At Dakota Resources, we are always looking for ways to grow the capacity of economic development leaders and organizations. Part of that capacity building is making sure that rural economic development leaders and organizations are taking advantage of all the technology and tools available to them. As AI continues to become a greater part of the business and nonprofit landscape, we want to offer opportunities to learn together.

There are some exciting opportunities we want to promote that are happening right now. See the different ways to engage below.

Grant Opportunity: Workforce Development Competitive Funding for AI Adoption

The South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation is offering grant funding to help businesses adopt AI. For economic development organizations, this is a tool to be used for your own training as well as an opportunity to share widely with businesses in your community. This is a reimbursable grant.

There are three tiers:

• Category 1: Get up to $5,000 matched (1:1) to bring in a consultant and map out where AI could fit in your business.
• Category 2: Get up to $20,000 matched (1:1) for actual AI training implementation.
• Category 3: Up to $10,000 in free awareness training with $1,000 per employee covered.

Applications are due August 7, 2026. Training must be completed by June 30, 2027. Application and more details can be found at the button below.

Thriverr Gathering: Using AI in your Economic Development Organization

Join us for our first ever Thriverr Gathering focused on Using AI in your Economic Development Organization. We will be joined Andy Jorgensen and Dan Klosterman from the EdgeTeam, based out of Sioux Falls. EdgeTeam has trained thousands of people on AI, including the Dakota Resources staff. We are excited to partner with them to bring this two-day gathering to all of you.

This event qualifies as basic AI awareness training (Category 3) for employees if you are awarded the Workforce Development Competitive Funding for AI Adoption.

Tickets go on sale on September 1, 2026. Read more about what you can expect at the link below.

Survey: Help Us Support You

As we continue to develop content and learning opportunities for rural economic development organizations, we want to get a sense of the level of use and engagement with AI tools. Your response to this survey will helps us figure out how to best support you going forward. Responses will be kept anonymous and only reported as an aggregate.

Please respond to our survey by September 15th.