PTW 2025 live blog: A sneak peek at next year’s events

Welcome to PTW 2025. 

The 15th Annual Philly Tech Week presented by Comcast, hosted by 1Philadelphia, is finally here. All week long, Technical.ly will be live-blogging our on-the-ground coverage of tech events around town.

This post will be updated daily with new insights from PTW and sites we see around town. Check back for updates and interact in real time on our public Slack. 

Have a tip, update or photo to share from PTW? Drop us a line at philly@technical.ly.

May 9, 2025

12:00 p.m.

See ya next year

Thanks for following along! PTW 2025 has come to an end, but you can still keep up all the tech, innovation and ecosystem building news by subscribing to our newsletters. 

Join our Slack to follow along for more live event coverage.

A preview of 2026

Danae Mobley from 1Philadelphia and Technical.ly CEO Chris are back on stage to send us off into the weekend — and share some newsy PTW updates.

Next year, we’re celebrating 250 years since the American Revolution, and Philly will be at the center of it. Builders Conference 2026 will aim to get representatives from all 50 states, and take place in early May here in Philly again.

Join our PHL250 project! We’re collecting your ideas on what the city will look like in 250 years, and it’ll be a lasting message for future generations to come back to.

The Spectacle! Let’s break another world record next year, or something similar, to show off the community.

We’re also taking a moment to remember Reed Gustow, the former PACS president who recently passed. Donate here to help celebrate his legacy.

PTW 2026 will be May 4 to May 6, 2026, and Builders will be on May 7 and 8, 2026.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

11:00 a.m.

We’re humans first

The second panel is happening now, covering the tech workforce and economic mobility. Hearing from:

• Moderator: Ashley Putnam, Philly Fed

• Dell Gines, IEDC

• Hanniyah Sharpe-Brown, Accenture

• Tamia Cotton, Per Scholas grad

Cotton is sharing how a tech apprenticeship changed her career trajectory. She’s now able to be around a group of peers who want to see her succeed and grow. Plus, she’s been able to bring more of her network in to help them boost their skills, too.

The people we want to share the ecosystem with need to be at the center of it, Gines said. The individuals become decentered from the systems. It has to be human-centered design, and then professional and cultural support systems around the experience of that system.

All of this relies on working together: “Collaboration over competition,” Sharpe-Brown said.

Tamia said she always knew she wanted to be in tech, but it was hard to break in, and that’s where apprenticeships come in. It lowered the barriers to entry.

The AI discussion is missing an acknowledgement of who the people are doing this, Sharpe-Brown said. Jobs will go away, but there are also opportunities in education and bringing more people into the tech fold.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

10:30 a.m.

ICYMI recap

In the corner, we also have a posterboard in the works. Looks like it’ll be a great recap of the morning.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

10:00 a.m.

‘It’s more than just me’

Audigent and Ben Franklin Tech Partners are up to chat about the entrepreneurship boom and what it means for economic mobility. We’re hearing from Shelton Mercer, founder at Audigent, and Scott Nissenbaum, CEO at BFTP, moderated by Technical.ly’s Danya Henninger.

Nissenbaum is sharing his experience with a company that came to Philly for its cell and gene therapy expertise, and with that comes local jobs. So, Henninger asks, what kind of policies can support more of this entrepreneurship? The policies have to take into account patience. For Audigent, it took nine years to become an “overnight success.”

Partners like BFTP put Audigent through the ringer, but it gave them the skills to go on and raise a seed. Those early partners make sure the startup isn’t just relying on their own hubris, Mercer said.

Now, some Philly love. The impact of the community here and the ecosystem is what Mercer credits for his company’s success. The storytelling helps, too, with building valuable connections. Not carrying that burden alone opens the doors for more a more egalitarian ecosystem, he said.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

And then there’s the whole AI revolution. AI is disrupting how entrepreneurs operate, plus workers: “You are not going to lose your job to AI, you are going to lose your job to someone using AI,” Mercer said.

