Pentagon cancels disputed JEDI cloud contract with Microsoft
The Pentagon said it canceled a disputed cloud-computing contract with Microsoft that could eventually have been worth $10 billion. It will instead pursue a deal with both Microsoft and Amazon and possibly other cloud service providers. “With the shifting technology environment, it has become clear that the JEDI Cloud contract, which has long been delayed, no longer meets the requirements to fill the DoD’s capability gaps,” the Pentagon said in a statement Tuesday. The statement did not directly mention that the Pentagon faced extended legal challenges by Amazon to the original $1 million contract awarded to Microsoft. Amazon argued that the Microsoft award was tainted by politics, particularly then-President Donald Trump’s antagonism toward Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, who stepped down Monday as the company’s chief executive officer. Bezos owns The Washington Post, a newspaper often criticized by Trump. The Pentagon’s chief information officer, John Sherman, told reporters Tuesday that during the lengthy legal fight with Amazon, “the landscape has evolved” with new possibilities for large-scale cloud computing services. Thus it was decided, he said, to start over and seek multiple vendors. Sherman said JEDI will be replaced by a new prodgram called Joint Warfighter Cloud Capability, and that both Amazon and Microsoft “likely” will be awarded parts of the business, although neither is guaranteed. Sherman said the three other large cloud service providers — Google, IBM and Oracle — might qualify, too. Microsoft said in response to the Pentagon announcement, “We understand the DoD s rationale, and we support them and every military member who needs the mission-critical 21st century technology JEDI would have provided. The DoD faced a difficult choice: Continue with what could be a years-long litigation battle or find another path forward.” Amazon said it understands and agrees with the Pentagon’s decision. In a statement, the company reiterated its view that the 2019 contract award was not based on the merits of the competing proposals “and instead was the result of outside influence that has no place in government procurement.” Oracle, which had earlier sought the JEDI contract but didn’t make it to the final round, declined comment Tuesday. In separate statements, IBM said it was evaluating the new Pentagon approach and Google said it looked forward to discussing it with Pentagon officials. The JEDI project began with the $1 million contract award for Microsoft, meant as an initial step in a 10-year deal that could have reached $10 billion in value. The project that will replace it is a five-year program; Sherman said no exact contract value has been set but that it will be “in the billions.” Sherman said the government will negotiate the amount Microsoft will be paid for having its 2019 deal terminated. Amazon Web Services, a market leader in providing cloud computing services, had long been considered a leading candidate to run the Pentagon’s Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure project, known as JEDI. The project was meant to store and process vast amounts of classified data, allowing the U.S. military to improve communications with soldiers on the battlefield and use artificial intelligence to speed up its war planning and fighting capabilities. The JEDI contract became mired in legal challenges almost as soon as it was awarded to Microsoft in October 2019. The losing bidder, Amazon Web Services, went to court arguing that the Pentagon’s process was flawed and unfair, including that it was improperly influenced by politics. This year the Pentagon had been hinting that it might scrap the contract, saying in May that it felt compelled to reconsider its options after a federal judge in April rejected a Pentagon move to have key parts of Amazon’s lawsuit dismissed. The JEDI saga has been unusual for the political dimension linked to Trump. In April 2020, the Defense Department inspector general’s office concluded that the contracting process was in line with legal and government purchasing standards. The inspector general found no evidence of White House interference in the contract award process, but that review also said investigators could not fully review the matter because the White House would not allow unfettered access to witnesses. Five months later, the Pentagon reaffirmed Microsoft as winner of the contract, but work remained stalled by Amazon’s legal challenge. In its April 2020 report, the inspector general’s office did not draw a conclusion about whether the Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft Corp. was appropriately declared the winner. Rather, it looked at whether the decision-making process was proper and legal. It also examined allegations of unethical behavior by Pentagon officials involved in the matter and generally determined that any ethical lapses did not influence the outcome. That review did not find evidence of White House pressure for the Pentagon to favor the Microsoft bid, but it also said it could not definitely determine the full extent of White House interactions with the Pentagon’s decision makers.
