MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A West Virginia University leader says DataRobot’s decision to open an office in the Mountain State was a team effort to sell the state and what officials want to achieve.
DataRobot announced last week plans to open an office in Morgantown as part of a partnership with West Virginia University and the John Chambers College of Business and Economics. The company focuses on producing artificial intelligence software to automate business tasks, in which its clients include the Kroger Co., PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and the University of Michigan.
James Hoyer, an associate vice president at West Virginia University, said state and institution officials worked together on pitching the university and the state’s economic goals.
“They were looking for a partner,” he said on “MetroNews Talkline” last week. “They were looking for a place where they could, with that partner, make an impact.”
State Auditor J.B. McCuskey, West Virginia University President Gordon Gee and business school executive director of vantage ventures Sarah Biller spoke with DataRobot CEO Dan Wright about possibly opening an office in Morgantown.
Hoyer said DataRobot officials noted the culture of West Virginia has a positive.
“They liked what they saw in the work ethic of the people, the good, down-home people that we have in West Virginia as a place to do business,” he said. “We pitched them the concept I talk about a lot with the president and the governor [Jim Justice], and that’s let’s make West Virginia the center of the universe for solving big, national problems. They bought into that idea.”
DataRobot plans to hire between 30 and 40 people for the new location; Hoyer noted the company already has its first employee: a recent West Virginia University graduate.