— Kaela Roeder, Technical.ly’s lead DC and Baltimore reporter

Now, there’s the question of how we can make this all more equitable. A big one to tackle. Nissenbaum shares how when it started, most VCs were rich, white guys who went to an Ivy League. That’s improved a bit since then by bringing in investors that look like the founders who are pitching them.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

Nissenbaum: “I do think this is probably the first generation where physical location was less of a barrier of entry. If you were born in rural Indiana, you had no shot, virtually no shot, at using technology and innovation to break out. You had to be in Silicon Valley. You don’t have to be in Silicon Valley anymore.”

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

What’s troubling to Mercer, however, is regression on the topic of inclusion. There’s been a DEI clawback, and those rooms need to look like the world looks — not a fraternity.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

Welcome to day two

Chris is currently giving his talk on the history and importance of the “tech meetup.”

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

Closing out PTW 2025 today, too. Danae Mobley from 1Philadelphia will be our emcee today as we enter the weekend. Laura Plunkett from Comcast’s LIFT Labs and Technical.ly CEO Chris Wink are also up to introduce our first panel.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly’s national and market editor

9:00 a.m.

Welcome to day two of the Builders Conference at the Comcast Technology Center!

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

May 8, 2025

4:00 p.m.

DEI in the workplace

One of the last panels of the day is What Happens to DEI Strategies Now?

Groups are still doing the work, just using different words, said Sylvie Gallier Howard, founder and CEO at Equitable Cities Collaborative.

Smaller orgs can’t afford to lose their federal funding, that’s why they’re changing their language, said Alyssa Vasquez, president of Cultured Enuf. Those who can stand up need to, whereas some companies are folding easily to the administration’s rules, Howard said.

Do an audit of your own values and make sure you’re working with people you align with, Vasquez said.

“There will always be this societal backlash when equity pursues itself,” she said.

Ask questions that speak to people’s values and competencies, make sure you’re working with people who along with your values, she said.

Instead of looking at DEI as important practices that need improvement, people are saying they’re just not good practices, Howard said. To avoid that, orgs need to educate people but discussing workplace values and infusing them into the org’s actions.

When it’s infused into the company culture, mandatory training won’t catch people off guard, Vasquez said. Founders need to grow in their emotional and cultural competencies to lead people effectively.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

Meet the influencers

Alice Crow moderated How to Work with Independent Creators, with Na’Tosha Wyles, Calan Wilson and Alex Peay (aka
Pop Pop Bruce Johnson).

Takeaways: It’s OK to break up with your client/creator if it’s not a good fit! Use hashtags to search for potential creators to partner with. Start with short form — the more people know you the longer they’ll watch. TikTok and Instagram videos should be around 30 to 60 seconds. Use YouTube for long-form content, as it’s moving toward a focus on creator-produced television programming.

Also, PopPop is actually young!

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

Get your exit ducks in a row

Last Fishbowl room session of the day, M&A or IPO: What is Your Company’s Destination?

Panelists work at various parts of this broader process:

• Kim Klayman, attorney with Ballard Spahr
• Mike Ravenscroft, leader of the University System of Maryland-affiliated Maryland Momentum Fund
• Alexis Grant, founder and CEO of They Got Acquired

Both Klayman and Grant discussed the process of due diligence being the most difficult part of either of these processes, which are the two pathways by which companies experience exits, what Ravenscroft called the end of the lifecycle for many companies

With tons of M&As happening in the last few years (especially 2021), one trend Klayman noticed is that a lot of smaller companies acquired other smaller companies — and she’s not sure that these deals will work out for the buyers 

The overwhelming theme of this discussion: founders must get their organizational, legal and financial ducks in a row. For instance, make sure you know who controls the IP of a product, and have documentation to prove it. Understand what you actually expect from your funders through the process. And that may involve doing some reverse due diligence with investors.

