An annual effort to unite Pittsburgh’s tech community is back this year and bigger than ever, with organizers calling on more community organizations to get involved.
After three years of growing momentum, Explore: Pittsburgh Tech Week returns Nov. 3 to 8 as a weeklong festival of events, workshops and showcases connecting Pittsburgh’s tech ecosystem. Like in other cities, the week follows an “unconference” format, with individuals and organizations invited to self-produce events all over the city under the tech week umbrella.
“The purpose of the event is to continue to build bridges within the tech ecosystem,” co-organizer Kenya Porter, a Google program manager, told Technical.ly.
A startup showcase and pitch competition with a possible cash prize are also in the works.
Porter sees the festival as a way to build connections across industries and promote a more accessible, equitable tech ecosystem after her own struggles to get connected early on.
Two major events are already slated for the week: Pittsburgh Robotics Network’s Discovery Day on Nov. 5, featuring more than 150 AI and robotics startups shaping the city’s tech landscape, and Penn State’s Global Impact Forum from Nov. 3-5, a conference focused on economic development and social mobility through education.
Over 6,000 guests from around the country are expected at the Global Impact Forum, giving Pittsburgh Tech Week partners and event hosts a chance to tap into that audience, according to Porter. Other cities host tech weeks to showcase their ecosystem, and Pittsburgh should seize the same opportunity, she said.
A startup showcase and pitch competition with a possible cash prize are also in the works, in collaboration with Innovation Works and InnovatePGH, said co-organizer Fantasy Zellars, CEO and president of Bounce, a marketing and events agency. No official details have been released yet.
More organizations are also needed to host panels, networking sessions and other events throughout the week, Zellars said.
“[Pittsburgh Tech Week is] an avenue to create digital equity,” Porter said. “Economically, Pittsburgh is already a tech city; we just haven’t been recognized nationally yet. I believe Pittsburgh Tech Week will help establish that identity and put our city on the map as a true tech hub.”
From isolation to inspiration
When Kenya Porter first began working at Google in late 2020, she said she felt very lonely.
As a Black woman, she wanted to push back against stereotypes about who belongs in the tech industry — and she eventually found a way to do something about it.
About four years ago, Porter met Mayor Ed Gainey during his visit to Google’s Bakery Square office. A former city employee herself, she shared her vision of connecting tech to more industries and getting the city’s tech workers engaged in the broader community. That conversation planted the seed for what would become Pittsburgh Tech Week.
A central focus for Porter is creating pathways for underrepresented youth to enter tech and encouraging them to build their careers in Pittsburgh. At last year’s Explore: Youth Day, more than 300 local students participated in hands-on STEM activities. It “absolutely brought me to tears,” Porter said.
While the current Mayor’s office helped spark the idea for the festival and remains a sponsor, Porter said Pittsburgh Tech Week won’t end when Gainey leaves office next year. She hopes to work with the next administration to continue to promote and expand the event.
Porter and Zellars are already looking to grow Pittsburgh Tech Week’s impact beyond the annual festival.
“We’re looking at year-round programming because when you’re talking about building an ecosystem, it’s not something that can just happen once a year,” Porter said. “We want to continue to sow into tech week so that we can reap the benefits in this region later.”