Dan Sutter: State and local barriers to entrepreneurship
State and local governments lure businesses with incentive packages. Yet these governments impose rules stifling entrepreneurs starting new businesses, forgetting that Amazon, offered multi-billion dollar deals for its HQ2, started out of Jeff Bezos’s garage. A new Cato Institute study, “Entrepreneurs and Regulations” by Chris Edwards, details the state and local government burdens on startups. Elected officials should carefully weigh these policies’ benefits against the burdens. The administration of many rules can be significantly improved. How do regulations harm small businesses? First, many compliance burdens occur at startup. While every added employee or business location involves compliance, many licenses, permits, and inspections must be obtained before opening. One study found that regulatory costs per employee were 29 percent higher for small versus large businesses. Startups also employ more lower-wage workers: weekly earnings at small firms were half the average for the largest firms. Increases in minimum wages and mandated employee benefits hit small businesses harder. Large businesses have more political influence and can reduce the burden of new regulations on themselves or obtain exemptions to rules. Businesses that do not yet exist cannot influence regulation. Startups have very tight margins and cannot afford extra costs. Entrepreneurs typically invest their life savings, borrow from friends and family, and earn little initially. One study found that half of tech company founders made less than $6 an hour during the first year. Alcohol licenses illustrate another type of burden. Eighteen states limit the number of alcohol permits; the existing permits can be sold, with prices often exceeding $250,000. Chain restaurants can more easily afford this cost than a chef opening her first restaurant. “Entrepreneurs and Regulations” offers a new measure of state policy burdens, called the Entrepreneurial Regulatory Barriers Index. The index includes 13 measures across four areas: small business owners’ perceptions of the burden of regulations, occupational licensing, entry barriers (like Certificate of Need laws), and policy-created costs. The best states for startups are Georgia, South Dakota, and North Dakota; California, New Jersey, and Connecticut are the worst. Alabama ranks 29th, a little lower than in other small business policy indexes. The Pacific Research Institute and Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council rank Alabama 15th and 11th, respectively. Alabama’s climate for startups is not horrible but could be better. Local governments may impose even greater burdens, as Mr. Edwards details. Consider the sheer number of rules. In New York City, small businesses are subject to 6,000 regulations, while 15 city agencies issue over 250 licenses and permits. Delays are common. Honolulu is supposed to issue small commercial building permits in 14 days but takes on average over 150. Entrepreneurs often must pay rent while waiting for approvals. In addition to delay is uncertainty, which economic research consistently shows reduces business investment. Many city offices offer no way to track the progress of applications, so entrepreneurs cannot know when or if permission to open will be granted. Government rules, frequently zoning laws, hamper home-based businesses. Zoning historically kept businesses and industry out of residential areas. Yet, the internet allows businesses to be run unobtrusively from home, keeping costs low while entrepreneurs explore the potential for their product or service. Complaints by neighbors typically trigger zoning enforcement, highlighting the often unpredictable impact of rules on new businesses. The Alabama legislature helped home-based businesses this year with a “cottage foods” bill. The law lifts a cap on the value of annual sales, increases the range of foods people can make at home and allows internet sales. Alabamians can now more fully participate in America’s cottage food boom. State and local governments might have to sustain business over the next several years. The Biden administration is clearly very pro-regulation. As Mr. Edwards writes, “whatever happens in Washington, state and local governments can do much to improve the entrepreneurial climate by repealing low-value and harmful regulations.” Regulatory reform can help grow Alabama’s economy. Daniel Sutter is the Charles G. Koch Professor of Economics with the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy at Troy University and host of Econversations on TrojanVision. The opinions expressed in this column are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of Troy University.
