Full Luncheon Video – City Club Missoula , July 2026 – Renting in Missoula: Challenges, Choices, and Opportunities

Approximately 47% of renters in Missoula are cost-burdened, meaning that rent takes up more than a third of their income.

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The latest news for you – Missoula Chamber

Calendar of Events
July 21: Missoula Young Professionals at L&M Fine Jewelry
July 29: Member Orientation at the Chamber of Commerce
August 11: Business After Hours at First Security Bank

Adroit Career Opportunities – Senior Photonics Engineer, Skilled Carpenter, Transit Operators and more…

Find The Essential Job At Adroit, we want to be a part of your success story. We want you to be as our name suggests: clever or skillful in using the hands or mind. Check…

Montana’s Eight Most Populous Counties See Sharp Rise in Older Residents Over Children

From 2020 to 2025, Montana’s eight largest counties experienced a significant increase in residents aged 65 and older compared to those under 18. This demographic shift will impact local labor markets, healthcare, and housing needs across the state.

Companies are realizing you can’t replace people with AI – The math just doesn’t work.

About half of all companies that swapped people for AI end up experiencing a boomerang effect, rehiring at greater expense than it would have cost to retain the original workforce. The Great AI Layoff, it turns out, is turning into the Great AI Rehire.

Montana Based Floating Island International Cuts Lake Methane Emissions by 95 Percent –

This represents a nature-based approach targeting a major source of global warming linked to freshwater wetlands.

Montana Tourism Drives $5.6 Billion in Spending in 2025

For every one resident, we get 13 visitors to the state. And that spending was $5.6 billion. So we are a major industry.

Will Congress Wake Up and Save the U.S. Auto Industry?

The whole globe is aimed in one direction. China now makes 75 percent of all E.V.s sold anywhere on earth. (The United States makes around 5 percent.)

California Company Is Building ADUs to Be Sold Separately From the Home. Is This Legal In Your State?

The company has plans to build hundreds more in the future, appealing to Bay Area homeowners who want to convert a portion of their land, as well as build the homes on land they already own. Their ultimate goal is to make this new property type “a more normal part of the housing ecosystem,” said Jia Li, the company’s chief asset management officer.

Would You Like to Tell The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis how the current economy is affecting businesses like yours.

If you choose to take part, you will help the Minneapolis Fed and our local partners learn how the current economy is affecting businesses like yours. Results may also be used to inform business leaders, policymakers, and the public of current conditions.

ITRR – How much did Montana visitors spend in 2025, and where did they spend it?

Nonresidents spend over $5 billion in Montana each year. This report examines the distribution of spending across Montana’s six travel regions and among the 19 of the 56 counties with the highest spending, based on an average of 2024 and 2025 spending data.

Livability in Great Falls, Montana

With a strong entrepreneurial spirit and a community that supports new ideas, Great Falls continues to attract people ready to work, live and grow in Montana. See why people are choosing Great Falls! Gain access to entrepreneurial resources and support at GrowGreatFalls.org. Discover careers, lifestyle resources and relocation tools at LiveInGreatFalls.com.

Gary Vaynerchuk’s Timeless Advice for Entrepreneurs – Guy Kawasaki

Listening back, you’ll hear many of the ideas that shaped his success long before they became mainstream—from building authentic communities and adapting to new platforms to playing the long game in business. We also dive into how he spotted opportunities early (including buying Facebook stock directly from Mark Zuckerberg’s parents), why reputation matters more than quick wins, and what it takes to stay relevant in a world that never stops changing.

Vermont Launches 30,000-Home Infill Plan by 2030 – “Gentle Infill”

Vermont’s Homes For All program uses pre-approved designs to speed construction and cut costs. The initiative aims to tackle housing shortages by building smaller homes on vacant lots within existing neighborhoods.

15 Nobel Laureates Sound the Alarm on an AI ‘Tsunami’ for Jobs—We’re Not Ready

Hundreds of experts warn that AI could change the economy more than the Industrial Revolution did, saying ‘We Must Act Now.’

Bonding and C-PACE Financing Training: Billings – 7/22 – Helena

Join the Montana Facility Finance Authority for a free, in-person educational session on innovative financing tools shaping Montana’s economic future. This discussion will explore how tax-exempt bonds, taxable bonds and Montana’s C-PACE Program can be leveraged to finance commercial development projects, create opportunities for expansion and support long-term financial goals.

Hellgate Venture Network July Meetup with Jennie Yang of NeoSchool – 7/16 – First Interstate Bank – 101 E. Front Street, Missoula, Montana

Guest Speaker: Jennie Yang, Founder of NeoSchool – The school built for the post-AI world.

GFDA Upcoming Business Trainings and Events

Questions about our trainings? Contact Jamie! Jamie Rapley [email protected] 1-406-750-4481

Humanoid Robots Perform Live Surgeries, Transforming Surgical Care

UC San Diego surgeons successfully used teleoperated humanoid robots in live procedures, showcasing a future where robots and humans collaborate in operating rooms. These compact robots could help address staffing shortages and reduce costs, especially benefiting rural healthcare providers.

Bozeman Launches Interactive Map Highlighting Accessible Parking- could Missoula be next?

The new digital map identifies 39 accessible parking spaces and other key features downtown. This tool helps people with disabilities navigate the city more easily and could inspire similar projects statewide.

Colorado Law Shifts EV Battery Recycling Costs to Manufacturers

Colorado’s new legislation requires EV manufacturers to cover recycling expenses, addressing costly challenges faced by salvage yards. This law could set a precedent for other states as EV adoption grows.

