Business

A venture capital firm is looking to build an economic bridge between NWA and Tulsa.

What's happening: Atento Capital, based in Tulsa, is launching 412 Angels, an invite-only network to connect entrepreneurs, investors and would-be investors with early-stage startups.

If the University of Arkansas was graded solely on its technology transfer, it would probably get "satisfactory" on its report card.

What's happening: Bentonville think tank Heartland Forward recently ranked 166 U.S. universities based on their ability to transfer technology developed on campus into the commercial world.

The NWA metro fell three spots to No. 7 in the annual U.S. News & World Report Best Places to Live list.

• The 2022-23 list released Tuesday morning, places Huntsville, Alabama, as the No. 1 place to live, up from No. 3 last year.
• NWA follows Colorado Springs, Colorado; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Boulder, Colorado.; San Jose, California; and Raleigh & Durham, North Carolina.

Bentonville will likely get another 400 hotel rooms in the next few years, about a 20% increase from its existing 2,200 rooms.

What's happening: Developers submitted plans for two new hotels and a motel to be reviewed by the Bentonville Planning Commission last week.

• The projects, along with other large-scale developments, will be voted on at Tuesday's planning meeting, which will provide an opportunity for public comments.

Downtown Bentonville was buzzing Thursday with talk of everything from jet packs to tax credits and venture capital to partisan politics.

• More than 350 people from across the U.S. convened at the Record for the Heartland Summit.

Details: Full audience panel discussions included speakers Gov. Asa Hutchinson; Chelsea Clinton, vice chair of the Clinton Foundation; and Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase.

If not for the heat, anyone at 21c Hotel in Bentonville Wednesday could've mistaken groups of people and talk of the economy for a gathering at Davos, Switzerland.

• Rapper Pharrell Williams, billionaire entrepreneur Steve Case and CEO of JP Morgan Chase, Jamie Dimon were among countless others to stroll through the lobby.

Fayetteville native and serial entrepreneur Suzanne Billings is an international trendsetter.

What happened: In a pandemic pinch, the founder of Noble Graze put her signature charcuterie boards in single-serve mason jars.

Schools across the NWA region are leaning into students' talents — whether those lie in academic, technical or artistic fields — in an effort to prepare them for the workforce.

Why it matters: NWA needs more skilled workers for a variety of reasons, like an aging workforce within industrial fields or increased demand in restaurant kitchens.