Union accuses Amazon of illegally interfering with vote
The retail union that failed to organize Amazon workers at a Alabama warehouse wants the results of a recent vote to be thrown out, saying that the company illegally interfered with the process. The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union said in a filing that Amazon threatened workers with layoffs and even the closing of the warehouse if they unionized. It also said Amazon fired a pro-union employee, but declined to name the person. Many of the other allegations by the union revolve around a mailbox that Amazon installed in the parking lot of the Bessemer, Alabama, warehouse. It said the mailbox created the false appearance that Amazon was conducting the election, intimidating workers into voting against the union. Security cameras in the parking lot could have recorded workers going to the mailbox, giving the impression that workers were being watched by the company and that their votes weren’t private, according to the retail union. Amazon spokeswoman Heather Knox said that the company did not threaten layoffs and that she couldn’t verify if an employee was fired without a name. She said the mailbox was installed to make it easier for employees to vote and that only the U.S. Postal Service had access to it. “Rather than accepting these employees’ choice, the union seems determined to continue misrepresenting the facts in order to drive its own agenda,” Knox said in a statement. “We look forward to the next steps in the legal process.” Workers overwhelmingly voted against forming a union, with 1,798 rejecting it and 738 voting in favor of it. A total of 3,117 votes were cast, about 53% of the nearly 6,000 workers at the warehouse. The retail union filed the objections to the National Labor Relations Board late Friday but released it publicly Monday. In doing so, the retail union is asking the labor board to investigate the allegations, schedule a hearing, and decide whether to hold a second election or overturn the results. Alex Colvin, the dean of Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, said these types of cases can take a year or more to resolve. Even if a union wins, the penalties for the employer are weak, like it could be forced to post a notice saying employees have a right to form a union. He said the labor board could hold another election, but at workplaces where turnover is high like at Amazon, the employees might no longer be around. Overturning the results are rare, Colvin said. The union push in Bessemer was the biggest in Amazon’s 26-year history and only the second time one reached a vote. Workers reached out to the union last summer, tired of working 10-hour days on their feet, packing boxes, or storing products, without getting enough time to take a break. Mail-in voting started in early February and went on for about 50 days. Organizers promised a union would lead to better working conditions, better pay, and more respect. Amazon, meanwhile, argued that it already offered more than twice the minimum wage in Alabama and provided workers with health care, vision benefits, and dental insurance, without paying union dues. Last week, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos acknowledged in a shareholder letter that the company could do better for its workers and said he didn’t take comfort in the outcome of the union election in Bessemer. He vowed to make Amazon a safer place to work by reducing sprains, strains, and other injuries at warehouses. “I think we need to do a better job for our employees,” Bezos said. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
After union fight, Jeff Bezos to focus on Amazon workers
After a union battle at an Alabama warehouse, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said that as executive chairman he will focus on making the company a better place to work. Bezos made the disclosure Thursday in his annual letter to shareholders. He said he didn’t take comfort in the outcome of the recent union election in Bessemer, Alabama, even though workers there overwhelmingly rejected a union. “I think we need to do a better job for our employees,” said Bezos, who will be stepping down as CEO later this year and will be executive chair of the online shopping giant. Part of his focus as chair will be to make warehouse jobs safer. He said about 40% of injuries are sprains and strains caused by repeating the same motions and are more likely to happen during a worker’s first six months in the job. He said training may help those “working in a physical role for the first time.” Last week, workers in Alabama handed the online retail giant a decisive victory when they voted against forming a union and cut off a path that labor activists had hoped would lead to similar efforts throughout the company. The union push was the biggest in Amazon’s 26-year history and only the second time that an organizing effort from within the company had come to a vote. But Bessemer was always viewed as a long shot since it pitted the country’s second-largest employer against warehouse workers in a state with laws that don’t favor unions. Alabama is one of 27 “right-to-work” states where workers don’t have to pay dues to unions that represent them. However, some of the work practices claimed by those seeking a union were unseemly and Bezos defended the company against the worst of those allegations. “If you read some of the news reports, you might think we have no care for employees. In those reports, our employees are sometimes accused of being desperate souls and treated as robots,” Bezos wrote. “That’s not accurate. They’re sophisticated and thoughtful people who have options for where to work.” Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
