Videos
Anne Conroy-Baiter on the Space Coast at a Tipping Point
Insights
- The Space Coast has gone from roughly one rocket launch every couple of months to more than 100 a year, and the region has diversified beyond launches into payloads, service industries, and a broad innovation corridor.
- The Chamber’s invite-only TAAD initiative (Technology, Aerospace, Aviation and Defense) drew 190 leaders to its first event and now averages about 150, building the cross-company connectivity the region was missing.
- For a workforce facing rapid AI change, Conroy-Baiter’s advice is to lean into being human, treating uniquely human skills as the durable advantage while AI augments the rest of the work.
The Space Coast is at a tipping point. Anne Conroy-Baiter, President and CEO of the Space Coast Chamber of Commerce, sat down with Jeff Kavanaugh, Head of the Infosys Knowledge Institute, at the Mission Ready AI event in Melbourne, Florida to discuss how one of the world’s busiest launch regions is turning a historic growth moment into lasting momentum. Conroy-Baiter describes a region that has diversified far beyond rockets into payloads, space hospitality, and an innovation corridor, and explains how the Chamber’s TAAD initiative is building the connectivity that fast-growing regions need. The conversation covers what Mission Ready AI means for small and mid-size firms, how AI could help ease the region’s attainable-housing pressures, and why she tells the next generation to lean into being human.
Three ideas from this conversation
- Quintamodal
The Space Coast is the only place on Earth with five ways in and out: rail, water, road, aviation, and space. Conroy-Baiter uses the term to explain why the 72-mile region is uniquely suited to commerce. - TAAD (Technology, Aerospace, Aviation and Defense)
The Chamber’s invite-only, sector-specific convening initiative, launched this year to connect companies and people across the region’s fast-growing industries. - Lean into being human
Conroy-Baiter’s guidance for the AI era: the skills that stay uniquely human are what give people their edge as AI augments the rest of the work.
Q. What does the Space Coast look like right now, and where is it going?
The region has gone from about one rocket launch every couple of months to more than 100 a year, and growth no longer rests on launches alone. Conroy-Baiter points to payloads, service industries, and an innovation corridor drawing new companies, with the Chamber working to attract business while protecting the region’s quality of life.
Q. What gap does the TAAD initiative fill?
Conroy-Baiter noticed the region lacked the everyday innovation connectivity you would overhear in a Silicon Valley coffee shop, so the Chamber launched TAAD to bring technology, aerospace, aviation, and defense leaders together. The invite-only events drew 190 people at the first gathering and now average about 150, with members reporting real business coming out of the rooms.
Q. What does “Mission Ready AI” mean for small and mid-size companies?
Conroy-Baiter frames AI adoption as a journey that runs from employees just learning to work with spreadsheets and data all the way to companies exploring quantum computing. Mission Ready AI, she says, is sector-specific education so small, mid-size, and prime companies can understand where AI is going and how to use it to compete in global commerce.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
So when I first moved here, I live in Cocoa Beach, I live about three blocks from the beach, and one rocket would go up every couple of months, and now we're over 100. So the Space Coast is at a tipping point at this moment. We are ready to launch. It is a fantastic place to do business. This 72-mile stretch of the Earth is not only stunning, but it's also the only quintamodal place on the Earth.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
I'm Jeff Kavanaugh, head of the Infosys Knowledge Institute. We're here at Mission Ready event in Melbourne, Florida, and I'm joined by Anne Conroy-Baiter, President and CEO of the Space Coast Chamber of Commerce, the organization leading the region's charge to turn into one of the world's most exciting innovation corridors and a thriving, sustainable business community. Anne, welcome.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Hi. Thank you for having me.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
You became president about a year and a half ago of the Space Coast Chamber, and you immediately walked into a region that had a historic growth moment.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
What does the Space Coast look like from where you sit, and where is it going?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
There's been so much change. I moved here 12 years ago, and immediately it became apparent that the Space Coast is a special place because we have this unique piece of history that happened here, but also a unique type of people who made it happen here. So when I first moved here, I live in Cocoa Beach, I live about three blocks from the beach, and one rocket would go up every couple of months, and now we're over 100. And what's happened is that when the space program went through various cycles throughout history, this region was very dependent. But because of the work of the EDC, of the Chamber, this community has diversified so that it's not only that the rocket's going up, it's the payload, it's the service industries, it's the innovation corridor, and all the associated businesses that go with that industry. So the Space Coast is at a tipping point at this moment. We are ready to launch.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
And the costs have come down so much, the payloads are now more economical.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Absolutely. And it's interesting that the conversation used to only be about the rockets, but now it's like, okay, the companies are moving in that are going to be filling the rockets. At its essence, the rocket companies, commercial and private, oh, and government, are transportation. So now, what are we using that transportation for, and how do we tap into the innovation that's already happening on the Space Coast, also attracting new business to the Space Coast, but on behalf of the Chamber and my membership, how do we maintain the quality of life and the special qualities of the Space Coast?
