Welcome to the weekly roundup of the latest from DC's tech and entrepreneurship scene. Want this in your inbox? Subscribe for free.
DC helps you track your ballot in real time
The district started sending mail ballots to every registered voter in 2020 as a precautionary measure during the height of the pandemic. Twice as many residents voted by mail as in person that November.
Given this uptick, DC is now using the platform BallotTrax, created by an eponymous mail ballot software company headquartered in Denver. It’ll allow voters to track their ballot in real-time when they drop off at a mailbox.
“Voters can see when their ballot is mailed, received, accepted or rejected, which helps build trust in the process and prevents fraud,” said Sarah Graham, a spokesperson for the DC Board of Elections.
➡️ Learn the ways to vote in DC and how the city is preparing for Nov. 5 here
Meet DCSTW’s pitch competition winners
Twelve DMV startups came together to pitch their business as part of the closing of the weeklong conference.
Companies were split up into early- and growth-stage categories, with two startups out of universities competing in their own group. Three ventures walked away with cash prizes.
Veza Innovations, which develops consumer products related to parent and child wellness, nabbed $1,000 in the early-stage category. Its founder, Karen Goodman Maschi, said she plans to put the funds toward patenting the company’s convertible high chair.
➡️ Get the details on the annual pitch competition here
News Incubator: What else to know
• The DC government and a local startup are partnering to streamline and build different apprenticeship and training programs focused on tech in the city. There are also cash incentives for startups to hire residents, thanks to funds from the Department of Labor. [Technical.ly]
• Plus, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced $1.8 million in funding across 17 local businesses, including the AI customer feedback platform AskHumans and the Indian fast-casual restaurant Rasa. [Mayor’s Office]
• The Washington Post, owned by tech billionaire Jeff Bezos, will no longer endorse a candidate for president. The paper’s chief tech officer allegedly told engineers to block questions about it on the paper’s own AI bot, and more than 1,600 digital subscriptions were canceled less than four hours after the news broke. [NPR]
• As a news org that covers innovation, experimentation is core to our culture. We use AI tools in our reporting, and our guidelines are constantly evolving. [Technical.ly]
• This DC-focused season of “Love is Blind” is almost finished, with the reunion airing Wednesday on Netflix. Garrett, a quantum physicist, and Taylor, a clean energy consultant, were one of two couples who made it to the altar. [Washingtonian]
• A biopharmaceutical workforce training center just opened in Rockville. The BioHub Maryland Training and Education Center is aimed at current life sciences workers, veterans and residents without college degrees. [BioHub Maryland]
• The Biden administration is ordering the Pentagon and intelligence agencies to use more AI. [Washington Post]
• Tysons EV company Scout Motors announced its first vehicles will hit the market in 2027. [Washington Biz Journal]
Meet the startups in Comcast’s AI accelerator
It takes a lot to impress the folks at Lift Labs. The Comcast NBCUniversal accelerator program has been boosting promising startups since 2013, helping companies build toward enterprise-level partnerships with big corporations like Comcast itself.
The latest cohort is full of founders with ideas of how to address some of the most promising applications of AI. They hail from across the country, with a bias toward California but also Philadelphia and New York. These eight startups are ones to watch in the AI space.
➡️ Meet the latest Lift Labs accelerator cohort
This sponsored blurb supports our journalism. Want to see your message here? Get details and book online.
🗓️ On the Calendar
• The Northern Virginia Tech Council explores cybersecurity and defense at its Cyber Summit and Cyber50 awards on Oct. 29. [Details here]
• Attend a Halloween-themed software development and testing party hosted by DevOps DC on Oct. 30. [Details here]
• Hear pitches from local founders, give feedback and network with fellow entrepreneurs at an event hosted by Pitch Labs on Nov. 2. [Details here]
Before you go...
Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.
Join our growing Slack community
Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!