# Empire State Development Fund Empire State Development Fund is an other based in New York, United States. ## Overview - **Organization type:** other - **Headquarters:** New York, United States - **Region:** North America - **Address:** New York, NY, United States - **Assets under management:** Undisclosed - **Website:** esd.ny.gov ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About Empire State Development (ESD) is the umbrella organization for New York State's economic development efforts, operating as a public-benefit corporation. Its chief investment activities flow through the New York State Urban Development Corporation, established in 1968, which executes large-scale real estate, infrastructure, and business incentive programs. President and CEO Hope Knight leads a statewide apparatus that blends direct financing, tax-credit allocation, and grant-making to shape New York's industrial and commercial landscape. ESD's deployment strategy spans multiple asset classes: direct loans and grants for manufacturing and technology companies, performance-based tax credits through the Excelsior Jobs Program, and large-scale real estate financing for mixed-use and industrial projects. The fund has been central to underwriting major corporate campuses, including Tesla's gigafactory in Buffalo and GlobalFoundries' semiconductor fab in Saratoga County (public record). More recent commitments target advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and life sciences, with the state supporting cluster development in New York City, the Capital Region, and Western New York. The agency's scale is reflected in its multi-billion-dollar portfolio of active tax-credit agreements. ESD maintains operating offices in New York City, as well as satellite presences in San Francisco, Seattle, and Tysons Corner to engage technology and defense companies considering East Coast expansion. Adjacent to its direct financing, ESD oversees the state's Certified Business Incubator network and venture-capital access programs, including the Innovate NY fund-of-funds. In December 2023, ESD released the final scoping report for the Kensington Expressway project in Buffalo, a $1 billion infrastructure redevelopment under active environmental review (per New York State, December 2023). ESD's structural differentiator lies in its statutory flexibility. As both a financing authority and a land-use agency with condemnation powers, it can assemble parcels, override local zoning, and layer subsidies in ways no private developer or fund can match. This quasi-sovereign deal-making capacity makes ESD the only entity in New York that can underwrite a project from concept to closing on a single balance sheet, a posture that shapes every major economic-development deal in the state. ## Sectors - Enterprise Software - AI/ML - Energy Transition & Renewables - Real Estate - Infrastructure - Media & Entertainment ## Offices - San Francisco, CA - Seattle, WA - Tysons Corner, VA ## People - Hope Knight — President, CEO & Commissioner of Empire State Development ## Questions ### Who runs investment decisions at Empire State Development? President and CEO Hope Knight is the lead executive, overseeing all project approval pipelines and board presentations. Investment decisions are formally approved by ESD's board of directors, which includes senior state officials and private-sector appointees. Major package terms — such as Excelsior Jobs Program tax-credit allocations or large infrastructure loans — are negotiated by ESD's regional economic development teams under Knight's direction. ### How does Empire State Development source its deal flow? Deal flow originates through the state's 10 Regional Economic Development Councils, which surface local business retention and attraction leads, and through ESD's out-of-state offices in San Francisco, Seattle, and Tysons Corner that target coastal technology and defense firms. Site-selection consultants and competitive reverse-inquiry processes also generate a significant pipeline, as companies frequently leverage New York's incentives against competing state offers. ### Is the Empire State Development Fund a for-profit venture firm? No. ESD is a public-benefit corporation and the state's primary economic-development authority. While it invests in private companies and real estate projects, it does so through grants, loans, and tax credits structured to maximize job creation, not equity returns. Its venture-capital exposure is limited to managed fund-of-funds programs like the Innovate NY Fund. ### How is Empire State Development related to other New York public entities? ESD is the parent organization for the Urban Development Corporation, which holds bonding and eminent-domain authority, and closely coordinates with the New York Power Authority on energy-intensive projects. It operates independently from the state pension fund but aligns project pipelines with other state agencies when incentive packages require multi-agency coordination. ### Does Empire State Development participate in fund commitments or only direct deals? ESD primarily executes direct incentive agreements, loans, and grants. However, it maintains limited fund-of-funds programs such as the Innovate NY Fund to seed venture capital in underserved geographies and technology sectors, deploying capital through external fund managers rather than making direct equity investments. ## Related profiles - [ViewTrade Securities](https://altss.com/profile/viewtrade-securities) - [Epic Baking Company](https://altss.com/profile/epic-baking-company) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/new-york-states-empire-state-development-fund Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology