“What the hell am I going to do there?” That’s what Thinkzilla CEO Velma Trayham said to herself when she started thinking about moving to Phoenix. Trayham had heard from a friend that the Phoenix startup ecosystem was really starting to emphasize the importance of diversity in business. And, well, diversity and inclusion is Trayham’s … Read more
The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) announced today that they are accepting applications for the 10th annual Arizona Innovation Challenge, the largest business plan competition in the country, starting Monday, July 26. The Arizona Innovation Challenge (AIC) advances innovation and technology commercialization opportunities in the state by helping early-stage ventures to scale. The ACA has picked … Read more
Conversations about diversity, equity and inclusion are happening everywhere — on social media, in our communities and in our businesses. These are important discussions to have, especially in Arizona, where there’s a clear lack of diversity in the tech ecosystem here. Thankfully, companies and people around the Valley are working to prioritize diversity, equity and … Read more
Everyone knows that two eyes are better than one. Images are more precise with both eyes open. Phoenix-based Yakkertech, which is named for an old term “yakker,” describing a big-breaking curveball, took this idea and applied it to cameras watching baseball and softball. Since its founding in 2014, Yakkertech has created a stereo vision imaging … Read more
You no longer need to move to Silicon Valley to have a successful career in tech. Arizona’s tech ecosystem is growing fast. Arizona tech startups are announcing raises, major semiconductor and EV companies are expanding here and local capital is increasing. Arizona’s tech sector even continued its rapid growth during the pandemic, ranking eighth in … Read more
Over the last couple months, you may have heard talk about waiving intellectual property protections of Covid-19 vaccines, in order to allow the manufacturing of these vaccines in other countries. This is a complex issue, so let’s break it down. What is a TRIPS waiver and what would it do? The World Trade Organization (WTO) … Read more
A public discussion hosted by the Future of Tech Commission last week focused on one of the biggest issues facing Arizona right now: internet equity. The Covid-19 pandemic shined a thousand lights on digital equity and access. Rural schools, especially, faced major challenges while attempting to teach online during the pandemic. Connect Arizona reports that … Read more
Thurmon Lockhart, a biomechanics professor at the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at ASU, hopes to predict and prevent dangerous falls, especially in older populations or those recovering from orthopedic surgeries. Lockhart was recently named the first Musculoskeletal Orthopedic Research and Education, or MORE, Foundation Professor of Life in Motion, which will help him … Read more
A multi-institution team led by faculty of the University of Arizona School of Engineering has received a $3 million grant to dramatically transform the healthcare system as we know it. The effort is led by Janet Roveda, UArizona electrical and computer engineering professor who has done research in a number of areas and is also … Read more
We know techies love electric cars, but have you ever considered electric longboards? What if you found out you could hit 30 miles per hour? Westin Smith, the founder of Lux Longboards, is making all your kid dreams a reality. Many entrepreneurs’ ideas stem from a problem to solve. In Smith’s case, he was an … Read more