“Most companies end up in an M&A transaction if there’s no succession plan,” Klayman said.

Another constant theme: the reality that an acquisition, merger or IPO may get framed as something good or bad in public (we see this a lot in press releases, for instance) and the truth is a lot more nuanced. It’s not always possible to know who benefited or suffered through a deal, or how much they benefited. But Grant advocates looking to public disclosures (i.e. SEC filings) to understand terms better. She also said she’ll find that sellers are more candid two years or so down the line.

Klayman also noted that there are some deals on her table now that are “in hiatus” because of the current tariff-dominated economic climate. But more often, the things that kill deals are not easily quantifiable — things like litigation risk, or ambiguity over where IP lies.

Closing advice: Think about these processes early on, lean on your networks when trying to understand this, and be nice to your service providers.

— Sameer Rao, Technical.ly’s DC and Baltimore editor

AI vs. regulation

The panel What Does Real-World AI Regulation Look Like? is getting started.

It’s important to have patience; slamming the brakes on innovation too soon can cause distrust.

There is currently a lack of regulation and guidelines for new AI tech. 

Why is it difficult for the government to quickly respond to new AI tools? The folks who understand what’s going on with AI are building the new tech or are in academia. Lawmakers look to the news to know when they should act. A deep understanding of the tech is required before policy can happen.

It’s easier to create a policy that establishes a pilot or committee to research the thing. It’s harder to create a policy that regulates.

If AI is a net good for society, it is better to be reactive to AI than proactive.

Government cannot keep up with the market right now, but for tech optimists, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Right now, it falls to companies to consider safety checks for AI. They care because they’re the ones who are currently regulated and they also need to consider their reputation.

There are no current policies to enforce that AI teaching is effective (for example, requiring limited hallucinations or making sure chatbots say appropriate things to students), but lawmakers are still discussing what kinds of requirements are necessary for regulation.

It’s unlikely that cost savings will come to the government with the emergence of AI tools.

America is leading the way with a more innovation-focused economy, but since Trump took office, Europe is changing its tune on how it approaches AI. For example, France wants to be a hub for AI innovation. It’s a complete pivot from what the conversation was last year.

Questions lawmakers need to consider: What happens when an AI chatbot provides more accurate knowledge than a professional? When will human professionals be required to listen to AI over their own opinion? Will a professional be liable if they disregard a chatbot and there is a bad outcome as a result?

PA government employees reported saving an average of 95 minutes per day while using ChatGPT for writing, research, summarization, and IT support.

What do you tell people who fear AI adoption because of potential job loss? The purpose of jobs is not just for the job to exist but to fulfill a mission. There’s no perfect way to prevent someone from getting laid off. The job world is going to change.

Future work will require employees to use AI, which doesn’t require extensive knowledge. Augmentation of human abilities will most likely occur. AI literacy will be crucial.

Should lawmakers use AI tools to craft policy? Lawmakers are already using chatbots for speeches and legislation. It takes months to craft good policy, even if AI speeds up that process, but that will not ultimately accelerate the process because what truly delays policy is partisan fighting, which will still exist.

— Alice Crow, Technical.ly’s lead Pittsburgh reporter

3:00 p.m.

What investors actually want to hear

Tuning in from the Fishbowl room for VC Roundtables: Telling Your Story to Investors, with a bit of a twist: Moderator Ken Malone, the head of Baltimore-based and advanced manufacturing-focused Early Charm, is turning the moderation over to… a discussion of two questions? We’ll see what happens. But anybody who knows Malone knows it’ll be an interesting convo nonetheless.

DeVaughn (sp?) (the person in pink near Ken) came up with two questions to ask these panelists and guide the discussion. Strap in for some insights and more than a little humor.

Fellow panelists include:

• Anthony George, Ben Franklin Technology Partners
• Rob Brown, MVP Capital
• Ryan Bednar, Orange Collective

Bednar, whose fund specifically focuses on Y Combinator companies, highlighted how introverted founders can interact with VCs, and still be successful. He noted that VCs do like to explain their work and that this posture can be an asset (in not so many words, but the point stands that there’s a way to engage without faking extroversion).