2026 Greater Northwest Rail Summit and BSPRA Annual Conference  August 25-27 Helena, MT 

Taking place August 25–27, 2026, in Helena, Montana, this three-day event will feature timely discussions on the future of passenger and freight rail throughout Montana and the region. Attendees will explore how strategic rail investments can strengthen commerce, expand mobility, create jobs, support tourism, and better connect communities across the Greater Northwest.

Best uninvited pitch response I’ve ever seen… The Angel says no.

Video

The Population Bust Is Coming Sooner Than Anyone Is Prepared For

What evidence supports these predictions? Birthrates have fallen almost continuously for nearly 20 years, an entire generation. They have fallen through good economies and bad, through Republican administrations and Democratic ones, through every tax credit and child-care subsidy.

American Loneliness – It’s not an epidemic—it’s an immune system. By Yair Lapid

The instability you are feeling is not cracking the process—it is the process.

GFDA Top Ten for 7/12/26

Day 1! Janicki Industries broke ground on its aerospace manufacturing campus in the Great Falls AgriTech Park. The $800 million investment in 1.6 million square feet of production space will create over 2,000 jobs at full build-out! Hundreds of community members participated in a town hall, the groundbreaking event and a celebration held downtown. Janicki launched a Montana section in their website with information about the project.

See KRTV, KFBB, TheElectric and BusinessWire.

Janicki is expanding to Great Falls, Montana. 2,000+ Jobs

Janicki is a privately owned engineering and manufacturing company with locations in Washington, Utah and, soon, Montana. Founded in 1993, Janicki designs and builds composite and metallic tooling, parts, prototypes and assemblies for customers across aerospace, defense, space, marine and other industries. Janicki is one of the largest privately owned Tier 1 aerospace suppliers in the United States, with more than 2,000 employees company wide.

Bison Throws Man Eight Feet in Yellowstone – Don’t Pet the Fluffy Cows – Video

A bull bison charged a man and his grandson at Bridge Bay Campground, causing serious injuries. The incident underscores the dangers of people getting too close to bison.

This is why we need state-wide Pre-K education in Montana

Zero to Five Missoula recently released 2025 Kindergarten Entry Assessment data. 

Richard Carl “Dick” King August 3, 1947 ~ June 26, 2026 (age 78)

He was President and CEO of Missoula Area Economic Development Corporation until his retirement in 2011. Recruiting companies and supporting existing businesses played a large role in creating economic development in Missoula and the surrounding area. Projects were done as a team with MAEDC staff and city/county staff. Dick was extremely proud of the effort that went into obtaining funds to clean up the legacy pollution at the Old Saw Mill District. Its 45 acres now provide housing, a place to work, and recreational opportunities.

WHAT’S NEXT?! Montana — June 2026 – Frontier Angels

It was a quite month for the Montana tech scene. I guess everyone is on the river or deep in the backcountry camping. Below please find the latest Montana technology developments from June, 2026.

Could Data Center Jobs Stop Young Adults From Leaving Wyoming? 70% of its young adults leave by age 30

Microsoft’s Cheyenne data center offers diverse roles beyond IT, employing former oil workers and veterans. This shift provides local career options that may slow the loss of young adults seeking work elsewhere.

Is LinkedIn Becoming a Dating App?

20% of users say they’re using it to find a date. 

The recovering tech leader who is empowering women in Lake Tahoe – Do we have similar companies in Montana we can promote?

She left tech culture. Now she’s leading women’s excursions into the wild.

Barcelona, Spain is aggressively cracking down on overtourism through strict local policies, highlighted by plans to eliminate all short-term tourist apartment rentals by 2028

As discussed by travelers on the Rick Steves Travel Forum, while physical hostility toward individual visitors is rare, the political and social climate heavily favors curbing mass tourism to make the city livable for locals again.

Trump Administration Names Climate Skeptic to Head Flagship Federal Climate Research Program

Climate skeptic Matthew Wielicki’s appointment as USGCRP director has drawn criticism over his qualifications. The future of the Sixth National Climate Assessment remains unclear, raising concerns for businesses relying on federal climate data.

Trump Administration Kills Key Habitat Protections for Endangered Species

The new rule removes the definition of harm that protected critical habitats from logging, mining, and drilling. This regulatory rollback could reshape land use and increase risks for industries relying on natural resource stewardship.

University of Montana Researchers Launch Free Nationwide Individual Tree and Shrub Height and Structure Dataset

The University of Montana team created the NAIP-CHM, a detailed vegetation height map at 0.6-meter resolution. This new resource replaces costly surveys and aids land managers in prioritizing treatments and estimating costs.

3,000 bison in Yellowstone’s a ‘bs number,’ superintendent tells Montana Governor Greg Gianforte

“So pardon my frankness about the advice you’re getting on this issue,” Sholly said. “I look at the letter you sent the Interior secretary and wonder who the hell wrote that for you?”

Data centers are reshaping communities across America. Here’s what you need to know – Missoula County adopts temporary moratorium on data centers

There are an estimated 4,000+ data centers operating or under development in the United States.

The cover letter is officially dead: AI has created a new job-hunting paradox

Fast Company spoke with Paffenholz to learn more about how AI is reshaping how candidates craft job applications and how job applicants are responding. The cover letter is definitely dead, he says. And if you haven’t started playing around with ChatGPT—and you’re still looking for a job—now might be a good time to start.