Mar. 30—The Fresno-based tech hub about to open in downtown Bakersfield announced Wednesday an expansion into five additional states as part of an investor-funded campaign to replicate the company's model for workforce and software development.

Bitwise Industries said it is adding locations in Buffalo, N.Y.; Cheyenne, Wyo.; El Paso, Texas; Greeley, Colo.; and Las Cruces, N.M. They bring the company's footprint to 10 cities, including Merced, Oakland and Toledo, Ohio.

"Our goal is to bring our proven, repeatable approach to as many communities and people as possible," CEO and co-founder Jake Soberal said in a news release. "What has been successful in our first five cities will become part of these new regions' stories of how investing in underestimated people and places can create a more inclusive and representative economy."

Funded by more than $100 million in venture capital, Bitwise has built public-private partnerships to train people in computer coding, software platforms and entrepreneurship. It has a federally accredited apprenticeship program and a software development arm that the company says has taught more than 8,000 non-traditional tech students, 80 percent of whom have gone on to careers in the field.

As it has done in Fresno and Bakersfield, which was the company's first expansion city, Bitwise sets up nontraditional workspaces in downtown areas and recruits students, with a focus on women and people of color, to take part in training programs. Some graduates end up being hired by the company to develop software for local companies.

The model Bitwise uses also involves establishing a shared, coworking-style office space with modern amenities, such as the one set to open at 50 percent capacity April 4 at the southwest corner of 18th and H streets in downtown Bakersfield.

Even before opening a physical location in Bakersfield, Bitwise has made quite a splash locally with a $750,000 contract with the city to offer 14-week evening classes to residents who suffered economically because of the pandemic.

The company also has a paid apprenticeship program involving dozens of local students, and it aims to open a business accelerator at the new downtown location.

Bitwise's investors, including JP Morgan and Motley Fool Ventures, have put in more than $100 million.

Investor Mitchell Kapor or Kapor Capital said in Wednesday's release that Bitwise's expansion will help the most vulnerable members of society by giving them a pathway to quality jobs.

"With this expansion," he stated, "the demonstrated impact of Bitwise Industries can now be shared with millions more underrepresented people across the country."

Paula Pretlow, an independent board member for Bitwise, called the company's business model "unique and proven scalable."

"Bitwise is truly making a difference, not only in the lives of those who are gaining skills and employment in tech, but also in the cities where it operates, and arguably, the nation as a whole," Pretlow added in Wednesday's release.