Malone (now moderating for real) asks what “story” actually means, something distinct from the pitch?

George: “It depends on the situation and what the investor demands,” but you still need “a crisp, unique story to use — don’t copy out of a book.” It can be within, before, after the pitch, but still something unique.

Bednar: “The best pitches [feel like] you’re letting the investor in on a secret.”

Brown: “You want to convey a sense of inevitability.”

Ken asks a poignant question: How important is it for the story to be real than for you to believe in it?

George: “Your story should hold up [to] some level of scrutiny.” For instance, you have to be able to show understanding of your own revenue, targets, etc. and that begins with an “airtight” story.

Bednar, who was also involved in Y Combinator alum Tutorspree, said, “the investor has to evaluate, is this the person” to build the idea in which they’ve already invested interest and faith.

Malone hits on an important point that’s pivotal to the way he runs Early Charm (and has discussed before): the majority of billion-dollar companies, he says, don’t actually ever seek out VC. So, worth remembering that VC isn’t actually the right pathway for many (maybe most) founders.

So all these investors talk about the importance of relationships. Asked at what point the founder’s passion and drive in building the investor relationship turns into belligerence or some other quality that turns the investor off, George said he wants to see founders that’re obsessed with the problem they’re trying to fix, and not the solution.

George and Bednar also noted the importance of founders being able to answer not only “Why?” but “Why now?” That’s a really important component to understand because macroeconomic factors (i.e. tariffs, the evolution of a sub-industry or tech product), interest rates, etc.) can change, and what was once hot and a good bet two years ago might not be now.

Asked about how a company’s ownership of the real estate in which they develop (especially with hardware/hard tech) factors into an investor’s calculation, George recommends conserving cash by renting. Brown added that if you disaggregate these two transactions/asset classes, that could be interesting — essentially, a real estate deal disaggregated from an investment.

— Sameer Rao, Technical.ly’s DC and Baltimore editor

‘Innovation is a form of empowerment’

Digital Equity: How Storytelling Can Make Innovation More Accessible, moderated by Technical.ly reporter Sarah Huffman, featuring Christina Reed, cofounder of the Pitch Place, The Creative Representation Empire’s Naomi Winston and Micky Wolf, CEO at Dent Education, starts now.

Naomi noted that the term “innovation” means different things across different fields. “Innovation is a form of empowerment,” Naomi said.

“Innovation is using tools and resources to build the future,” Micky said.

Christina said that we can look to advisory boards not just for mentorship but also as teachers.

Naomi noted that free media is still paid with an audience’s attention. The crowd here sent a round of snaps to Naomi’s point about how it’s our responsibility to the youth to create a better world for them by being the best versions of ourselves.

Micky made a great point that storytelling plays a big role in how younger people see themselves.

One theme that’s shown up a few times throughout the conference today, which Naomi has highlighted in the session, is that storytellers have to show up to their communities and listen to better their stories.

Great question from moderator Sarah, “how can storytelling strategies be used not just to describe inclusion, but also to create inclusion?”

Christina said she used the journalism motto “show, don’t tell” to diversify storytelling to be more inclusive.

Micky said Dent Education recently dived deeper into more video content to find ways to tell more engaging stories.

Naomi said, “we have to walk the walk,” and created the concept of “sacred art, profitable business.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

2:00 p.m.

Storytelling tools

It’s time for Ecosystem Storytelling: Establishing Standards for a Community of Practice moderated by Technical.ly’s own Danya Henninger with content creator Anika Horn, Stef Monge from Silicon Prairie News and ecosystem builder Anand Macherla.

Anika is asking the audience to send ecosystem resources, such as where you’re getting your tech news. Reach out if you have any ideas to send!

