics.
• Nebraska fell from 37th to 39th business formation statistics and no growth in crypto/blockchain-related investments.

“While California is by far the largest U.S. state economy and ranks at or near the top in multiple metrics, it ranks only 16th in the DII US; at the same time, New York is the third largest state economy but recently fell to 36th,” said BizWorld Chief Economic Advisor Dr. Wallace Walrod. “This is due to both states ranking in the bottom three in Small Business Policy and Tax Environment and points to something important – one of the best strategies for improving a state’s entrepreneurial environment is by addressing the most glaring weaknesses, as shown in DII US rankings. For California and New York, improving statewide entrepreneurial climates will have to involve improving their Small Business Policy and Tax Environment rankings.”

The DII US will continue to post monthly updates which can be accessed here.

About BizWorld
BizWorld.org is a global non-profit organization based in Oakland, CA, whose mission is to enable youth from all backgrounds to unlock the power of entrepreneurship to create career opportunities, inspire self-reliance, and build confidence that drives economic prosperity globally. 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/