At the Ernst Entrepreneurship Expo, hosted at Iowa State University, host Kaylee Williams sat down with Senator Joni Ernst to discuss the state of entrepreneurship, technology, and innovation in Iowa. Ernst opened by pointing to the Working Families Tax Cuts Act as a driver of new investment in small businesses, paired with Iowa’s strong base of skilled and educated workers. She stressed that workforce development needs to start early in the education system, training students not just in fundamentals but in analytical thinking—skills valuable whether someone pursues a two-year degree, four-year degree, or enters the workforce directly.
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Turning to artificial intelligence, Ernst rejected calls for AI moratoriums, warning that such pauses would let global adversaries pull ahead. She advocated instead for flexible regulatory “guardrails” that protect consumers and national security without stifling rapid innovation. She cited local examples of AI’s benefits, including Iowa State’s precision agriculture research (targeting herbicide application to individual weeds) and University of Iowa work on AI-driven cancer treatments.
Ernst identified advanced manufacturing and biotechnology as the industries she’s most excited about for Iowa’s future, framing supply chain security—especially for pharmaceuticals and food—as a matter of national security. Drawing on lessons from COVID-era shortages, she argued for reducing dependence on countries like China. She connected this to Iowa’s legacy through Norman Borlaug, the Cresco-born Nobel laureate behind the Green Revolution, whose work is now honored through the World Food Prize in Des Moines.
Asked what separates successful entrepreneurs, Ernst described a mix of resilience and flexibility: people who don’t quit when they hit a “closed door” but are also willing to adapt their product or pitch to fit what the market actually needs. She closed the interview by encouraging aspiring business owners to move their ideas out of the “kitchen table” and into the real world, framing action—not just good ideas—as the key ingredient for success, and encouraging founders to think globally about their market potential.