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• My husband and I took our second trip ever without my son.
• We realized how much we genuinely enjoy spending time as a family.
• The trip also reminded us to prioritize our marriage more intentionally.

For our fourth wedding anniversary, my husband and I went back to our honeymoon destination, St. Augustine, Florida. It was only the second time we’ve traveled without my son, and the first time was our honeymoon.

I was a single mom when I started dating my husband, so my son spent a lot of time with the both of us and still does. It was really important to me to know that the three of us would work well together as a family.

It has always been our intention to take more vacations as a couple, but when we have the opportunity to travel, we always choose to take a family vacation.

Our trip was 4 days long

I suggested taking a trip back to our honeymoon spot, then maybe a bigger trip for the fifth anniversary next year. I pitched my romantic travel idea as a way for us to practice for the big trip next year, but my husband didn’t need a lot of convincing. He agreed that a honeymoon repeat for our anniversary sounded perfect.

We took a long four-day trip at around the same time of year we took our honeymoon four years ago. We did some romantic couple things, such as walking on the beach, eating at our honeymoon restaurant, and ordering some cupcakes that reminded us of our wedding cake.

I missed my son

Since this was only our second trip without my son, it just felt odd by day two. I didn’t want to say anything to my husband and risk coming off as if I wasn’t having a good time. So when he told me on the same day that he wished our son were there, I was relieved that he felt the same way. But more than that, it made me feel lucky all over again, to have found a husband who loves my son as much as I do and is truly a third parent to him.

As a single mom, I began to give up hope that I would find someone good enough for the both of us – for myself and my son. But I found a partner that I adore and that cares for me – and that genuinely cares for my son too. Remembering this and seeing this in him is so much more romantic to me than the fancy dinners and things like special-order cupcakes.

I think it was healthy for us to experience that feeling together

My son is entering middle school, and my husband and I are starting to talk more about what life will be like for us after he graduates. On our vacation, we realized how much his absence would hit us one day.

We took our feelings as an opportunity to talk about how to best move forward. I think that while I feel immensely blessed to have a family that actually likes hanging out together, we also need to put more effort into carving out moments for our marriage.

I actually think it’s really important for our family to keep our marriage strong. I know part of why it’s so difficult for us to take that couple of times is because we’re simply not used to it.

By the end of our long weekend, we had acquired too many souvenirs for my son and were happy to go home. But we also had a really good time overall, even without the whole family there. My husband and I have both agreed that we need to make more of an effort for more small trips like this one, to reconnect, but also to keep our family strong.

• Forward-deployed engineers are one of tech’s buzziest jobs.
• FDEs help companies integrate AI and build AI tools.
• Salaries can range from $170,000 to over $200,000, according to Indeed data.

Not all tech jobs are disappearing.

Despite the wave of layoffs that have battered the tech industry, there’s one role that looks secure: the forward-deployed engineer.

“Forward-deployed engineers, or roles that do the equivalent motion, are about to become one of the most in-demand jobs in tech. And one of the most important functions for AI rollouts,” Box CEO Aaron Levie said on LinkedIn this week.

The job listings data suggest he may be right.

In April of last year, there were 643 job postings for forward-deployed engineering roles on Indeed, according to data shared with Business Insider. By April 2026, that number had increased to 5,330 postings, which is about a 729% increase year over year.

Anthropic, OpenAI, Palantir, and Stripe are among the tech firms hiring forward-deployed engineering talent as demand for enterprise AI tools grows.

Earlier this week, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian said on LinkedIn that the company was also ramping up hiring for the position, citing growing client and partner demand for the company’s AI products.

So what exactly do these tech workers do?

Forward-deployed engineers, or FDEs as they are known, work with companies to integrate AI into workflows and customize AI tools to make their work easier or more efficient.

The role was popularized by Palantir, which would embed engineers directly with customers to build software tailored to their needs.

According to Indeed data, pay for the role ranges from about $170,000 to over $200,000.

The consulting industry is also leaning on forward-deployed engineers. Consulting has become something of a distribution channel for Silicon Valley’s latest AI innovations as they help companies make sense of AI and integrate it into their work.

For firms like McKinsey & Company and Boston Consulting Group, the ideal consultant now must have technical skills.

A job posting for a “Principal Forward Deployment Engineer” at QuantumBlack says candidates should have more than eight years of hands-on experience in software, platform, or infrastructure engineering, as well as a bachelor’s or master’s degree in a technical field such as computer science, machine learning, applied statistics, mathematics, engineering, or artificial intelligence.

