Why Illinois Is Positioned to Lead the Next Era of Manufacturing, According to One AI Expert

After more than two decades working across NASA, financial markets, federal regulation and artificial intelligence, Tammy Roust believes Illinois has something many states do not. A real foundation. One strong enough to become a national manufacturing leader.

It is a perspective shaped by an uncommon career.

Roust began at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a federally funded research center managed by Caltech, where she was entrusted with major responsibilities almost immediately.

From age 23 to 28, she helped manage projects worth approximately $300 million.

“It’s sink or swim there,” Roust said.

The work was exciting, she said, but it also exposed her to one of the central challenges of analyzing space missions. That being that there was not much historical data available. She wanted more.

That realization led her toward an industry where data was far more abundant.

“Who has a lot of data?” Roust recalled thinking. “Finance has a lot of data.”

She moved into financial automation and machine learning before arriving in Chicago in 2007 to work at a hedge fund. There, she used data to model financial risks and run “what if” analyses during a period of extraordinary market instability - the Great Financial Crisis. She would work as late as 2am pouring over the data.

Later, Roust moved into financial regulation. She conducted cybersecurity and data examinations for regulated institutions in Chicago.

Her experiences inside the financial industry had shown her what could happen without effective oversight.

“When you don’t have any rules at the table, everybody races to the bottom,” Roust said.

She eventually became chief data officer for the State of Illinois, taking the position shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There seems to be a pattern,” Roust joked. “I drop in right before a crisis.”

During the pandemic, Roust reported daily information to the governor’s office as her team used data, artificial intelligence and geospatial analysis to track the crisis and help determine where mobile resources should be deployed.

She later became the first chief data officer at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, where she worked on the agency’s artificial intelligence rollout and security. After working at an AI startup, Roust joined the U.S. Department of the Treasury and helped build a secure artificial intelligence engine.

Today, she is the founder of FAIT Consulting, where she helps manufacturers prepare for cybersecurity and compliance requirements while implementing AI systems designed with security in mind.

The Rise of ‘Shadow AI’

Roust said many companies are already experiencing the rise of “shadow AI,” with employees adopting AI tools on their own to complete tasks faster, sometimes without management understanding what information is being shared or even what vulnerabilities are being created.

That can be particularly difficult for manufacturers - given that they may have limited visibility into how employees are using personal devices or AI applications on the factory floor.

Roust believes manufacturers should build security, compliance and governance into their AI systems from the beginning rather than attempting to add protections after those systems are already operating.

“If you get it at the start, it’s a lot cheaper than if you have to bolt it on afterwards,” Roust said.

She believes the question manufacturers face is no longer whether artificial intelligence will become part of their operations.

“If you don’t use AI, then someone else will, and they’ll eat your lunch,” Roust said. “It really isn’t a choice. It’s just a matter of doing so safely.”

Safe implementation, she said, requires limiting what an AI system is allowed to do, establishing access controls, keeping humans involved in important decisions and periodically auditing or testing systems to confirm that they are behaving as intended.

Cybersecurity readiness is also becoming an increasingly important part of demonstrating that a manufacturer is prepared to pursue defense contracts, attract investment or expand its operations.

Companies seeking defense-related work may be required to meet standards such as the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). Manufacturers preparing for investment may also need to demonstrate that they have effective internal controls.

Roust said companies can begin by conducting a gap analysis to identify weaknesses in areas such as business continuity, disaster recovery and physical security.

“What’s your business continuity plan?” Roust said. “If you have computer systems on site, what’s your disaster recovery? How do you fail over to those systems, and have you tested that plan?”

Illinois’ (Many) Long Term Advantages in Manufacturing

Beyond technology and cybersecurity, Roust sees significant long-term advantages for manufacturing in Illinois.

She points to the state’s skilled trades workforce, freshwater resources, comparatively stable power supply, available land and large internal talent pool.

“These are geographic and workforce advantages that Illinois has that other states don’t,” Roust said.

Recent investment announcements have added momentum to that argument.

