Three chefs and restaurants from the Oklahoma City area were named finalists for the 2025 James Beard Awards, one of the highest honors in the restaurant industry.
Oklahoma City recorded the second-largest jump in rankings on the Milken Institute’s 2025 Best-Performing Cities list, rising 86 spots from 144th to 58th.
Oklahoma ranked No. 9 in the World Population Review’s study of the friendliest states, placing the state within the top 10 and just ahead of Hawaii. Oklahoma was voted No. 9 by tourists traveling in 2023.
USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards 2025 recently ranked Oklahoma City No. 9 among the top 10 U.S. cities with the best street art collections, placing ahead of Portland, Oregon, at No. 10.
Oklahoma is attracting thousands of new residents each year, drawn by its affordable housing, job opportunities, and quality of life. In 2023 alone, more than 25,000 people moved to the state, according to a recent migration study by StorageCafe using the latest U.S. Census data. This steady influx placed Oklahoma among the top 10 states for net migration.
Oklahoma City’s film and media industry continues to grow, and at the forefront of this evolution is Apex Post Production, a cutting-edge studio offering state-of-the-art sound technology. The Chamber’s VeloCity team interviewed Jon Vogl, the owner of Apex Post Production, inside their Dolby Atmos-certified sound stage to discuss the company’s vision, capabilities and the impact of high-quality audio in modern productions.
Oklahoma City officially opened the OKANA Resort and Indoor Waterpark with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking a major milestone for the city’s tourism industry and the Chickasaw Nation’s economic development efforts. The $400 million development in the Horizons District, next to the First Americans Museum (FAM), is the largest commercial investment in Oklahoma City history.
BOK Financial has received the 2024 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award (GEWA). This award recognizes the most engaged workplace cultures in the world.