Amid high-stakes union vote, Bernie Sanders to visit Bessemer Amazon plant
Senator Bernie Sanders is planning to visit the Amazon facility in Bessemer, Alabama, this Friday. Sanders will join Michael “Killer Mike” Render and Danny Glover to visit with Amazon workers trying to unionize with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). Actor Danny Glover visited the center last month as well, according to Al.com. The RWDSU is a union organization with over 80 years of history. They’ve successfully helped unionize major retailers like H&M, Zara, and Macy’s. The Bessemer Alabama facility is coming close to creating a union at Amazon, a feat that hasn’t been attempted since 2014 when a much smaller group of workers in Delaware attempted to unionize. The attempt ultimately failed. Sanders has been publicly supportive of the efforts in Bessemer. During a hearing of the Senate Budget Committee hearing, Sanders said he planned on asking Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, “You are worth $182 billion, that’s billion with a B. You’re the wealthiest person in the world. Why are you doing everything in your power to stop your workers in Bessemer, Ala., from joining a union so they can negotiate for better wages, better benefits, and better working conditions?” In February, Sanders showed his support by sending pizzas to a union rally, Al.com reported. Sanders tweeted out his support for the Amazon workers in Bessemer, stating, “I stand in solidarity with Amazon workers in Alabama who are today beginning to vote in a historic union election. If they win, it will not only improve wages and working conditions in Bessemer, but it will also send a shockwave around the country.” I stand in solidarity with Amazon workers in Alabama who are today beginning to vote in a historic union election. If they win, it will not only improve wages and working conditions in Bessemer, but it will also send a shockwave around the country.https://t.co/namvkT16zx — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) February 8, 2021 President Joe Biden also expressed his support in February, stating, “Workers in Alabama – and all across America are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace. It’s a vitally important choice – one that should be made without intimidation or threats by employers. Every worker should have a free and fair choice to join a union.” Workers in Alabama – and all across America – are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace. It’s a vitally important choice – one that should be made without intimidation or threats by employers. Every worker should have a free and fair choice to join a union. pic.twitter.com/2lzbyyii1g — President Biden (@POTUS) March 1, 2021
Labor movement targets Amazon as a foothold in the South
The South has never been hospitable to organized labor. But that may be changing, with an important test in Alabama, where thousands of workers at an Amazon campus are deciding whether to form a union. Labor organizers and advocates see the David-and-Goliath fight as a potential turning point in the region with a long history of undervalued labor and entrenched hostility to collective bargaining rights. A win could have economic and political ripples for the labor movement and its Democratic Party allies who want a stronger foothold in the South amid decades of dwindling union power nationally. “This election transcends this one workplace. It even transcends this one powerful company,” said Stuart Appelbaum, national president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. “If workers at Amazon in Alabama, in the middle of the pandemic, can organize then that means that workers anywhere can organize.” The mere presence of a national union figure like Appelbaum in Alabama underscores the stakes. The Amazon vote comes as Democrats and Republicans are battling fiercely for working-class voters. Over decades, many white workers have drifted toward Republicans, attracted in part by cultural identity and an anti-establishment posture. That’s left Democrats looking to refine their economic pitch, arguing their party is the one fighting for higher wages, better working conditions, and more affordable health care. A win in Bessemer, where the vast majority of the workforce is