In July, Illinois announced that Ability Engineering Technology would modernize and expand its manufacturing operation in South Holland while establishing an additional presence at the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park on Chicago’s South Side.

The company specializes in the design and production of equipment used in industries including aerospace, energy, defense, scientific research and quantum technology.

Illinois also announced that Zero Point Cryogenics would establish its first U.S. operation at the quantum park, adding specialized cooling infrastructure needed to support quantum research and technology.

The projects are part of a major effort to build an ecosystem connecting Illinois manufacturers, researchers, suppliers and emerging technology companies.

The Impact of a Changing Climate and Resource Landscape

Roust believes the state’s freshwater resources could become particularly valuable as manufacturers reconsider operating in regions facing greater heat, drought and water shortages.

“Manufacturing needs water,” Roust said.

She pointed to the declining Colorado River watershed and the extreme temperatures experienced in states such as Arizona and Texas. As some regions confront more severe resource and climate pressures, she believes Illinois could become a more attractive destination for long-term manufacturing investment.

“It increases opportunities here because we don’t have these dramatic climate change impacts,” Roust said.

Illinois’ location also provides manufacturers with extensive transportation and communications infrastructure.

Chicago has long served as one of the nation’s most important railroad and logistics centers.

“If you’re a manufacturer, you have to ship heavy equipment,” Roust said. “You need a rail line for that.”

Those rail corridors also helped shape the region’s telecommunications infrastructure, with high-speed lines historically installed along major railroad routes.

Roust also points to the presence of major research universities, including the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, as another source of scientific, engineering and artificial intelligence talent.

Combined with Illinois’ existing manufacturing base, she believes those assets give the state an ‘ecosystem’ of sorts that would be difficult to build from scratch elsewhere.

“We have manufacturing here and have had manufacturing here for over 100 years,” Roust said. “We have the ecosystem here to build it up.”

Organizations such as the Southland Development Authority (SDA) help strengthen that ecosystem by helping smaller manufacturers connect with one another, prepare for growth and navigate ownership transitions.

Many small manufacturers remain family-owned businesses that can face uncertainty when the next generation does not want to take over. Roust believes organizations like the SDA can help connect those companies with potential partners or buyers while keeping their operations and jobs in Illinois.

She also sees an opportunity to build stronger regional supply chains by helping manufacturers identify suppliers and business partners closer to home.

Being able to source products not only domestically but “hyper-locally” became especially important during the supply-chain disruptions of the pandemic, she said.

“If you know all the people in your supply chain, then you can reach out, and you can have much more control over your end product,” Roust said.

How the Manufacturing World Evolves in Five Years

Over the next five years, Roust expects manufacturers to gradually incorporate artificial intelligence into their production and business systems.

She does not believe that means removing people from manufacturing entirely. Instead, she sees AI taking over highly structured and repetitive tasks while workers concentrate on specialized, creative and higher-value responsibilities.

“Humans are built for creative effort,” Roust said. “Using the AI to do the bits that are not creative and are very structured is the way automation has worked for the last 50 years.”

That transition may become increasingly important as experienced manufacturing workers retire and companies struggle to replace their knowledge and skills.

“We have an aging workforce,” Roust said. “The baby boomers are dropping off the retirement cliff.”

That’s a point SDA CEO, Bo Kemp, brings up often.

Roust believes securely designed AI systems can help a smaller workforce maintain productivity while allowing employees to focus on the work that requires their experience and judgment.

And in Illinois, Roust sees a future shaped by significant opportunity - but only for companies willing to prepare for it.

About the Southland Development Authority

The Southland Development Authority, a not-for-profit economic development organization, is committed to driving equitable and sustainable economic growth in the South Suburbs of Chicago. Through innovative programs, strategic partnerships, and impactful direct investments, the SDA is building a vibrant, inclusive economy that drives wealth growth for individuals, businesses, and municipalities. Combined with the benefits of the South Suburban Land Bank and the Monarch Fund, the SDA serves as a model for regional development.