“What we want to be able to do is find those people that actually have a propensity to either be this great McKinsey consultant, and or a great technologist, and then groom them to be both,” Alex Singla, a senior partner at McKinsey who co-leads its AI arm, QuantumBlack, previously told Business Insider.

• I have a trinket daughter, as mom influencers have been sharing on TikTok.
• The collecting and arranging began when she was a toddler.
• The fact that her collections cover every surface can get overwhelming sometimes.

Recently, I saw a TikTok video by a mom about her trinket daughter. She panned over her 5-year-old’s collections of tiny treasures all across her bedroom.

It could have been my daughter’s room. Or let’s be honest, my entire house right now. My daughter has been a collector (or hoarder, depending on how you look at it) of tiny treasures since she was a toddler.

The collecting of tiny objects began when she was a toddler

My daughter was only 1 when we noticed her propensity for collecting small items from around the house, sometimes toys, sometimes not, and then arranging them.

There was the play kitchen canister, topped by a swim diaper and crowned with a stuffed pineapple, which appeared on the coffee table. Or the lotion bottle she relocated to her bedroom windowsill, surrounded by Elmo, Ernie, and Cookie Monster, like it was some sort of shrine. My husband and I began taking pictures when we found them to document the hilarity.

As she grew older, she also began to go beyond just collecting things left around the house to acquire her own favorite things. Some of her favorites include sensory toys, erasers, jewelry, mini characters, and stuffed animals. Every trip is a chance to beg for a trinket from the gift shop to add to her stash. She spends her allowance almost as quickly as she receives it on new additions.

With all the trinkets also comes the chaos

While it is an endearing trait that continues to provide amusement for my husband and me and the family photo thread, it can sometimes get to be a bit much. In her room, her dresser, desk, and nightstand are all covered in little trinkets, as well as hairclips, chapsticks, rocks, shells, and artwork. When she has a cold, there is no room for a box of tissues or a humidifier on her nightstand. One accidental knock and half a display goes flying across the room.

She also loves putting all her treasures in various other places in the house, including inside her collection of pouches, purses, bags, and boxes. Displays of items have shown up in our bedroom, on our windowsills, dressers, and bookcases. And sometimes she can’t remember where she has put (or hidden) items. Inevitably, a beloved item will go missing, and then we have to search through the entire house and inside each bag, box, and bundle to locate it. It has been the source of many tears when we can’t locate them or when something gets knocked over and broken.

It can get hard to clean and overwhelming when they crowd out the use of surfaces like her desk or art table. Because, like a lot of kids, she never wants to get rid of anything. Every couple of months, we go through things and cull the herd. Then I have to make a case for why we definitely do not need three identical Arby’s kids meal toys.

As the chief chaos wrangler in our household, I’ll admit there are times when I just want to take a trash bag and sweep it all into it. I don’t, but I definitely want to. Her trinket collections just seem to grow, and what she sees as beautiful displays of her favorite items can start to feel just like a mess to me. I think it may be time to invest in some floating shelves for her bedroom so she can display the special things she wants, and I can retain some of my sanity.

• Many celebrities came from humble beginnings and moved frequently during childhood.
• Celebrities like Oprah Winfrey were born in rural areas before moving to cities.
• These actors, musicians, athletes, and authors have become household names.

Though many Hollywood stars have long been used to the lights and cameras in Los Angeles, many were born and raised thousands of miles away.

State lines don’t stop a person from hitting it big. Oprah Winfrey had a rural, poverty-stricken upbringing in Mississippi before becoming a household name with “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in Chicago in the 1980s.

“I was raised on a farm with my grandmother for the first six years of my life — I knew somehow that my life would be different and it would be better,” Winfrey told the Academy of Achievement.

Some stars have even become de facto ambassadors of their home states. Bruce Springsteen has been synonymous with New Jersey since he rose to fame in the 1970s and has become a cult hero among many New Jerseyans.

Business Insider compiled a list of the most famous living celebrities from all 50 states. Most of these actors, musicians, public figures, and occasional athletes or authors have become household names. They’ve been nominated for major awards such as Oscars and Grammys, have produced or appeared in major cultural works, and some continue to wear their state pride as a badge of honor.

The list was chosen based on where people were born, with one exception (see: Alaska). And, understanding this list is up for debate, we also included other notable figures from each state.

See where some of your favorite celebrities hail from.

ALABAMA: Lionel Richie was born and raised in Tuskegee.

The four-time Grammy-winning artist grew up on the campus of Tuskegee University, where he discovered his love of music, per the Alabama Music Hall of Fame.

Richie also won an Oscar in 1986 for the song “Say You, Say Me,” which appeared in the film “White Nights.”

