Pittsburgh weekly roundup: Gender pay gap legislation; Pearl Street Technologies acquired; Prototype PGH’s new program

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This week in Pittsburgh, founders spin out successful dating app tech into a whole new venture, meet Alphalab’s 2025 cohort of innovative Pittsburgh startups and more.

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

📰 News Incubator: What else to know

• House lawmakers reintroduced a bill aimed at closing the gender pay gap in Pennsylvania, which is worse than the national average. The bill would prohibit employers from using an applicant’s pay history to set wages. [PublicSource]

• Butler County Community College is now offering free, federally-backed classes that train students to use equipment related to the increased automation of manufacturing. [Technical.ly]

• Pearl Street Technologies, a Carnegie Mellon University spinout focused on clean energy software automation projects, was recently acquired by Texas-based energy-focused SaaS company Enverus. [PR Newswire]

•  Local railroad tech company Wabtec Corp. announced it will acquire a global train mechanism maker Dellner Couplers for $960 million in cash. [Reuters] 

• Pittsburgh’s tech ecosystem saw 182 VC deals in 2024, a 33% increase from the previous year, securing $999 million in venture capital, mainly for life sciences and AI companies. [Innovation Works/Ernst & Young LLP Report] 

• Local nonprofit Prototype PGH recently launched Step On Up: Maker to Manufacturer, a six-month workforce development program that trains students in skills needed to fill advanced manufacturing positions. [NEXTPittsburgh]

🗓️ On the Calendar

• Is AI right for you? Learn how to ethically incorporate AI and other tech tools into your work with journalism professor and communications consultant Sara Bauknecht on March 24 at Duquesne University. [Details here]

• Unleash your entrepreneurial spirit and pitch your business idea at a What’s Your Business Idea? event on March 26 at Avenu: Atwood. [More info]

• Join Heather Lum of Branching Design on March 27 at the Pittsburgh Technology Council for a workshop on human-centered collaboration methods. [Get tickets] 

• Celebrate AI-driven innovation at the University of Pittsburgh’s Data Science Day 2025 at the O’Hara Student Center on March 27. [Register]

• Meet other local founders and learn about the resources in Pittsburgh’s startup ecosystem at the Pittsburgh Technology Council’s first Ecosystem Insights series event on March 27. [RSVP]