Biden set to visit IBM Poughkeepsie plant to highlight $20B expansion plan

President Biden will a fast-growing IBM facility in Poughkeepsie on Thursday to highlight tech investment in the Hudson Valley.

Biden will “deliver remarks on creating jobs, lowering costs, and ensuring the future is made in America” at the IBM facility, the White House said in a statement.

IBM is expected to use the presidential visit to unveil a $20 billion investment plan in the plant over the next decade, including expanding research and development, semiconductor manufacturing, mainframe technology, artificial intelligence and quantum computing.

About 3,000 people work at IBM’s Poughkeepsie plant, making it one of the largest employers in the region.

Biden is also expected to trumpet passage of the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, which is designed to boost domestic manufacturing of computer chips and tech investment in the U.S.

The IBM announcement is the second big job-creating coup in upstate New York in recent days after Micron announced it would build a sprawling new factory near Syracuse.

Biden’s visit is also designed to boost Democrats in the Hudson Valley, traditionally a swing region of deep blue New York state.

Gov. Hochul will join him along with Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.) and newly minted Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.), who is running for a full term in a redrawn district that includes Poughkeepsie.

Both lawmakers are locked in tight congressional races that are considered critical to Democratic hopes of holding the House of Representatives in the midterm elections.

After IBM, Biden will attend fundraisers for Democrats in Red Bank, N.J., and in Manhattan before heading back to Washington, D.C.