Other notable celebrities from the state: Courteney Cox, Octavia Spencer, Sonequa Martin-Green, Emmylou Harris, Channing Tatum, Walton Goggins, and Laverne Cox

ALASKA: Jewel Kilcher is known as an Alaskan, but she was actually born in Utah, making her the exception to our rule.

Kilcher was raised in Homer, Alaska. The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter was born in Utah when her dad was attending Brigham Young University, Rolling Stone reported. She has appeared on Discovery Channel’s “Alaska: The Last Frontier,” which followed her family’s life in the Alaskan wilderness.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Darby Stanchfield, Irene Bedard

ARIZONA: Emma Stone grew up in Scottsdale.

As a child, Stone was involved in community theater. When she was around 14, she persuaded her parents to let her try her hand in Hollywood. 

The move proved to be worth it, with Stone later becoming a two-time Oscar winner and being named to Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list in 2017.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Lynda Carter, Matt Dallas, Mare Winningham, Shannon Woodward, Danielle Fishel, Dierks Bentley, Michelle Branch, Stevie Nicks, Jordin Sparks, and Diana Gabaldon 

ARKANSAS: Billy Bob Thornton was born in Hot Springs and grew up in a cabin in the woods.

Thornton and his family lived in his grandmother’s cabin for the first few years of his life.

The Academy Award winner opened up about his humble beginnings, telling ABC News in 2016, “We didn’t have a lot of money. But you know when you’re a kid you don’t know that. I mean you’re not aware of all of that kind of stuff.”

Other notable celebrities from the state: Mary Steenburgen, Wes Bentley, George Newbern, John Grisham, and Ne-Yo 

CALIFORNIA: Leonardo DiCaprio was born and raised in Los Angeles.

The “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” actor also grew up in Los Angeles in real life, moving to different neighborhoods in the area throughout his childhood.

DiCaprio has been nominated for eight Oscars and has become a household name for his roles in “Titanic,” “The Wolf of Wall Street,” and other films.

Other notable celebrities from the state: The Kardashians, Olivia Rodrigo, Tom Hanks, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Billie Eilish, Jennifer Aniston, Ben Affleck, Katy Perry, Adam Driver, Chris Pine, Tessa Thompson, Elizabeth Olsen, Milo Ventimiglia, Will Ferrell, Jake Gyllenhaal, Kendrick Lamar, James Franco, Tyler, The Creator, and Zendaya

COLORADO: Tim Allen grew up in Denver.

A few years after his father was killed in a car accident, his mother remarried, and the combined family moved to Michigan, per the Detroit Historical Society.

Allen found his comedy roots in Michigan and later became a Golden Globe-winning actor.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Melissa Benoist, Kelly Bishop, David Fincher, T.J. Miller, Trey Parker,

CONNECTICUT: Seth MacFarlane spent his childhood in New England, born and raised in Kent.

The creator of “Family Guy” and “American Dad” spent his entire childhood in the same town and even attended a boarding school his mom taught at, IGN reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Amy Brenneman, Glenn Close, Paul Giamatti, Allison Janney, Justin Long, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Allison Williams, and Meg Ryan

DELAWARE: Aubrey Plaza was born and raised in the state’s largest city, Wilmington.

Plaza acted in the town’s drama league productions as a youngster, Delaware Today reported.

She later found fame for her role in NBC’s sitcom “Parks and Recreation,” and has seen recent success from acting in HBO’s “The White Lotus.” The latter role earned Plaza a Golden Globe nomination in 2023.

Other notable celebrities from the state: John Gallagher Jr., Ryan Phillippe, Elisabeth Shue, and Raúl Esparza 

FLORIDA: Ariana Grande was born in Boca Raton.

The actress and singer performed at the Fort Lauderdale Children’s Theatre, per the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Grande has received 20 Grammy nominations and three wins.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Pitbull, Jason Derulo, Sarah Paulson, Doechii, Josh Gad, Maya Rudolph, Wilmer Valderrama, Abigail Spencer, Chrissy Metz, Eva Mendes, Norman Reedus, and Bella Thorne

GEORGIA: Julia Roberts grew up in Smyrna.

The Oscar winner’s parents ran a workshop for actors and writers in Atlanta when she was a child, Roberts told Oprah Winfrey in an interview.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Kelly Rowland, Kenan Thompson, Dakota and Elle Fanning, Ed Helms, Chloë Grace Moretz, Raven-Symoné, Luke Bryan, André 3000, Jason Aldean, Kanye West, and 2 Chainz

HAWAII: Bruno Mars, born Peter Gene Hernandez, grew up in Honolulu.

