Helping technology-based companies make the move to Loudoun is our connectivity. Some might argue that’s Loudoun’s destiny as a hub for information technology and communications business was set in 1992. In that year, MAE Services, now owned by Verizon, created its first location for the interconnection of Internet-related networks -- MAE-East. Not so much an actual Internet connection, but rather a major “point of presence” through which Internet traffic from around the world is exchanged, MAE-East lies in Ashburn and is a source through which thousands of Internet Service Providers exchange Internet traffic between their networks without cost. By the mid-90s, companies such as WorldCom (now Verizon), AOL and others had established major operations in Loudoun, and in doing so helped create a culture where other technology corporations, research facilities, and institutes of higher education now blend seamlessly into the county’s business mix.
Today, a drive down our business corridors reveals companies like Prototype Productions, NeuStar, Sun MicroSystems, and Rockwell Collins. You'll also find educational programs at George Washington University’s Virginia Campus including the National Crash Analysis Center (NCAC), the High Performance Reconfigurable Computing Lab, the Center for Nuclear Studies Data Analysis Center, the GW Energy Institute and the Institute for Magnetics Research; and world class research facilities, such as the National Transportation Safety Board Crash Analysis Center and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Janelia Farm Research Campus.