The final customizations are underway in the last corner under construction in Phase III. The building welcomed its first company in 2022 and will ring in 2024 completely occupied. And planning is already underway for the subsequent phases of development at KU Innovation Park.
Growing Forward: Looking back at the Park’s historical growth, combined with future needs, there’s enough demand to fill an additional 116,000 square feet by 2028.
- A recent demand analysis determined the Park’s CAGR – its compound annual growth rate.
- The CAGR considers factors like the growth of resident companies and the conversion rate of prospective businesses that decide to move to the Park.
- The chart below shows how a Park business analyst calculated the average CAGR, which is over 17%.
Why it matters: The Park is working toward its 2036 plan, which includes ten buildings totaling 800,000 square feet. Phases IV and V are the next steps to make that plan a reality. Phase IV will focus on national security, with Phase V geared toward bioinnovation and sustainability.
Security check: The development of Phase IV is centered around national security. And the growth of certain industries under that umbrella showcases the demand.
- Revenue for the cybersecurity industry is projected to hit $166 billion in 2023. And that number is expected to grow to $273 billion by 2028.
- A significant part of the industry includes remote sensing capabilities like radar and lidar (light detection and ranging). Over the next ten years, the global remote sensing market is predicted to exceed $55 billion.
- The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) manufacturing industry produced $4.5 billion in revenue since 2018. And as regulations around civil use become more flexible, there’s a better possibility for growth
Aligning assets: The national security industry is poised for growth, but that’s not the only reason it makes sense as the focus for the Phase IV facility at the Park. That area also happens to be one of the core strengths of the University of Kansas.
- The FBI partners with KU to hold an annual cybersecurity conference which featured Park companies Invary and Garmin earlier this year.
- The KU School of Engineering recently launched a Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity Engineering, along with biotechnology and IT degrees, thanks to a grant from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
- KU is also home to the Institute of Informational Sciences (IS2), which develops and commercializes new computer, communication and radar technology. Over the past five years, IS2 has earned 85 grants worth over $21 million for its work.
Dive deeper: Explore the future of KU Innovation Park by checking out this interactive map. See the full demand analysis of Phase IV and V by clicking here.