Most of us are heads down in offices, coworking spaces and coffee shops working away on projects and deliverables for the majority of the year. Philly Tech Week provides that much needed break to celebrate the community, to celebrate our achievements collectively and to wax poetic on how far our beloved city can go. What makes PTW special to me is it gives us all an opportunity to share the many amazing and wonderful innovations with people new to the conversation and with people new to Philadelphia.

Over the course of the last few years I have seen an increased interest from tech ecosystems outside of our own. What’s the next hot piece of tech being developed here? What conversations is the community having? What problems are we working on? Answers to these questions can be found over the course of the next nine days. The schedule for Philly Tech Week 2017 presented by Comcast will not disappoint. PTW is not only a celebration of Philadelphia but also a celebration of innovation for, and by, everyone.

Here are my picks for the week.

Friday, April 28

Kick off the first day of PTW with the first day of evoHaX Hackathon – Hack to Change Lives. Friday launches the fourth hackathon in the series focused on developing accessible technologies. The theme for this hackathon is web accessibility. Events and panels take place throughout the three days with judging on Sunday.

Saturday, April 29

Pyramid STEM Showcase is a family friendly showcase with interactive exhibits from numerous organizations throughout the city to “educate, inform, encourage, or spark a career interest” in technology.

Monday, May 1

Mayoral Tech Town Hall with Mayor Kenney. And a panel to follow with yours truly!

Tuesday, May 2

Disruption and Diversity in Technology. A full day of networking and conversing with leaders in tech.

Wednesday, May 3

Dev Day! My favorite day! Extra special because Gov. Tom Wolf will be joining us to discuss how Pennsylvania is positioning itself for leadership in innovation and entrepreneurship.

Thursday, May 4

After a long day of work, jam out with Hive76’s DIY Music Night. Free to attend this combo workshop and jam session.

Friday, May 5

I mentioned this is a celebration, right? Friday night, grab your dancing shoes and business cards for a fun evening celebrating and connecting with our tech ecosystem at the #PTW17 Signature Event!

There are over 100 events over the course of the many days of PTW. Check out the full schedule and a super cool interactive map of all events here.

Happy Philly Tech Week!