Black, would have additional significance as a launchpad for new political organizing in the South, where Democrats want to build on recent successes. That could prove decisive in newfound battlegrounds like Georgia, which Joe Biden pulled into the party’s presidential column for the first time since 1992 and where Democrats won two Senate races. It could be a building block in GOP-dominated states like Alabama and Mississippi. And any domino effect nationally could boost Democrats in old industrial Rust Belt states like Pennsylvania and Ohio, where Republicans have gained ground. Biden drew plaudits from labor leaders with a recent video address pushing the right to organize through “free and fair elections,” although he did not directly mention the Amazon campaign. The ongoing mail vote by almost 6,000 workers is the largest union push ever at Amazon, one of the world’s wealthiest companies. The election, which runs through March, also ranks among the largest single organizing efforts in Southern history. It follows a series of failed organizing votes at automobile assembly plants — Nissan in Mississippi in 2017, Volkswagen in Tennessee in 2019, among others — that have flocked to the region over the last three decades. “Wages in this region have been depressed from the time of slavery,” said historian Keri Leigh Merritt, because “we’ve always had these competing underclasses of different races that white elites,” from the South and elsewhere, “have been able to play off each other.” The result, Merritt said, is nearly all laborers being paid “below the national market.” The 2019 median household income in the U.S. was $62,843, according to Census Bureau data. In Bessemer, part of an industrialized swath outside of Birmingham that once teemed with steel mills, that figure was $32,301. “We just want what’s owed to us,” said Kevin Jackson, a worker at the distribution center. Jackson, who is Black, compared Amazon wages, which start at $15 an hour, about double minimum wage, to the fortune of company founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, whose net worth measures in the hundreds of billions. “When you kick a dog so many times, he’s going to bite,” Jackson said. “We’re biting back.” The union’s election overlaps with Biden and Democrats in Congress pushing the “PRO Act,” legislation that would overhaul labor law to make organizing easier. The bill represents the most significant labor law change since the New Deal era and follows a decades-long slide in union membership. In 1970, almost a third of the U.S. workforce was unionized. In 2020, that number was 10.8%. The House approved the overhaul Tuesday on a largely party-line vote, but it faces almost certain defeat in the 50-50 Senate where major bills require at least 10 Republican votes to avoid a filibuster. Even without that law, labor leaders say the Amazon result could be a springboard for labor organizing nationwide. Regionally, a win would provide a roadmap for a Southern workforce unaccustomed to unions as a routine part of the economy. Mary Kay Henry, president of the Service Employees International Union, said the Alabama workers are “inspiring,” and added that her union and others are watching closely as they mull expansion. Organized labor’s Southern deficit is glaring: all 11 states of the old Confederacy have so-called “right to work” laws, which allow workers in unionized shops to opt-out of paying union dues even as they retain the benefits and job protections negotiated by the union. That weakens unions by reducing their membership and their negotiating leverage. Most Southern states also bar public employees from collective bargaining. The entire region lags in national union membership when measured as a percentage of the workforce. For example, the United Auto Workers has more than 400,000 members, but just 12,000 in Southern states, despite the region’s abundance of internationally owned auto plants and associated suppliers. Merritt, an expert on Southern labor politics, drew a straight line from the pre-Civil War economy to the current climate. Before slavery’s abolition, she said, white workers were threatened — explicitly or implicitly — with being replaced by slaves, stripping them of any leverage with employers. After emancipation, free Black laborers and poor white laborers had to compete in a devastated agricultural economy that struggled to rebuild itself from the war. Eventually, northern industrialists entered Southern markets, joining white Southern land barons to take advantage of cheap labor in industries including textiles, steel, and mining. The trend continued as the regional economy expanded with chemical plants and oil refineries in Texas and Louisiana, shipbuilding along the coasts, and, eventually, auto plants from Texas to the Carolinas. Generations of Southern elected officials — Democrats and
Blue Origin officially opens $200 million Alabama rocket engine factory
The $200 million investment is expected to create hundreds of jobs in north Alabama.
