Nevada economic development is shifting beyond hospitality and gaming into critical minerals processing, advanced manufacturing, and data centers. Tom Burns, Director of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, breaks down the state's strategic plan for economic diversification in a conversation with Kristopher Sanchez, Director of the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, on the Nevada Means Business Podcast.

Nevada holds 36 of 60 critical minerals essential to the national defense and economic supply chains — more than any other state — yet almost none are processed domestically. Burns explains the push to bring environmentally responsible mineral processing back from China, drawing a direct comparison to the 1860s Comstock Lode era when the state's mineral wealth built San Francisco instead of Nevada. The conversation covers Haas Automation's new Southern Nevada facility, which will create over 2,500 advanced manufacturing jobs at wages reaching $45 to $50 per hour, supported by the Debra March Center of Excellence and College of Southern Nevada workforce training partnership.

Data centers are addressed head-on: Burns outlines how modern closed-loop cooling systems have reduced water usage to swimming-pool levels, why power demand remains the real challenge, and why local communities should retain the authority to decide whether data centers belong in their area. The discussion also covers SSBCI, a $130 million federal funding program that helped Nevada make early-stage investments in companies like TensorWave, the state's first billion-dollar unicorn.

Burns details Nevada's network of seven Regional Development Authorities, the Knowledge Fund's role in commercializing university research, and how the upcoming legislative session will focus on adjusting economic incentives to keep the state competitive against neighbors like Utah. The Office of Entrepreneurship, established in 2023, rounds out a statewide ecosystem designed to support startups and small businesses from concept through commercialization.