Anand moved to Baltimore back in 2018 and said the city changed his mind about what ecosystems are like and how the cultural makeup and really define an ecosystem. “Diversity is a celebration,” he said.

Stef said the one story that changed her perspective on ecosystems was one that explored the intersection of innovation and agtech. She said it opened her eyes to the possibility of connecting with a subject matter you never thought you could when it’s a compelling story based around humans.

“Storytellers are part of the communities that they’re telling the stories of,” Anad said.

Anika said that a good story has to have a beginning, middle and end. “A good story is something that connects with the listener,” she said. “It’s something that takes them on a journey and makes them think differently, feel a certain way.”

Anand said that a lot of people associate “ecosystems” with economic systems, but said it’s really ecological systems which is all about relationships.

Book recommendation from Anand: The Overstory by Richard Powers.

Anika said that our job as storytellers isn’t just to find new, exciting stories but to also amplify existing stories and give people a platform to share their own. “Maybe our job here isn’t to produce the 15th podcast about entrepreneurs in your ecosystem, but helping other people do it,” she said.

Anika said that storytelling sometimes gets thrown in with PR and marketing, often getting watered down. She said if it gets thrown in with everything else, it gets treated as such. PR and marketing can sometimes be seen as “nice to haves” or around when you need it. “To me, ecosystem storytelling isn’t a ‘nice to have.’”

The panels storytelling tools:

• Stef said she uses LinkedIn and most people don’t recognize how effective exploring the social media platform is for finding stories and hot tips.

• Anika said she put together a storytelling toolbox (you can email her to get a copy!) for all of the tools reporters can use, from podcasting tools to interviewing. She also said the biggest tool for storytelling is to put your audience first and to go out into the community and listen.

• Anand said we can’t do storytelling alone. Also, Otter.ai is helpful for transcribing interviews.

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

Breaking the law

Follow along for takeaways from Legal Trouble: Avoiding Common Startup Pitfalls.

Matthew Hayes, founder of Unmanned Propulsion Development, wishes he had a startup attorney years ago through other ventures, too. But he acknowledged that it’s a lot of money to have someone on retainer. 

Having a lawyer on your team also saves time, because he could unload legal issues onto someone who knows what to do, he said.

Shari Bailey, founder and CEO of Laila’s Gift, advises people to keep records of everything, no matter what it is — meeting minutes, training, etc. — and have a central place where everyone can access documents.

Founders should specifically work with lawyers socializing in startups, because it’s such a unique landscape, Hayes said. He worked with his uncle specializing in real estate, and it wasn’t as productive has he thought it would be.

There are options to get legal advice, like Rocket Lawyer, at the early stages when having a lawyer on retainer may not be feasible, Bailey noted.

Bailey said on the nonprofit side of her work, she’s gotten volunteers to help with the legal aspects.

There are all sorts of ways to pay lawyers. Hayes usually pays a flat fee, but there are other ways where both parties are happy. It’s about building relationships.

— Kaela Roeder, Technical.ly’s lead DC and Baltimore reporter

AI tools for startups

Stephen Babcock is moderating the panel AI Tools for Entrepreneurs and Early-Stage Teams with Ashwin Jaiprakash, founder of Eazy, and Review Tailor’s Laneisha Roberts.

Tactical tool: OpusClip, which creates multiple short video clips from a longer video you upload, and ranks them by potential virality.

Magic Patterns auto-generates interfaces where you can integrate things like chatboxes and use data to help you make decisions.

Laneisha: My dream AI tool would be a cofounder whisperer, that will be able to listen in to, you know, Slack channels, one on one, meeting notes or Zoom calls, and aggregate that data to be able to predict proactively when a team member might be about to face burnout or there’s some friction there, and to offer actual, tangible solutions to mitigate those risks involved.

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

1:00 p.m.