His dad played percussion and his mom was a hula dancer, the New York Daily News reported.

Mars, born Peter Gene Hernandez, has 16 Grammy wins and netted the best-performing song of the 2010s for “Uptown Funk,” according to Billboard. He has described his home state as “paradise.”

Other notable celebrities from the state: Jason Momoa, Jack Johnson, Carrie Ann Inaba, Janel Parrish, Timothy Olyphant, Bette Midler, Auli’i Cravalho, Tia Carrere, and Hoku

IDAHO: Aaron Paul was born in Emmett.

The “Breaking Bad” star moved around a bit and ended in Boise, Idaho before moving to Hollywood when he was 17 to pursue his career, GQ reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Tara Buck and Dree Hemingway

ILLINOIS: Harrison Ford was born and raised in Chicago.

Ford played the titular character in the “Indiana Jones” films as well as Han Solo in the “Star Wars” franchise. His roles have earned him Oscar and Emmy nominations.

Both of Ford’s parents were actors, but his dad found success as an advertising executive, GQ reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Chance the Rapper, Bill Murray, Busy Philipps, Michael Ian Black, Gina Rodriguez, Jennifer Hudson, Mandy Patinkin, Nick Offerman, Melissa McCarthy, and Gillian Anderson

INDIANA: David Letterman grew up in the state capital of Indianapolis.

Letterman’s career as a late-night talk show host spanned more than three decades and 6,000 episodes, Yahoo News reported. He was the longest-running host of all time, and perhaps the most iconic.

Letterman graduated from Ball State in Muncie, and the college’s communications building is named after him. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Jenna Fischer, Vivica A. Fox, Brendan Fraser, Greg Kinnear, Ryan Murphy, Jim Gaffigan, John Green, and Janet Jackson

IOWA: Ashton Kutcher was born in Cedar Rapids.

Kutcher, best known for his roles in “That ’70s Show” and “Punk’d,” has gone back to Iowa over the years to support local schools and students. He also helped launch the Native Fund, which provides disaster relief for Iowans, per the Des Moines Register.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Michelle Monaghan, Robin Lord Taylor, Caitlin Clark, and Elijah Wood

KANSAS: Janelle Monáe spent her childhood in Kansas City.

Monáe has received 10 Grammy nominations and appeared in the films “Moonlight,” and “Hidden Figures.”

After growing up in Kansas City, she later moved to New York City after earning a scholarship to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, but then left for Atlanta.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Martina McBride, Annette Bening, Scott Foley, Colton Haynes, and Eric Stonestreet 

KENTUCKY: George Clooney spent part of his childhood in Lexington.

The Clooney family moved to Ohio for a brief time but then returned to Kentucky, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. The Oscar-winner’s career spans over 40 years.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Michael Shannon, and Chris Stapleton

LOUISIANA: Ellen DeGeneres was born and raised in Metairie.

DeGeneres has won 33 Daytime Emmy awards for her eponymous show. The talk-show host and comedian has spoken out about growing up in the South as a lesbian, US Weekly reported.  

Other notable celebrities from the state: Reese Witherspoon, Jared Leto, Ian Somerhalder, Tim McGraw, Anthony Mackie, Zachary Levi, and Harry Connick Jr. 

MAINE: Stephen King was born in Portland and spent his formative years in the state.

After being born in Maine, King moved around with his family before returning at the age of 11, per Britannica. He attended and later taught at the University of Maine. Many of his novels have taken place in the state.

King has written dozens of New York Times bestselling novels and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2015.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Anna Kendrick, Patrick Dempsey, Timothy Simons, and Erin Andrews

MARYLAND: Anna Faris spent her younger years in Baltimore while her dad taught at Towson University.

The actress and comedian’s family moved to Seattle when she was six, the Baltimore Sun reported. Faris has had roles in NBC’s “Friends” and CBS’s “Mom,” as well as a leading role in the “Scary Movie” films.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Julie Bowen, David Hasselhoff, Spike Jonze, Jada Pinkett Smith, Christian Siriano, and Ta-Nehisi Coates

MASSACHUSETTS: Steve Carell grew up near Boston in Concord.

Carell held a job in Littleton as a postal worker before his acting career took off.

Best known for his role as Michael Scott on “The Office,” Carell has received Emmy nominations as well as an Oscar nomination in 2015 for his role in “Foxcatcher.”

Other notable celebrities from the state: Matt Damon, Chris Evans, Mindy Kaling, Amy Poehler, Bo Burnham, John Krasinski, B.J. Novak, Conan O’Brien, Elizabeth Banks, Joe Keery, and James Taylor 

MICHIGAN: Stevie Wonder, born Stevland Hardaway Morris, was born in Saginaw and grew up in Detroit.

