How is RAISE US Transforming AI Workforce Strategy?
The nonpartisan organization has already secured over half of its $1 billion fundraising target, with anchor support from Amazon, Anthropic, Microsoft, and the OpenAI Foundation.
Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and former Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb launched RAISE US, a nonpartisan national nonprofit organization on June 25, 2026, aimed at preparing American workers for an economy reshaped by AI.
The organization launches with more than two dozen of the country's largest companies and philanthropies as founding partners, and with initial state partnerships in Arkansas, Connecticut, Maryland, and Utah, according to the organization.
“America has a technology strategy for leading the global AI competition. It does not yet have a people strategy — and we cannot lead without one," said Raimondo, who will serve as Chief Executive Officer of RAISE US. "We've assembled the country's top companies, best economists, and bipartisan governors at a scale rarely seen — all to advance new ideas and incentives, pilot them with governors and business, and scale what works."
RAISE US said it will work with governors, employers, workers, and training organizations to design new corporate incentives for worker retraining, develop support structures for job transitions, and build training models tied to shifting employer demand. The organization said it will measure success by whether workers land and keep good jobs.
The People Strategy
The organization said it operates across state partnerships, an employer coalition, education and training, and a policy lab.
According to RAISE US, states control the funding, credentialing, and oversight structures that shape workforce outcomes, making them the appropriate level of government to lead action. The organization will work with governors to align public workforce and education systems with labor market shifts, including earn-and-learn apprenticeships, short-term credentials tied to employer demand, and transition supports such as wage insurance and career navigation tools.
On the employer side, RAISE US said its coalition asks member companies to publicly champion workforce transition and co-design retraining pilots. The organization also said it will deploy flexible capital to scale AI-enabled, work-based training models and fund a policy lab to test and promote strategies that encourage employers to retrain rather than displace workers.
RAISE US said it aims to raise $1 billion in multi-year commitments and has already secured over half of that total. In addition to its anchor technology partners, the organization counts ADP, AMD, Bank of America, Cisco, Deloitte, Eli Lilly and Company, General Motors, IBM, Mastercard, ServiceNow, UPS, Workday, and several major philanthropies among its founding supporters, the organization said.
"This isn't red versus blue; it's an all-hands-on-deck moment. [...] RAISE US gives state leaders a playbook that connects more Americans with the skills and careers needed in the years ahead," said Eric Holcomb, Co-Founder of RAISE US.
The organization said additional state partnerships will be announced in the months ahead, with the four initial states serving as proving grounds for outcome-driven pilots that it intends to scale nationally.
>
>
Key Takeaways
- Launch RAISE US aims to prepare American workers for an AI-driven economy.
- Secure over half of $1 billion fundraising target with major corporate support.
- Collaborate with states to align workforce and education systems for job transitions.
- Develop corporate incentives for worker retraining and measure success by job retention.
- Assemble top companies and bipartisan governors to advance innovative workforce strategies.