In the early years of the pandemic, Americans filed a historic number of applications to start new businesses — importantly, ones that were likely to employ other people.
- New data shows that explosion of entrepreneurial activity continued last year, even as inflation and recession fears soared.
By the numbers: There were 1.7 million applications for new businesses that were likely to hire employees in 2022, according to the Economic Innovation Group, a bipartisan organization that analyzed data from the U.S. Census.
- That’s down slightly from 2021’s all-time record of 1.8 million, but still well above pre-pandemic norms. Last year’s applications are up nearly 28% from before the pandemic.
