Jeff Gifford

Arizona has 26.5 gigawatt-hours of total battery storage capacity, trailing only California and Texas.

Three other Valley cities also made the top 25.

The autonomous driving company is also introducing new cabin features and a redesigned user interface for its next-generation fleet of electric vehicles.

Arizona was singled out in the national rankings for its new business birth rate, ranking among the top 3 nationwide.

The confidence among Arizona businesses comes even as nearly 80% reported AI-related fraud or attacks in the last 12 months.

While local home insurance rates climbed faster than the national average, Arizona remains more affordable than central states like Oklahoma and Nebraska.

Phoenix and Scottsdale each placed nine companies that were included in the Best Companies to Work For ratings. U.S. News evaluated firms on six categories including job stability and professional development.

The ranking for America's best-run cities evaluated financial stability, education, health, safety, economy and infrastructure.

A quarter of Arizona businesses report that they are already using AI, with another 28.3% planning to adopt it within six months.

Phoenix joins Las Vegas, Nashville and Charlotte as cities whose national reputation is elevated by visitor brands and economic perception.