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Speaking of special moments. Yeah. Artemis II. Yes. Got to talk about that for a moment. Yeah. It brought all kinds of visitors, all kinds of interests. How is the Chamber supporting businesses in making that more of just a moment and turning it into momentum?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah, it's interesting. We work really closely with the Space Coast Office of Tourism to do just that. We keep a really close eye on, one is hospitality industry. It's Florida, although you can't tell at the moment, but we have a healthy tourism industry. But now there's new sectors coming in for hospitality, the luxury, the higher-end space hospitality. But the other thing we're keeping an eye on is the business attraction and retention. So we use the momentum of Artemis II to say, "Hey, here we are." It is a fantastic place to do business. This 72-mile stretch of the Earth is not only stunning, but it's also the only quintamodal place on the Earth. So that means we have five main ways to get in and out of the Space Coast, and that makes doing business really interesting.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Does that include going up?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah, it is. It's rail, water, road, space, and aviation. Only place on the globe. Quintamodal.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Technology Aerospace Aviation and Defense. Yes. And 170 leaders showed up at the first event you had for this initiative.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
What gap were you filling that didn't exist before?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
What was missing, because this region's on that tipping point, because all this industry is coming in, it's amazing how many companies and individuals don't know what's out there. And what we noticed in the gap on the Space Coast was that connectivity between companies and people. If you go to someplace like the Silicon Valley and you walk into a coffee shop, you're going to hear conversations all around you about what's happening in innovation. Here at the Space Coast, it wasn't happening as much, so we launched that initiative, TAAD, this year, Technology Aerospace Aviation Defense, with the intention of building those connections and bringing those sectors together. The buzz that happens at those events is unlike anything I've ever been to. It's run out of the Space Coast Chamber, but it's sector only, invite only. And even with that, we actually had 190 at that first event, and we've been averaging about 150 since. When you create something like that, in the back of my mind is like, "Okay, did we do the right thing? Are we doing the right thing?" But the numbers are proving it, the conversations are proving it, and now the business is proving it. I'm getting a lot of feedback from our participants... so like business is happening in those rooms, and we're learning so much.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
People want a place to go to convene to meet, especially now. Get back to the way things used to be at least a little bit.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yes.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
And by you providing a forum like that, that's got to make you feel good.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
It is more than good. So we had one, Infosys was a host sponsor last week for our TAAD. It was at the Sands Space History Center, which is just north of the Port Canaveral. And our three speakers were crazy. The first one was Anna Metke, and her company makes regolith. So it makes the dust so that companies can practice in moon dust before they launch so they can actually have space commerce. Our second speaker was Rob Fabian from Vaya Space. He was talking about the bottleneck in rocket engine production, things that you don't think about on the daily. And our third person was ethics and AI. She had come right from her speech that she gave to the UN, because the AI is such an important momentum, but it's important that we do it very carefully, and she's been presenting all over the world on that subject. So connectivity, but also the level of speakers that we're attracting to TAAD is unbelievable.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
We're here at an event today called Mission Ready AI.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yes.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
And events like this tend to attract big defense, big aerospace.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
But you also work with a lot of small and mid-size companies.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
We do.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
When they hear things like Mission Ready AI, what does it mean to them?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
So we're right at the beginning of this AI journey, right? From the people in the office who are learning how to work with a spreadsheet and work with data, to the companies that are learning how to use Quantum. We're all adapting to this rapidly changing information. So Mission AI is very, again, sector specific for people at a higher end, so that they can be educated about where AI is going and how they can utilize it for your small, mid, or prime.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
