It’s finally here: Ann Arbor’s annual tech week, a2tech360, starts today and runs all next week with 16 online tech events highlighting the latest innovations and trends in mobility tech, Midwest investment, software, security startups, and life sciences.
For the last year, Traverse City Michigan startup incubator 20Fathoms has been running a program called tccodes, to mentor professionals moving into software development careers. Tomorrow, Program Manager Keith Kelly says, they’re kicking off phase 2 of the program, tccyber, with an event called CyberSecurity As a Career, to support people entering the growing cybersecurity industry.
We are very happy to announce that Cronicle is now offering communications and content marketing consulting for tech startups and small businesses looking to accelerate their growth. Cronicle was founded by Ann Arbor husband-wife tech-media duo Archie Cowan and Laura K. Cowan, whose deep expertise in software development, technical architecting, publishing, online media, media analysis, and content marketing in technical industries creates a rich and varied background to allow Cronicle to offer consulting to founders who are crossing the chasm between launch and team growth.
TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN: A cohort of entrepreneurs from Michigan Tech University in Houghton, Michigan will takeover the TCNewTech’s August 4th Pitch Contest as part of an initiative to strengthen the connection between MTU and the Grand Traverse Region. Three student-led “Bar Napkin Ideas” will be presented along with 3 commercialized, early-stage startups with roots connecting them to MTU and the Husky Innovate program.
We covered TU-Automotive Software Conference in Detroit in 2019, and it was hard to even begin to bring you backstage access to all the great talks and events going on. This year, you can tailor your attendance to your own preferences. TU-Automotive is going virtual from August 18-20. If you’re interested in the future of mobility tech and connectivity or security and software in the automotive industry, this is the one conference where it all comes together.
Last year, we covered Intermitten: The Conference for Change Makers, as part of our Ann Arbor a2tech360 Tech Week coverage, including interviews backstage with Doug Song of Duo Security, multiple fireside chats with thought leaders in the social justice space in tech, and more. This year, we’re excited to see Intermitten is still on, but it’s being held virtually, and independently of a2tech360 on August 7. Registration info below. We hope to “see” you there!
Just released from Ann Arbor SPARK is the announcement that Ann Arbor’s tech week and all associated a2Tech360 programming will be delivered virtually this year, moving from its usual June timeframe to September 18-26. Tickets and formatting are still to be announced, but we have the full schedule now and are happy to share it with you and see how many popular events are continuing. There are also some newer events in the mix, such as Ann Arbor’s Applied AI Conference, and Ypsi’s Hero Comic Con.
The University of Michigan School of Information is seeking organizations to host student projects in the 2020-2021 school year. Organizations from all industries – corporate, non-profit, governmental, health, and research institutions – that seek impact and access to high-caliber students are invited to propose a project.
As summer camps went virtual across the U.S., we had a sneaky little thought. Who is to know if your kid is doing the remote summer camp… or you are? Some activities are fun for all ages. If you’re looking for summer activities at home for your kid, or… yourself, look no further than our own back yard. Ann Arbor in Southeast Michigan is home to dozens of world-class summer camp programs, and now you can access them from anywhere.
Ann Arbor’s maker community has designed a simplified protective face shield with powered filtered flow, a little brother of the high-end hazmat suit style PAPRs (Powered Air Purifying Respirators) you see in contagion movies. The so-called PFFR is not a fully contained helmet or suit, and has been redesigned to be more appropriate for the current pandemic. It costs under $100 instead of $2,000, and will soon be ready for production. The only problem? Many frontline workers are only allowed to use protective gear that fits into previously FDA-approved personal protective equipment (PPE). This concept likely falls between existing PPE categories, because it isn’t a full respirator mask and it isn’t a simple face shield but somewhere in between. The journey to getting FDA emergency use authorization has been a long one, even in times when the agency has sped up its evaluation process drastically to get more PPE onto the front lines.
