Hawaii's economy runs on more than tourism, even though tourism alone contributes $10 billion a year and about 22% of the state's economic activity. Defense is one of the state's largest real industries -- Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, Marine Base Kaneohe, and Schofield Barracks provide revenue that doesn't move with the normal business cycle, and the US military now has explicit plans to make Hawaii a hub for Pacific arms manufacturing, building new supply chains with both foreign allies and local island companies as it watches China. A real, if quieter, startup ecosystem sits on top of both: Oceanit, a Honolulu-based science and engineering R&D firm, and a growing base of defense, climate, and health-tech startups are drawing on the market defense spending already provides. Bank of Hawaii and First Hawaiian Bank anchor the islands' own finance industry, and Hawaiian Airlines runs the logistics connecting all of it. The University of Hawaii system is the workforce and research base underneath all four.
Region Stats
Total firms
28
VC / investors
2
Companies
19
Schools
7
Known For
Defense & Pacific Manufacturing
Tourism
Banking