Wonder sang in Whitestone Baptist Church in Detroit and later attended Michigan School for the Blind in Lansing.

Wonder has won 25 Grammys from 75 nominations, putting him among the winningest artists of all time, according to People.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Diana Ross, Madonna, Jerry Bruckheimer, Michael Moore, Selma Blair, Taylor Lautner, Terry Crews, and Lily Tomlin 

MINNESOTA: Bob Dylan was born Robert Allen Zimmerman in Duluth.

The Nobel Prize-winning performer went to the University of Minnesota. Dylan has won 10 Grammys and is considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Chris Pratt, Jessica Biel, Tippi Hedren, Jessica Lange, Winona Ryder, Shantel VanSanten, and Vincent Kartheiser

MISSISSIPPI: Oprah Winfrey was born in Kosciusko to her teenage mother.

Her parents were unmarried and she spent her early years with her grandmother, The Guardian reported. The beloved talk-show host, actress, and author has an estimated net worth of over $3 billion in 2026, per Forbes.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Britney Spears, Fred Armisen, and Tig Notaro

MISSOURI: Jon Hamm grew up in St. Louis.

The Emmy-winning actor attended the University of Missouri.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Sterling K. Brown, Don Cheadle, Matt Bomer, Andy Cohen, John Goodman, and Ellie Kemper

MONTANA: Michelle Williams grew up in Kalispell.

The “Dawson’s Creek” actress and five-time Academy Award nominee moved to San Diego, California, with her family when she was 9, The Telegraph reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Dana Carvey and Jesse Tyler Ferguson

NEBRASKA: Gabrielle Union is an Omaha native.

The actress is a big University of Nebraska-Lincoln Cornhuskers fan, according to an interview with James Corden.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Bryan Greenberg, Jaime King, and Hilary Swank

NEVADA: Matthew Gray Gubler grew up in Las Vegas.

The “Criminal Minds” star graduated from the Las Vegas Academy of International Studies.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Jena Malone, Rutina Wesley, Charisma Carpenter, and Mädchen Amick

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Mandy Moore was born in Nashua.

Moore became a platinum-certified recording artist in 1999 and was later nominated for an Emmy for her role in “This is Us.” She moved to Florida with her family when she was only two months old. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Matt Czuchry and Sarah Silverman

NEW JERSEY: Bruce Springsteen was born in Long Branch.

Jersey is synonymous with Springsteen. The Boss’s New Jersey upbringing plays into his lyrics and work and he speaks often of his love of the state. 

Springsteen has won 20 Grammys over his career.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Jon Bon Jovi, Meryl Streep, Lauryn Hill, Queen Latifah, Zach Braff, Bobby Cannavale, Danny DeVito, Peter Dinklage, Ed Harris, Kal Penn, Joe Pesci, and Paul Rudd

NEW MEXICO: Neil Patrick Harris was born in Albuquerque.

The “How I Met Your Mother” actor spent much of his childhood in Ruidoso, Albuquerque’s KOAT News reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Demi Lovato, Adrian Grenier, Anna Gunn, and Demi Moore

NEW YORK: Tom Cruise was born in Syracuse, but moved around for much of his childhood.

The “Mission: Impossible” actor left the city before making any formative memories there. Cruise would go on to attend 14 schools in 15 years, according to The List.

While the internationally renowned star hasn’t won any competitive Academy Awards, he received an honorary Oscar in 2025. Cruise has also won three Golden Globes.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Timothée Chalamet, Jerry Seinfeld, Jennifer Lopez, Denzel Washington, Robert Downey Jr., Amy Schumer, Adam Sandler, Jay Z, Billy Joel, Robert De Niro, Mariah Carey, Post Malone, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Kerry Washington 

NORTH CAROLINA: Julianne Moore was born at Fort Bragg.

Because of her dad’s military career, the Oscar winner and her family moved 23 times, The Guardian reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Britt Robertson, Zach Galifianakis, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Evan Rachel Wood, and Bellamy Young

NORTH DAKOTA: Josh Duhamel was born and raised in Minot.

The “Transformers” actor played football at Minot State University, the West Fargo Pioneer reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Wiz Khalifa and Kellan Lutz

OHIO: LeBron James was born and raised in Akron.

The NBA’s all-time leading scorer and a four-time champion, James is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time.