Donald Trump renews Twitter criticism of Amazon
President Donald Trump is renewing his attacks on e-commerce giant Amazon, and he says the company is “doing great damage to tax paying retailers.” Trump tweets that “towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt – many jobs being lost!” The president has often criticized the company and CEO Jeff Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post. Many traditional retailers are closing stores and blaming Amazon for a shift to buying goods online. But the company has been hiring thousands of warehouse workers on the spot at job fairs across the country. Amazon has announced goal of adding 100,000 full-time workers by the middle of next year. Trump has in the past tweeted that Amazon was not paying “Internet taxes.” But it’s unclear what he meant by that. Amazon.com collects state sales taxes in all 45 states with a sales tax and the District of Columbia, according to their website. State governments have sought to capture sales taxes lost to internet retailers, though they have struggled with a 1992 Supreme Court ruling that retailers must have a physical presence in a state before officials can make them collect sales tax. Amazon did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Republished with permission of The Associated Press. Amazon is doing great damage to tax paying retailers. Towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt – many jobs being lost! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 16, 2017
Blue Origin to invest $200M in Alabama rocket engine production facility
Blue Origin, the spaceflight company started by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, announced today that it will manufacture its BE-4 engine in a state-of-the-art production facility to be built in Alabama’s Rocket City. The new facility will be in Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park, the nation’s second-largest research park, and construction can begin once an engine production contract with United Launch Alliance (ULA) is awarded. The BE-4 is America’s next rocket engine and will power ULA’s Vulcan rocket if it’s selected for the project. The production of this engine would end the nation’s dependence on Russia for access to space for critical national security space systems. This rendering shows Blue Origin’s New Glenn reusable rocket. (Blue Origin) ‘Great state for aerospace’ Two BE-4s would be used on the Vulcan booster rocket. The BE-4 will also power Blue Origin’s New Glenn reusable launch system with seven BE-4s on the reusable first stage and a vacuum-optimized BE-4U on the second stage. Blue Origin awaits the final public approval of the local package by the city and county governments during July meetings. Using the latest design and manufacturing techniques, the BE-4 is made for both commercial and government missions. The BE-4 uses oxygen-rich staged combustion of liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas to produce 550,000 pounds of thrust. Development began in 2011, and testing is under way. “Alabama is a great state for aerospace manufacturing and we are proud to produce America’s next rocket engine right here in Rocket City,” said Robert Meyerson, president of Blue Origin. “The area’s skilled workforce and leading role in rocket propulsion development make Huntsville the ideal location for our state-of-the-art manufacturing facility.” Blue Origin will employ up to 342 people in the new facility. The company will make approximately $200 million in capital investment in the state. “This announcement today is excellent news for our state. I am pleased to see Blue Origin investing in Alabama, and I look forward to working with them and other businesses to continue boosting economic development opportunities,” U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby said. Blue Origin will manufacture BE-4 rocket engines in Huntsville. (Blue Origin) Under the Saturn V The announcement took place at the historic Davidson Center for Space Exploration under the Saturn V rocket, a nod to the community’s aerospace heritage. Blue Origin’s project builds on that heritage and positions the Huntsville/Madison County community for a key role in the commercial space industry. “We are excited to welcome Blue Origin to Alabama. I must commend founder Jeff Bezos and company President Robert Meyerson for their vision to create this innovative company, and for choosing to make Alabama its Home Sweet Home,” Gov. Kay Ivey said. “Because of this investment, more men and women can provide a better living for their families, and it helps cement Alabama as the preferred destination for the aerospace industry,” she added. Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos at the company’s Texas launch facility. (Blue Origin) ‘Project Eagle’ Many economic development partners contributed to the effort to successfully recruit Blue Origin to the state as part of what was called “Project Eagle.” These partners include the Governor’s Office, the Alabama Department of Commerce, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the city of Huntsville, Madison County and the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber. “Blue Origin’s decision to locate its BE-4 engine manufacturing center in Huntsville reflects the deep and longstanding capabilities in the city that became the cradle of the nation’s rocket program,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “Huntsville is a hub of innovation in every facet of aerospace, making it the perfect home for this Blue Origin facility.” Blue Origin said it chose Huntsville for this project because of the high-tech aerospace manufacturing workforce and ecosystem, including NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, nearly 300 private aerospace and defense contractors, and the University of Alabama in Huntsville, number 14 in NASA research funding in the nation. “Huntsville is proud to be the nation’s propulsion center of excellence, and we couldn’t ask for a better partner than Blue Origin to join our team,” Mayor Tommy Battle said. “When you look at NASA’s visionary work at the Marshall Space Flight Center, the talent and capacity of Huntsville’s space industry partners, and our expertise in research and development, engineering and manufacturing, Blue Origin is joining a truly remarkable environment.” Added Madison County Commission Chairman Dale W. Strong, “Today’s announcement ensures that our community will continue to be at the center of the world’s rocket propulsion development. Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin will build on the legacy of the German rocket team and the Marshall Space Flight Center to power the growing commercial rocket business that will be a critical part of our nation’s future space program.” Blue Origin has completed more than 100 staged-combustion tests during the development of the BE-4 engine. (Blue Origin) ‘Center of excellence’ In support of Blue Origin, the city of Huntsville, city of Madison and Madison County have provided funding for their three school systems to launch an experiment on a Blue Origin rocket in summer 2018. The school systems will determine how to select teams, and then they will work with the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber and Dream Up, an organization that supports space-based learning, to design and develop their payload. “Blue Origin reinforces our region’s place as the Rocket City, and a center of excellence for rocket propulsion. Blue Origin’s presence will have a positive impact on our state, our region and our community,” said Chip Cherry, president and CEO of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber. “This is an important development for Cummings Research Park’s next era of expansion, and we look forward to a long and productive relationship with Blue Origin.” This story originally appeared on the Alabama Department of Commerce’s Made in Alabama website. Republished with permission of Alabama NewsCenter.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos plans Alabama rocket engine plant
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos‘ private spaceflight company, Blue Origin, is planning to build a new rocket engine in Huntsville, Ala. the company and state officials announced Monday. The new “Rocket City” facility will be in Cummings Research Park, the nation’s second-largest research park, and construction can begin pending an engine production contract with United Launch Alliance (UAL). Blue Origin President Robert Meyerson clarified, explaining his company is seeking the UAL contract, a private company that provides satellite launches for the U.S. government and others. He said the company will locate a production factory for the BE-4 rocket engine in Huntsville upon a contract being signed. “Alabama is a proven leader in aerospace manufacturing with the highest-skilled workforce, business climate and leadership that we need to produce low-cost rocket engines that we need to protect the nation, (and) explore the universe,” Meyerson said at a news conference in Huntsville. “Alabama is a great state for aerospace manufacturing and we are proud to produce America’s next rocket engine right here in Rocket City.” The BE-4 is America’s next rocket engine and, if selected, will power UAL’s Vulcan rocket. The production of this engine would end the nation’s dependence on Russia for access to space for critical national security space systems. Should the facility come to Huntsville, it will mean jobs up to 342 people along with approximately $200 million in capital investment in the state. “We are excited to welcome Blue Origin to Alabama. I must commend founder Jeff Bezos and company President Robert Meyerson for their vision to create this innovative company, and for choosing to make Alabama its home sweet home!,” said Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey. “Because of this investment, more Alabamians can provide a better living for their families, and it helps cement Alabama as the preferred destination for the aerospace industry.” Many economic development partners contributed to the effort to successfully recruit Blue Origin to the state. These partners include the Governor’s office, the Alabama Department of Commerce, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the City of Huntsville, Madison County, and the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber. “Blue Origin’s decision to locate its BE-4 engine manufacturing center in Huntsville reflects the deep and longstanding capabilities in the city that became the cradle of the nation’s rocket program,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “Huntsville is a hub of innovation in every facet of aerospace, making it the perfect home for this Blue Origin facility.”
