DC daily roundup: A 30-year journey to the Big Four; the most adorable robot invasion; USPTO leaks

From psych to tech: One woman’s rise at KPMG

Donna Meshaka didn’t set out to be a tech transformation leader. It just kind of happened that way. More than three decades ago, she overcame her colleagues’ resistance and pushed her law firm employer into the computing age.

Today, she’s an alliance management leader for one of the world’s biggest accounting firms. The Leesburg resident, who’s especially invested in the careers of other women leaders, discusses her journey through tech and professional perspectives with our own Kaela Roeder for the latest installation of our “How I Got Here” series.

➡️ Read more about Meshaka’s path in Kaela’s new article.

The artist behind Wilmington’s robot takeover

No, mechanized overlords didn’t seize control of Delaware’s biggest city (and the places where the state keeps many companies’ registrations). At least, not yet.

The robots in question are arriving courtesy of David Sanchez, the entrepreneur behind of Wilmington’s Spaceboy Clothing and a street artist better known as “Chez.” Through a series of public installations depicting robots, Chez is trying to breathe a little positivity and imagination into Delewareans’ daily lives.

➡️ Learn more about Chez and his artwork in Holly’s latest story.

News Incubator: What else to know today

• DC’s AI Squared, which helps clients implement artificial intelligence tools, followed up its $13.8 million Series A by acquiring Mountain View, California-based Multiwoven Inc. [Washington Biz Journal]

• Public affairs software company Quorum announced that investor and board observer Matt Williams, who helped the company acquire Capital Canary in 2022, will become its new chief financial officer. [Quorum]

• A new study shows that 85% of American teenagers play video games. But they don’t see them as a universally good thing. [Pew Research Center]

• The head of Saudi Arabia’s $100 million semiconductor and AI investment fund said it will accept any US request to divest from China. [Bloomberg Businessweek]

• The US Patent and Trademark Office is cautioning thousands of filers that their addresses may have been breached in a recent data leak. [TechCrunch]

🗓️ On the Calendar