The NBA legend gives back to Cleveland in many ways. His foundation opened a school for at-risk children, The New York Times reported.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Drew Carey, Bow Wow, Dave Grohl, Kid Cudi, John Legend, Steven Spielberg, and Sarah Jessica Parker

OKLAHOMA: Brad Pitt was born in Shawnee.

The Academy Award winner’s family moved to Springfield, Missouri when he was young and he spent his childhood there, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Carrie Underwood, Kristin Chenoweth, Olivia Munn, Bill Hader, Ron Howard, and James Marsden

OREGON: Ty Burrell was born and raised in Grants Pass.

The “Modern Family” star graduated from Southern Oregon University, per Oregon Live.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Kaitlin Olson, and Thomas Mann

PENNSYLVANIA: Taylor Swift grew up on a Christmas tree farm outside of Reading.

She convinced her parents to move to Nashville to help her pursue a music career when she was 14, Vanity Fair reported.

Crowned the top artist of the 21st century by Billboard, Swift has won 14 Grammy awards from 58 nominations and has become a household name.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Will Smith, Sabrina Carpenter, Kevin Bacon, Shane Gillis, Tina Fey, Bradley Cooper, Joe Manganiello, Lee Daniels, Miles Teller, and Krysten Ritter

RHODE ISLAND: Damien Chazelle was born in Providence.

Chazelle became the youngest-ever Oscar winner for “La La Land,” in 2017, winning the award at age 32, per Guinness World Records. The filmmaker was born in Rhode Island but grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, according to Deadline. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Olivia Culpo, Mena Suvari, Meredith Vieira

SOUTH CAROLINA: Aziz Ansari grew up in Columbia.

The comedian and “Parks and Recreation” actor later moved to New York City to attend New York University, according to the New York Times. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Chris Rock, Viola Davis, Mary-Louise Parker, Jaimie Alexander, Anna Camp, and Mike Colter

SOUTH DAKOTA: January Jones was born in Sioux Falls.

The “Mad Men” actress also briefly lived in Hecla. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Amy Hill and Tom Brokaw

TENNESSEE: Dolly Parton was born in Pittman Center.

Born into poverty, Parton grew up in a small cabin on a farm in Locust Ridge. The “Queen of Country” became synonymous with the Smoky Mountains and has found ways to give back to her home state. In 2024, she donated $1 million to the Mountain Ways Foundation, which helped victims of Hurricane Helene in East Tennessee and the surrounding areas, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported.

Parton has won 10 Grammys from 55 nominations.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Justin Timberlake, Kenny Chesney, Christina Hendricks, Quentin Tarantino, Morgan Freeman, Megan Fox, Morgan Wallen, Kathy Bates, and Miley Cyrus

TEXAS: Beyoncé Knowles was born and raised in Houston.

Beyoncé spent the better part of her childhood in the city’s Third Ward, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The singer is the winningest artist of all time at the Grammys, with 35 awards from 99 nominations.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Solange, Tom Ford, Wes Anderson, Chace Crawford, Hilary Duff, Jamie Foxx, Woody Harrelson, Eva Longoria, Nick Jonas, Steve Martin, Owen Wilson, Robin Wright, Selena Gomez, Jessica Simpson, Usher, and Matthew McConaughey

UTAH: Chrissy Teigen was born in Delta.

The model and television personality’s family moved around a bit until settling in Huntington, California, where she was discovered while working in a surf shop. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Roseanne Barr, Matthew Davis, and Julianne Hough

VERMONT: Joanna “JoJo” Levesque was born in Brattleboro.

The singer became the youngest solo artist on Billboard’s pop chart in 2004, at the age of 13. Her family moved and settled in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where she spent most of her childhood, per Boston.com.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Grace Potter and Zosia Mamet

VIRGINIA: Sandra Bullock was born in Arlington.

Her dad was an employee of the United States Army and met Bullock’s mom in Germany. Bullock herself was raised in Germany for 12 years. 

Bullock won an Oscar in 2010 for her lead role in “The Blind Side.”

Other notable celebrities from the state: Missy Elliott, Rob Lowe, and Hilarie Burton 

WASHINGTON: Bill Gates was born and raised in Seattle.

It was at the Lakeside Prep School in Seattle where the Microsoft founder’s interest in computers and programming was fostered.

Having amassed a net worth of over $100 billion, Gates is considered to be among the most successful entrepreneurs of all time. In 2016, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Other notable celebrities from the state: Macklemore, Sydney Sweeney, Ben Gibbard, Emma Dumont, Constance Zimmer, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Kyle MacLachlan

WEST VIRGINIA: Steve Harvey was born in Welch.

The “Family Feud” host and Daytime Emmy winner moved to Ohio with his family when he was a teenager.

