This past week Intel announced that it will build its new, $20 billion state-of-the-art chip plant near Columbus, Ohio. The company says that the location could eventually expand into a $100 billion complex with as many as eight fabrication facilities. As Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger put it, “We helped to establish the Silicon Valley, now we’re going to do the Silicon Heartland.”…

Programs like the Cincinnati Talent Acceleration Program, a partnership between the University of Cincinnati and Microsoft with funding from the Ohio Department of Higher Education, are helping existing workers to develop skills for tech-driven manufacturing jobs. Leading Midwest research universities such as Carnegie Mellon, Michigan, Ohio State, Purdue and Indiana can provide reliable pipelines of engineers, operations researchers and supply-chain managers.