Pittsburgh weekly roundup: Top accelerators and incubators; Skild AI’s next raise; Landing a robotics job

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This week in Pittsburgh, why affordability can’t be the only marketing tactic for smaller innovation ecosystems, a guide to top local incubators and accelerators and more.

Read on for Technical.ly’s weekly roundup of top news in the region.

📰 News Incubator: What else to know

• Local tech startup Skild AI is in talks with Japanese investment firm SoftBank for a $500 million investment, which would value the company at $4 billion. Skild AI is developing AI tech to control a variety of robots for various tasks. [TechCrunch/Technical.ly] 

• A group of industry leaders and experts have launched a local initiative called the AI Strike Team. The group aims to secure funding, foster collaboration, develop AI-focused innovation districts and promote Pittsburgh as a global AI hub to attract investment, talent and new companies to the region. [AI Strike Team]

• Pennsylvania’s Department of Education denied the controversial application of Unbound Academy, a cyber charter school network that claimed it could educate students twice as fast by giving them just two hours of AI-powered academic instruction. [Chalkbeat]

• Robotics jobs are projected to grow 10% by 2032, and several Pittsburgh organizations are working to develop local talent and connect them to new job opportunities. [NEXTPittsburgh]

• A new tool developed by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University measures gaps in the US electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The tool can be used by stakeholders to identify underserved areas where new charging stations should be built. [CMU]

• Black-led charitable nonprofit Hosanna House is now offering aviation training at local high schools to fulfill its mission of ending the cycle of poverty. [Pittsburgh City Paper]

🗓️ On the Calendar

• Win up to $3,000 and work with a new type of artificial neuron at the Neural Network Optimization Hackathon, hosted at the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship on Feb. 1. [More info]

• Learn practical negotiation strategies for early-stage startups on hiring, customer contracts, financing and planning an exit. Join guest speaker Eric Kline at the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship on Feb. 4. [Details here]

• Join healthtech company Innermore for a panel discussion on how adaptive soft skills can impact workplace wellness at the Pittsburgh Technology Council on Feb. 5. [Register here]

• Learn how F-1 visa students can legally start a business and work on a startup team at the first session of the Start Smart Legal Series, hosted by the University of Pittsburgh on Feb. 6. [RSVP]

• Enjoy a night of networking with over 300 robotics and tech professionals at Velum Fermentation, a South Side brewery, on Feb. 6. [Get tickets]

• Partner event: Take a crash course in how to think, work and build like a startup at Techstars Startup Weekend Pittsburgh from Feb. 7-9. You’ll meet fellow builders, mentors, investors and more. [Find out more]

• Technical.ly event: Join us at our annual Builders Conference on May 8 and 9 to meet top innovation leaders and learn about regional economic mobility, AI implementations and startups. [Details]