The Colorado Economic Development Commission on Thursday approved about $397,000 in tax incentives to help entice two companies looking to expand in or relocate to El Paso County and create more than 50 new jobs, most of them high-paying.

An anonymous software-as-a-service company that developed a collaborative AI platform to deliver personalized experiences through a single platform, code name Project Boggle, was approved to receive up to $323,056 in performance-based Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits over an eight-year period.

Company’s expansion plan could mean high-paying jobs for Colorado Springs area

The company’s expansion “would focus on developing the system to tailor to college professors and students to responsibly collaborate with GenAI for class preparation, classroom teaching and learning, and classroom assessments,” according to a project description from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.

If Project Boggle selects El Paso County, it anticipates creating 30 new jobs at an average annual wage of $104,775, which is 165% of the average annual wage in the county. New positions will include sales account executives, developers, data scientists and senior leadership.

The company is also considering Atlanta; Austin, Texas; and Tysons, Va. 

The incentives are contingent upon the company creating and maintaining up to 30 new full-time jobs at a minimum average annual wage of $63,362, which is 100% of the average annual wage of El Paso County, or 100% of the average annual wage of any Colorado county where the company may decide to locate over eight years.

The commission approved up to $74,628 in performance-based Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits over eight years for a second company that produces and sells women’s health supplements and products.

Code name Project All Natural, its owner is a self-described “serial entrepreneur who has started numerous successful companies in the past,” according to a project description. The owner is originally from Colorado Springs and is contemplating relocating the company’s headquarters and production facility to the city so she can be closer to home. She is also considering Portland, Maine.

The project could create 20 new jobs if it relocated to Colorado Springs, including executive and administrative roles, marketing positions and production and shipping managers. The average annual wage would be $68,505, which is 108% of El Paso County’s average annual wage.

To receive the incentives, the company must create and maintain up to 20 new full-time jobs at a minimum wage of $63,362 a year, or 100% of the average annual wage of any Colorado county where it may locate over eight years.

The Colorado Economic Development Commission on Thursday also approved job growth incentives for three other projects that would bring nearly 400 new jobs to Colorado:

• Project Kiwi is the code name for the national governing body of an unnamed major Olympic sport that is considering building a multi-use Training and Wellness Center in Colorado Springs. It is considering two other communities, including Indianapolis. If it comes to Colorado Springs, the nonprofit expects to create 85 new jobs at an annual salary of $97,235 a year, 153% of the average annual wage in El Paso County.

About 60 employees work for the company, none of whom are in Colorado.

The commission approved more than $1.5 million in performance-based Strategic Fund Job Growth Incentives and a performance-based Strategic Fund Initiative, both over five-year periods, based on the potential sports tourism and new jobs the project could generate.

• A manufacturing company in Colorado, code name Project Atlantis, is looking to consolidate and grow its U.S. operations. It is considering Boulder County, as well as the states of Georgia, North Carolina and Texas. It would create 255 new jobs at $129,711 a year, or 145% of the average annual wage in Boulder County. Jobs will include operators, data engineers and sales personnel.

The company has 165 employees and 130 of them are in Colorado.

It was approved for up to $4,220,840 in performance-based Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits over an eight-year period to expand in Colorado.

• Project Penguin, an unnamed Colorado company that “decarboniz(es) a carbon-intensive manufacturing process through a renewable energy-powered electrochemical process,” is considering building a new research and development/manufacturing facility in Jefferson County. It is also considering Houston.

If it expanded in Jefferson County, it could create 40 new jobs at an average yearly wage of $84,243, or 113% of the average annual wage in that county. Jobs include engineers, researchers, operators, salespersons, and general and administrative roles. The company has 120 employees, and 90 of them are in Colorado.

Project Penguin was approved for up to $644,465 in Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits over eight years if it expands in Colorado.

International company eyeing Colorado Springs for U.S. base

Additionally, the commission approved $6.5 million in refundable tax credits for Project Beryllium, located in Longmont. The credits come through the CHIPS Refundable Tax Credits Program.

The anonymous company “is a renowned global leader in innovative memory semiconductor solutions, whose products are used in a wide range of applications,” a project description states.

The Longmont facility is its primary site for storage product development in the United States. The products are qualified and used by leading storage, server and cloud providers across the nation.

Project Beryllium will relocate and expand the company’s operations in Longmont to increase its electricity capacity considerably. The expansion will include another 185,000 square feet of space; at least 60,000 square feet will be used as lab space.

“Together these changes will enable the company to greatly expand its concurrent research and product qualification testing projects as it seeks to triple its chip production capacity in the U.S.,” its project description said.

The company is working to establish the facility as a memory-based program under the National Semiconductor Technology Center.

Legislation through the General Assembly in 2023 created the CHIPS tax credit program, intending to maximize available incentives to eligible semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries in Colorado.

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