North Carolina* has gone through two major economic overhauls in the last 150 years. The first was the shift from a largely agrarian economy to an economy focused on manufacturing products using home-grown farm outputs. The so-called “Big Three” were cigarettes made from North Carolina tobacco, textile and apparel products manufactured from cotton, and furniture and paper products using North Carolina trees and lumber. Much of this “Big Three” economy was located in small towns and rural areas in the state. Some experts think the application of AI to textile/apparel production could significantly improve productivity for domestic manufacturers and consequently reduce the cost advantage of foreign competitors.
https://www.wral.com/business/technology/future-of-north-carolina-economy-mike-walden-february-2025/