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SpanishNew Jersey ranked No. 3 in the country for VC investment in 1st half of 2024
Tom Bergeron, ROI-NJ | August 15, 2024
Gov. Phil Murphy campaigned on the idea of recreating and reinvigorating an “innovation” economy in the state — an initiative he has pushed throughout his six years in office.
The effort appears to be paying off.
This week, PitchBook ranked New Jersey third in the country for venture capital investment in the first half of 2024 — another milestone climb in VC investment that had dropped dramatically before he took office.
In the first six months of the year, New Jersey had $9.8 billion in VC investment (on 103 deals), a bit behind No. 2 New York ($12.6 billion) but well ahead of No. 4 Massachusetts ($6.9 billion). All three trailed No. 1 California ($40.4 billion), but that is expected.
The four states were the only states in the country to top even $3 billion in investment for the first half of 2024.
The $9.8 billion investment in VC money in the first six months roughly equals the total VC investment in the state for 2021-23 in its entirety.
Administration officials said the increases can be attributed to a number of things.
Broadly, Murphy’s continual push of the idea certainly has spurred interest, they said.
More specifically, they noted programs such as the unique Innovation Evergreen Fund, which was launched in 2022 by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority — giving the state a groundbreaking tool to increase access to strategic resources and venture capital.
Under the NJIEF, the state acts as an equity investor in startups, deploying up to $600 million into companies alongside professional venture capital groups.
The fund recently made a $1.5 million investment into TripWorks, an emerging New Jersey-based company.
Read the full story on ROI-NJ here.