Ed Elson

Our senior producer is Claire Miller.

Thank you for listening to the Profiting Markets Founders Series.

We'll see you next month with another founder story.

What's that?

We are here in Illinois, where some of the nation's biggest debates are playing out at the state level.

The AI boom, for example, has created a lot of opportunity, but also a lot of resentment, particularly towards data centers, many of which are being built right here in Illinois.

At the same time, Illinoisans are concerned about social media and its impact on mental health, as well as the state's housing shortage, which has led to higher prices, much like what we've seen across the rest of America.

Few leaders sit closer to these issues than our next guest, who has spent the past several years guiding the state through them.

Since he was first elected in 2018, he passed several historic bills, such as raising the minimum wage.

Yup.

We are big fans of that.

And guaranteeing paid leave for every worker in Illinois.

Before, yes.

Before politics, he helped create more than 14,000 jobs through his nonprofit work.

And today he is emerging as one of the most prominent voices in the Democratic Party.

So without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your governor, J.B.

Pritzker.

Well, it's great to have you here.

Thank you so much for joining us.

We want to get right into it.