Who are the 8 richest people? All men, mostly Americans
The eight individuals who own as much as half of the rest of the planet are all men, and have largely made their fortunes in technology. Most are American, with one European and one Mexican in the mix. Several have pledged to give it all to charity. The eight tycoons’ net worth, as calculated by Forbes magazine, was cited Monday by anti-poverty activists Oxfam in a report highlighting income inequality. Although most of them will not be joining the annual meeting of business and political elites in the Swiss town of Davos this week, the extraordinary individual wealth they typify will be part of the gathering’s discussions on inequality. Here’s a look at who they are. ___ Bill Gates: $75 billion The man whose name is a byword for billionaire. Gates co-founded Microsoft in the mid-70s, growing it into the world’s biggest software company and helping to make computers a household item. He quit as CEO in 2000 and pledged to devote his fortune to his philanthropic activities in the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He has gradually reduced his ownership in Microsoft to less than 3 percent, with the bulk of his wealth in a private firm. He’s the only one on the list who’s a regular at Davos. ___ Amancio Ortega: $67 billion The richest person in Europe, Ortega opened the first Zara fashion shop in 1975. Now, the chain, part of Ortega’s Inditex group, has 7,000 shops globally. Its boom in popularity is largely due to a low cost model that competes with the likes of H&M. As Zara and Inditex grew in size, Ortega, a Spaniard, held on to a majority stake of 59 percent in the company, which has a market value of over 97 billion euros ($102 billion). ___ Warren Buffett: $60.8 billion The Oracle of Omaha, as he’s known for the way his every investment decision is followed by thousands. Buffett began investing as a teenager in the 1940s and gradually grew his firm, Berkshire Hathaway. Buffett, 86, is notoriously frugal and favors investing in companies with proven business models over new industries, such as in technology. He’s said he will give away the bulk of his wealth to philanthropy. Since 2006, he’s been donating blocks of Berkshire stock to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. ___ Carlos Slim Helu: $50 billion The Mexican tycoon owes his fortune to a major ownership in America Movil, a telecommunications multinational worth $42 billion. He personally owns about 7 percent in the company while his broader family retains a 37 percent stake. He was ranked as the richest person three years ago, but saw his net worth hit by a downturn in Latin American economies. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump‘s threats to scrap free trade deals and build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border have also hurt shares in his business interests. Forbes estimates his net worth dropped $5 billion in the four days after Trump’s election. ___ Jeff Bezos: $45.2 billion The founder and CEO of Amazon.com helped revolutionize the retail industry by popularizing online shopping. What was initially an online book shop now sells pretty much anything. Bezos has reached beyond Amazon, in which he holds a 17 percent stake, to try his hand in other industries. He’s bought the Washington Post and set up an aerospace company, Blue Origin, that aims to make space accessible to tourists and paying customers. ___ Mark Zuckerberg: $44.6 billion He founded Facebook in 2004 while a college student to connect other Harvard students. The company went on to become popular globally and listed its shares publicly in 2012, making Zuckerberg, now 32, a multibillionaire. He’s managed to make Facebook profitable where rivals like Twitter have lagged, and expanded it with targeted acquisitions. He and his wife have pledged to sell 99 percent of their holdings in Facebook — over 400 million shares, worth about $50 billion — to support philanthropic causes. ___ Larry Ellison: $43.6 billion As a young programmer in the ’70s, Ellison’s first big client was the CIA. The name of the project was “Oracle.” In 1977, Ellison and associates used that name for their company, which creates software that helps manage databases and has since become an industry standard. Ellison has recently focused more on cloud computing, in which data is stored and managed across a network of computers. His fortune comes from the 27 percent stake he still owns in Oracle, a company worth $160 billion. ___ Michael Bloomberg: $40 billion Created the eponymous financial information provider in 1981 after getting laid off from an investment bank. Bloomberg made it a lucrative business in particular by selling data terminals to financial services firms. The multi-screen terminals became essential tools in the industry, incorporating real-time market information with a news service. Bloomberg, who reportedly retains an 88 percent stake in the privately held company, turned to politics in 2001, becoming mayor of New York City for three terms. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