You spent a decade preparing young people over at JA, Junior Achievement, for the workforce. Now you're watching AI reshape what the future looks like what the future of work looks like. What's the most important thing you'd tell a young person starting out in the space coast today?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
It's funny, I gave a speech recently and that question came up. If you're going to talk to the next generation now, what do you say to them? And what I say to them is lean into being human. So we are in this age that AI is changing everything at a rapid rate, and I firmly believe I'm going on the cup half full side of things, in that I think the superpower for young people these days is to be human within that spectrum. Some things are never going to be replaced. AI is just going to augment everything. So that's what I tell them. Lean into being human.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Well, from that hopeful side, there's also a question that people at conferences don't like to ask. Like this one, for example. Is the Space Coast really ready for AI? Is it really mission ready or are we ahead of ourselves a little bit for these mission-critical things?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yes. Both answers can be right at the same time. Absolutely. Some of the companies aren't ready to think about it. They're not at the point where they can delve into AI at a deeper level. But the level of innovation and the kind of companies that the Space Coast has and is attracting, yeah, they're going to be mission ready, and they're going to need AI enabled to compete in this global commerce.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Well, speaking of commerce of a different kind, workforce housing, talent pipelines, affordability, you've been vocal that economic growth only works if the people can afford to live in these places where they're innovating. Yeah. Does AI make that problem better or worse?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
So attainable workforce housing is essential. If we live in a region where half of our workforce can't afford to live here, we have a big problem. I think AI is going to help with this because it's so good at that data, making the analysis of it and making the connections on how to process, so that we can figure out, we can solve that equation on how do we make housing more attainable. We have an annual retreat every year. It's September 10th through the 12th down in Jupiter, Florida. And one of the panels we're doing is attainable housing. And we're approaching it from all different ends. We're approaching it from the Vera Company, where they're literally building a city with different levels. We have somebody from the school district who has a whole workforce of teachers who are having trouble reaching attainable housing if they're not a dual income household. But I think I may add a tech person. I hadn't thought of approaching it that way, and I think that's an important part of the conversation.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Yeah. And who knows? Maybe AI can drive enough productivity to also reduce some inflation as well.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah. Let's see.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
If the companies in the room we're about to go into at this event, leave with one thing they would do to advance, to do differently in the Space Coast, what would you like that to be?
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
The companies attending today, I hope they take their knowledge of AI, their awareness of their fellow colleagues who are working on these issues and apply them towards the community overall. How do we make this place the best place? How do we use AI to make it the best place it may be in terms of attainable housing, but also medicine and aerospace and all the other things that can make a difference? And then be active in the community, have a voice. It's important. The business community is essential in making sure that we're steering in the right direction at the right speed with the right capacities.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
So adding the human or the empathetic aspect to all this great analytical work that's going on.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Absolutely.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
Great. Well, Anne, thank you for sharing your vision for what the Space Coast can become and is becoming. And for reminding us that behind every one of these launches, there's a whole community of people working, educating and trying to live.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
And sharing.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
And sharing.
Anne Conroy-Baiter:
Yeah.
Jeff Kavanaugh:
That's right. Well, I appreciate that. I'm Jeff Kavanaugh. Until next time, speaking of learning and sharing, keep learning and keep sharing.
