Pittsburgh weekly roundup: Aurora’s Texas trial run; New Hill District STEM facility; Duolingo invests in SigIQ.ai

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This week in Pittsburgh, a local sportstech success story, get paid to learn about robotics and manufacturing and more.

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

📰 News Incubator: What else to know

• Local fintech startup Honeycomb Credit is actively raising $3 million, according to an SEC filing. The company has already secured more than $760,000 toward that goal. [Technical.ly]

• Pittsburgh-based self-driving truck developer Aurora Innovations plans to launch its first fully self-driving tractor-trailer on Texas highways this month [Austin American-Statesman] 

• A 15-month pilot program testing learner employment records, a new way of credentialing workers gaining traction in the US, found that the tech could make it easier for immigrants to access jobs. [Technical.ly]

• A timeline of federal higher education changes since the start of the second Trump administration shows how Pittsburgh-area colleges have responded. Most recently, several current and recently graduated students from Pitt and CMU had their visas revoked. [PublicSource]

• The commonwealth is investing over $329,000 to support the expansion of global high-voltage tech company Hitachi Energy’s Mount Pleasant facility. The expansion will create a minimum of 58 new, full-time jobs. [PA Department of Community snd Economic Development] 

• Kashif Henderson, executive director of the nonprofit Neighborhood Learning Alliance, won the Pittsburgh Tech Council’s 2025 Tech Community Impact Award for his digital literacy efforts.  [NEXTPittsburgh]

• Local stakeholders broke ground on a $5.8 million project to revitalize the former Martin Luther King Jr. Reading and Cultural Center in the Hill District to be a state-of-the-art STEM education facility. [Pittsburgh Biz Times]

• East Liberty-based edtech company Duolingo recently participated in a $9.5 million seed round for California startup SigIQ.ai. The company will use the funds to develop affordable one-on-one AI tutors. [Pittsburgh Biz Times]

🗓️ On the Calendar

• Technical.ly event: Join our CEO Chris Wink on April 14 for a conversation about civic tech and benefiting the public good with Christopher Whitaker, executive director of the Alliance of Civic Technologists. [Register]

•  Technical.ly event: Come to 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] (Enter here for a chance to attend for free, travel included.)

• Break a sweat and connect with the local startup community at Pittsburgh’s Pitch and Run on April 12, starting at 9 a.m. in the Strip District. [Attend] 

• Learn about the worst mistakes startups can make from a panel of experienced lawyers on April 17, hosted by the University of Pittsburgh’s Big Idea Center. [RSVP]

• What do tariffs mean for your business? Find out how to save money and stay compliant at Ascender’s workshop on April 17. [More info]