Other notable celebrities from the state: John Corbett, Josh Stewart, and Chris Sarandon 

WISCONSIN: Mark Ruffalo was born in Kenosha.

The Oscar-nominated actor was in high school when the family moved to Virginia, per ABC News.

Other notable celebrities from the state: John Ridley, Heather Graham, Kristin Bauer Van Straten, and Willem Dafoe

WYOMING: Jim Beaver was born in Laramie while his father was doing graduate work at the University of Wyoming.

The “Supernatural” actor’s family soon moved back to Texas, where they were originally from. 

Other notable celebrities from the state: Pete Williams, Jim J. Bullock 

• After spending a few years living in big Western cities, I moved back East to be closer to family.
• Now, I live in Asheville, North Carolina, and my quality of life has really improved.
• Life in Asheville has made family, affordability, and everyday ease feel more accessible.

As a small-town girl from Forestville, New York, moving to Denver for my dream job after college felt electric. I enjoyed skiing (when I could justify the three-hour drive to my favorite slopes), hiking, and seeing many shows at Red Rocks Amphitheater.

But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the city’s shine quickly wore off. Hiking trails became more crowded, live music all but disappeared, and suddenly, I felt very alone on the other side of the country.

Visiting my family back East wasn’t easy without expensive flights or long days on the road, and I started to feel closed in, with no way to reset or reconnect.

After sticking things out in Denver for a few more months, I moved to Salt Lake City for work. At first, it felt like an upgrade: world-class skiing was just 30 minutes away, rugged desert trails were within reach, and there was a stunning mountain backdrop.

Eventually, though, I realized what mattered most to me was being close to my family.

So, after three years of living out West, I decided I was ready for a change and settled in Asheville, North Carolina — a city that still gives me proximity to nature but has made family, affordability, and everyday ease feel more accessible.

Since moving, my quality of life has really improved

Now that I’m back on the East Coast, I don’t feel as cut off from my loved ones.

When I was living out West, the flights were so expensive that I only ended up seeing my family once a year for Christmas. Now, however, I can somewhat easily drive up to New York multiple times a year for birthdays, graduations, and other gatherings.

Being closer to my family hasn’t been the only perk of moving here, either. I’ve also found that the pace of life feels much more natural. There’s a collective ease here in the way people pause to chat, hold doors, and make everyday interactions feel more personal and less rushed.

Southern hospitality feels present in everyday interactions, especially when I go over to a friend’s house to sip tea on their porch.

The landscape seems to shape this rhythm, too. I can step onto a hiking trail or into a river within 15 minutes of leaving my house, and enjoy four distinct seasons — including mild winters — without the extremes of high-altitude living.

Now, my life feels much more balanced

At the end of the day, I don’t think Asheville is “better” than the other places I’ve lived. The Rockies and Appalachians both offer breathtaking landscapes, endless opportunities to get outside, and ways of living that aren’t found in other parts of the country.

However, moving to North Carolina has allowed me to better align my life with the things that are most important to me.

And a bonus? I’m finally able to save for my future in a way that felt impossible when I was living in bigger cities.

Now, I’m paying less than $2,000 a month for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom rental with a fenced-in backyard. Meanwhile, comparable options I saw in Denver and Salt Lake City could run at least $3,000.

This breathing room has allowed my partner and me to save money toward buying land and a home.

Overall, moving to North Carolina shifted more than just my address — it changed my relationship to affordability, time, family, and what “living well” actually means.

• Heathrow’s AI assistant handles traveler inquiries via WhatsApp, reducing the need for phone calls.
• Heathrow leveraged its longtime partnership with Salesforce to create the tool, called Hallie.
• Hallie is set to expand to the airport’s website and app later this year.

Nearly 85 million travelers passed through Heathrow Airport in 2025. Amid the hustle and bustle, they had plenty of questions: How long will it take to get through security? Which Starbucks is closest to my departure gate? If my bag was left behind at security, how can I find it?

Peter Burns, Heathrow’s director of digital, e-commerce, and marketing, told Business Insider that he wanted to improve customer service at Europe’s busiest airport, where demand keeps increasing. “As we grow capacity, we have to find a technology solution,” he said. To do that, Heathrow spent the past three years deepening its longtime partnership with Salesforce, which started in 2009, Burns said.

Heathrow first implemented Salesforce’s generative and agentic AI products in 2023, with a focus on customer service applications. These initial tests led to the launch of Hallie, the airport’s customer service AI agent that lives on WhatsApp and answers nearly all traveler questions without human help, in March 2025, said Burns. Since finding earlier this year that Hallie significantly reduced the number of customer calls to the airport, Heathrow is looking to further implement the tool on its website and app.

