Two-day gathering energized policymakers, investors, entrepreneurs, business leaders, philanthropists and thought leaders from across the country. 

Bentonville, Ark. – This week, 350 leaders gathered to “Meet in the Middle” in Bentonville for the 2026 Heartland Summit, Heartland Forward’s flagship event, for two days of conversations on the challenges and opportunities facing the middle of the country. This year’s Summit centered on economic competitiveness, building the workforce for the AI economy, strengthening America’s strategic industries, advancing maternal and rural health and more. The Summit also recognized three new Secret Sauce Communities for their standout approaches to economic growth.

“The 2026 Heartland Summit reflects what Heartland Forward is built to do: bring the right people together and turn ideas into action,” said Angie Cooper, president of Heartland Forward. “Across the heartland, we’re working alongside state and local leaders, businesses and partners to prepare workers for an AI-driven future, create pathways to good jobs and improve health outcomes. The heartland has the people, industries and momentum to lead, and our job is to help translate those strengths into lasting growth and measurable results.”

Key announcements include:

• rootEd Alliance expands to Oklahoma and extends the program in Arkansas: Heartland Forward will implement rootEd into Oklahoma and is placing advisors in select schools for the 2026-27 school year. Additionally, the Arkansas Department of Education announced a goal to extend rootEd Arkansas to 100 schools across the state by 2030. 
• The BlackRock Foundation and Heartland Forward announce strategic partnership: Heartland Forward announced a new partnership with the BlackRock Foundation to help make the skilled workforce more accessible to students in rural communities across the heartland. 
• Secret Sauce Communities recognized: Heartland Forward highlighted Huntsville, Alabama, Grand Rapids, Michigan and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, three communities with a “secret sauce” sparking economic growth.
• Center for Investment Readiness announces state partner: Heartland Forward’s Center for Investment Readiness (CIR) announced its first state partner to further support participating communities in Tennessee.
• Maternal Health Resiliency Index released: Heartland Forward’s Maternal & Child Health Center for Policy & Practice and Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies America launched the beta version of its Maternal Resiliency Index, an interactive, open-access tool designed to help decision makers optimize maternal and infant health outcomes at the county and state level. 
• McKinsey and Heartland Forward release Investment Readiness Guidebook: Heartland Forward and McKinsey released America’s Next Growth Opportunity: An Investment-Ready Heartland. The report introduces a new framework and guidebook to help micropolitan communities attract and sustain investment.
• HMHBA Announces $20M in State Grants: Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies America committed its first state-level investments — $10 million each to Arkansas and Kentucky over five years, which will expand maternal care workforce, data systems, home visiting, and postpartum support in two states hit hard by maternity care deserts.
• 2026 Heartland AI Small Business Survey released: Heartland Forward released AI on Main Street, new research on how small businesses are using AI to stay competitive. Findings include that heartland small businesses use AI at exactly the same rate as the rest of the country.

“The Heartland Summit has always been about what happens when we meet in the middle, not just geographically, but around the ideas that will shape America’s future,” said Krista Cupp, executive vice president for partnerships and events and executive director of the Heartland Summit. “The heartland has incredible momentum, and increasingly, this is where solutions are taking shape. When we bring together leaders from across sectors who are ready to think bigger and act, we can turn that momentum into lasting economic opportunity for the heartland and for the country.” 

Heartland Forward also hosted a series of salon dinners, each hosted by their partners, that sparked powerful conversations around the key issues shaping the heartland’s future. 

The dinners explored topics including: 

• Strengthening critical industries and advancing American competitiveness
• Using data to drive community investment, regional innovation and economic growth
• Investing in talent and workforce development, and building pathways to entrepreneurship
• Improving maternal and child health, and advancing whole health for heartland communities
• Leveraging philanthropy, arts and culture to strengthen regional economies
• Expanding access to growth capital for heartland entrepreneurs and Main Street businesses
• Preparing workers, communities and young people for an AI-driven economy

For photos from the Heartland Summit, click here. 

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About Heartland Forward

Heartland Forward is a non-profit, policy think-and-do tank that turns ideas into action for states and local communities. Our mission is to accelerate economic growth, change the narrative about the middle of the country and generate $500 million of economic impact to the heartland by 2030. We do this through applied research, community-driven programs, policy and convenings—focusing on regional competitiveness, talent pipeline and health and wellness.

About the Heartland Summit

The Heartland Summit was co-founded by Olivia and Tom Walton and Steuart Walton in 2018 to kick-start economic growth and help change the narrative about the middle of the country. The Summit is a forum for frank conversation about our shared challenges, creating positive action and strengthening connections.