According to the State of the Tech Workforce 2025 report by CompTIA, Florida now ranks #4 nationally for tech employment, with Orlando among the top-5 U.S. metros for tech job growth in 2024. 

Employing over 74,000 workers, our tech sector drives $12 billion in economic output—about 8% of the region’s GDP—fueled by surging demand for software developers, AI specialists, and cybersecurity experts. 

From global leaders like EA and Lockheed Martin to rising stars like Falcon’s Beyond (gaming/entertainment), ThreatLocker (cybersecurity), and Red 6 (AR/simulation), the Orlando region powers innovation across sectors. 

Since 2018, tech employment here has grown approximately 15%, outpacing many peer metros and reinforcing Orlando’s reputation as a global tech hub. Together with Miami, we’re elevating Florida as a true tech powerhouse. 

If you really want to understand how an economy transforms itself, you have to look past the headlines. 

Because the headlines are easy to skim: $62 million contracts, new CEOs, fresh acquisitions, but the real story is how those moments add up to something bigger: an ecosystem that’s no longer content to be a backdrop. 

This week, Orlando showed exactly why it’s becoming the Southeast’s proving ground for bold ideas that scale. 

Let’s start in a place where imagination meets hard tech: digital twins. 

If you’re not familiar, think of a digital twin as a real-time virtual mirror of anything: a factory floor, a jet engine, even an entire city. 

They’re the invisible backbone of faster decisions, better designs, and higher margins. 

At the Orlando’s R-CON, you could feel how much this sector has matured. Hundreds of executives, researchers, and public-sector leaders came together to explore how simulation is no longer a side project, it’s core infrastructure. 

And this is not a new storyline for Orlando. 

Central Florida is home to the world’s largest cluster of modeling and simulation companies, anchored by Research Park near UCF. Every branch of the U.S. military has training and simulation commands here, and the region drives an estimated $6 billion in annual simulation and training economic activity. 

The conference made it clear: while the rest of the country is still getting up to speed, Orlando already has the talent, facilities, and culture to lead. 

Organizers are so confident they’ve already announced plans to return in 2026. 

Speaking of defense: this week proved again that Orlando isn’t a passive subcontractor, it’s the engine room. 

Cole Engineering, headquartered here, landed a $62 million U.S. Army contract to deliver the next generation of Stinger missile training systems. 

These contracts are more than big checks. They sustain an ecosystem that supports thousands of high-wage jobs, hundreds of small business suppliers, and a pipeline of engineers and technologists who hone their skills here before spinning off their own ventures. 

It’s also part of a steady stream of defense milestones: 

• A major defense contractor signed a significant lease at the Challenger Tech Center, expanding Orlando’s role as the national hub for simulation R&D. 

• The Army’s Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) welcomed a new project manager overseeing next-gen training devices, a reminder that Orlando is indispensable to the Department of Defense’s future readiness. 

Zoom out, and the picture is clear: More than 60% of all simulation and training work for the DoD passes through Central Florida. 

But Orlando’s economy isn’t defined by defense alone. 

If you were in a boardroom this week, you might have caught the quiet power moves in enterprise software. 

IBM deepened its partnership with DBmaestro, which has a strong Orlando footprint, to deliver advanced DevOps and observability tools. These are the kinds of systems that keep global financial, logistics, and healthcare platforms running securely. 

It’s another signal that Orlando is becoming a serious software market, not just a simulation stronghold. 

 At the same time, companies here are scaling in other ways. 

Laser Photonics announced an all-stock acquisition of Beamer Laser Marking Systems, expanding its advanced manufacturing footprint. (Note: This deal was reported in the Orlando Business Journal, but formal closing details are pending.) 

Meanwhile, NextPath Career Partners announced it has become an official Salesforce partner, positioning them to serve the growing SaaS and CRM workforce. Salesforce alone has projected the creation of 9 million jobs worldwide in its ecosystem by 2026, and Orlando’s talent pipeline is primed to tap that growth. 

And as a broader trend, mergers and acquisitions in Central Florida’s tech and manufacturing sectors continue to increase. While precise year-over-year growth percentages vary by report, advisors consistently cite an uptick driven by companies hungry to scale faster than organic sales allow. 

 Aviation and aerospace have long been pillars here. 

Orlando International Airport is the busiest in Florida and the 7th busiest in the U.S. The same talent that built the region’s commercial flight simulation industry is now fueling startups like Altaport, which named Orlando’s Matt Broffman as CEO this week while launching their airport management solutions in four new locations. 

But perhaps the most important development in this sector wasn’t a single company announcement, it was policy. 

Governor DeSantis signed a sweeping package of aerospace and transportation legislation designed to accelerate Florida’s leadership in next-generation aircraft, autonomous logistics, and advanced infrastructure. 

For Central Florida, this isn’t abstract. It means: 

• More investment in space-related supply chains. 

• Faster permitting for airport and air mobility projects. 

• Predictable funding streams for building out transportation corridors that can support smart vehicles, drones, and advanced logistics. 

It’s exactly the kind of regulatory clarity that fuels innovation—and positions Orlando as the testbed for the future of mobility. 

 Experience drives hospitality, and here, too, Orlando is innovating. 

Travel + Leisure Co. and Hornblower Group announced a new partnership to reimagine travel experiences. 

Westgate Resorts inked a strategic alliance with Chuck E. Cheese, merging family entertainment and lodging in ways that only make sense in the world’s most visited destination. 

And in an age when sustainability isn’t optional, PureCycle and Emerald Carpets teamed up to create a circular economy model for trade shows, a critical innovation in a city that hosts more conventions than anywhere else in the country. 

The U.S. trade show sector is worth over $18 billion annually, and Orlando is positioned to lead on both scale and sustainability. 

 Recognition came from the markets, too. 

Orlando-based Mtron was added to the Russell 3000® Index, giving it a national platform for institutional investment. 

And in case you missed it: Florida now ranks #4 in tech employment, with Orlando among the top 5 metros for tech job growth. Since 2018, the region’s tech workforce has expanded roughly 15%, exceeding national averages. 

So if you’re tempted to see this week’s news as a scattershot collection of headlines: a big defense contract here, an acquisition there, a new piece of legislation, take a step back. 

Because together, they tell a much bigger story. 

A story about a city that’s proving the future isn’t arriving somewhere else; it’s being assembled here, piece by piece. 

If you’re building something ambitious, look around. 

This is a region where ideas get tested, funded, and scaled. 

And if you’re ready to claim your stake as a leader in the experience economy, whether in simulation, aviation, gaming, or creative technology, Innovate Orlando is here to help you do it. 

We’ve launched a new sponsorship model designed to fuel opportunity for founders, enterprises, and innovators who believe Orlando deserves to be recognized on the world stage. 

👉 To learn more or start a conversation, email us anytime: 
📩 Sheena@InnovateOrlando.io 
📩 Ashley@InnovateOrlando.io 

If you’re interested in helping shape the Tech Connect 2.0 Ecosystem Map and Matching Platform, we’d love your input. You can review the RFI and submit feedback here: 

🔗 Submit your input on Tech Connect 2.0 

Stay tuned and stay close. Because Orlando’s innovation economy isn’t waiting for anyone to catch up. 

— Sheena