Customer service has been a popular use case for generative AI across industries since the debut of ChatGPT in 2022, said Gartner Research Vice President Bern Elliot. Elliot told Business Insider that a company’s customer contact centers can act as AI incubators because their return-on-investment metrics — time saved, agent call volume, response times, and response quality, among others — are clearly defined.

“You don’t have to connect very many dots to get from what you deployed to what is the measurable improvement,” Elliot said. “It makes for a great starting place in your AI journey.”

However, infusing AI into customer service systems isn’t a straightforward process, said Elliot. AI systems should be trained on a company’s most up-to-date data; otherwise, large language models are more susceptible to giving incorrect responses. “Having AI-ready data is a huge issue,” Elliot said.

Burns — along with Salesforce’s senior vice president of solution engineering, Paul O’Sullivan — spoke with Business Insider about how Heathrow and Salesforce collaborated to navigate these data complexities and launch Hallie.

The tech

Though Heathrow’s initial Salesforce investments lacked AI capabilities, Burns said they were critical to creating a unified database that would later serve as the foundation for the airport’s customer service AI agents.

Heathrow’s relationship with Salesforce started in July 2009 when it deployed Salesforce Service Cloud, a platform that helps customer service agents manage inquiries across multiple channels. By July 2021, Heathrow’s customer and marketing data had been uploaded to Salesforce’s real-time data platform, giving airport employees in customer service, marketing, and e-commerce live views of passenger data.

Burns said Heathrow became an early adopter of Salesforce’s generative AI capabilities in 2023, largely because of the airport’s existing Salesforce product use. AI deployment began that January with two internal use cases: autonomously drafting replies to customer inquiries and creating case wrapups, the summaries that customer service agents prepare after helping someone. These two tests fed more information into Heathrow’s database, helping to continuously refine the quality of AI-drafted responses, Burns said.

By late 2023, Salesforce’s Agentforce — the software company’s autonomous AI platform that can complete customer service, sales, and marketing tasks automatically — was deployed in the airport’s contact center to assist human agents with two specific tasks: Writing responses to customer questions and, after a case was resolved, generating a summary. Previously, agents had to type out every response and case summary, Burns said.

He added that Heathrow worked closely with O’Sullivan and his team of UK-based engineers to test and improve the airport’s AI capabilities before Hallie’s launch. Salesforce has regularly met with Heathrow’s team since their partnership began in 2009, with in-person visits about once per quarter and regular virtual catch-ups every other week, O’Sullivan said. In recent years, their meetings have focused on observing contact agents’ workflows and identifying pain points where AI could be applied.

O’Sullivan told Business Insider that it is critical for executive leadership, product managers, engineers, and representatives from security, data, and cloud teams to be on the same page before deploying tools like Agentforce, since internal databases could be outdated and make the technology less useful. “The reality is these agents need to be exactly like you and I, and how we work, because we’re constantly learning,” he said.

At Heathrow, Agentforce pulls from the airport’s database of 500 articles outlining processes. However, some of the policies took several months to gather, update, and implement, Burns told Business Insider.

In July 2024, Heathrow added more of its internal data to Salesforce’s data platform, enabling the airport to provide customers with real-time flight-tracking data.

Heathrow’s unified data foundation, which brought together Heathrow customer data, airport maps, flight statuses, and advances in generative AI, led to the March 2025 launch of Heathrow’s AI agent Hallie. On WhatsApp, travelers can ask Hallie questions about upcoming flights, how to find specific airport amenities and terminals, and the length of the security line.

The outcome

Prior to the launch of Hallie, 70% of customer inquiries were handled by phone, said Burns. Thanks to the bot’s agentic capabilities, by March 2026, phone calls accounted for 10% of traveler inquiries.

Later this year, Hallie will expand beyond WhatsApp so customers can access the tool on Heathrow’s website and app, Burns added. The airport is also considering future rollouts for Hallie, like at kiosks throughout its terminals.

Still, Hallie’s guardrails are limited: it only scrapes data from Heathrow’s website and internal database, Burns said. “We aren’t letting the agent go out into the open web and pull out other information,” he said. This decision somewhat limits the AI agent’s outputs, as it cannot yet handle personalized questions like, “Where can I pick up my checked bags?”

Burns said it was important for Hallie to provide accurate responses, and added that external sources could have inaccurate or out-of-date information. Looking forward, Heathrow plans to add more functionality to Hallie so passengers can use the tool on platforms beyond WhatsApp, Burns said.