3 AI tools to know

Now reporting from AI Tools for Storytelling: For Places, Companies & Brands, moderated by Gate Check Studios’ Sean Blanda, with Baltimore’s chief storyteller Alanah Davis and Tim Kulp from Mind Over Machines.

Organizations need an open mind, executive buy-in and willingness to tackle the trust deficit.

Tim: How many people have had a software project thrown at you with no explanation? … Can you fix this bug? Get a tool called Claude. It’s amazing for that. It’s basically a large language model system that is for generating and understanding code. This is something that we’re using all the time. Also, GitHub Copilot.

Rule of thumb for AI (or any) platform: If it’s free, you are the product. Premium and paid levels and platform are usually more secure with your data (but read the terms of service to be sure).

Clay is a tool where you can make a spreadsheet, and you can add AI prompt to individual cells, so you can say, every time you drop a name in here, find me their work email address and it’ll find it for you.

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

Building a market for your product

We’re finding out how to build and market a minimally viable product at Early Stage Sales & Marketing: Finding Product-Market Fit.

Identifying product market fit is the second step in raising capital, after identityfing your minimum viable product.

“When you want advice, ask for money. When you want money, ask for advice.”

The number one reason startups fail is because they launch to no market. Use your minimum viable product (MVP) to build traction — that will speak to market. The question founders need to ask: Who has the problem and who feels it the most painfully that they’ve already tried everything else, so they’re willing to trying your product?

If a founder can’t find customers before a product, they have a problem. It’s important to do interviews and surveys, sometimes even before a product exists.

Three questions founders need to ask in each sales and research call: Why did you decided to take the call with me today? What do you stand to gain if we solve this problem and what do you stand to lose if we don’t? What’s the required timeline for solving this problem?

How do you find the community that needs your product? Digital communities are key. Posting in relevant online groups can make a big difference.

People already have a relevant community. Go to LinkedIn and Facebook to remind yourself who you know. Start with the relationships you already have.

Great questions to add at the end of surveys: Is it okay for someone to reach out to you in the future? Would you be interested in participating in future surveys?

Customer advisory boards (a small group of people who are interested in providing ongoing feedback) can help with follow-up product questions.

Flywheel — the momentum that’s created as startups achieve small milestones, which ultimately builds on itself and leads to future successes. Telling a compelling story is a pivotal step in finding product market fit. Capture the moments of customers benefiting from your product, whether through video, testimonials, etc.

— Alice Crow, Technical.ly’s lead Pittsburgh reporter

Conflict is growth

Now for Innovation is Everywhere: Storytelling Strategies for Emerging Markets.

Companies should be engaging people locally and understanding where they are, but being honest about the risks when entering a community, within the context of the mining industry, said Kwame Awuah-Offei from the Critical Minerals & Materials for Advanced Energy Tech Hub.

The tension in Montana is old versus new, not urban versus rural said Tim VanReken from the Headwater Tech Hub.  It’s not one story, so being present and letting people know their perspectives matter to what you’re building in important, he said. You want people to feel like you are present and listening and interested.

Connecting people entrenched in the idea that it was their innovative idea is hard, said Hollie Mackey from the North Dakota Advanced Agriculture Technology Engine. But conflict is growth and helps bring pieces of innovation together.

You can see success more easily in rural communities, it makes this work more rewarding, Mackey said.

The opportunities in rural communities are not as widely obvious, Awuah-Offei said. The challenge is telling the story of those opportunities to get more attention without fully understanding what gets peoples attention.

Nobody starts with a blank slate, every ecosystem has some type of assumed story, VanReken said. There’s more pushback for a failure in Montana than in Silicon Valley, so you have to build a story that makes an argument for that risk.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

11:30 a.m.

Gov’s hottest topic

The Other Approach to Government Efficiency (the hottest government topic of the moment). Moderated by Kaela Roeder with Eliza Erickson, director of permit, license and certification innovation at the Office of Governor Josh Shapiro and Max Gigle, deputy director of digital product at the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services.

Max: “If someone said we made a website, and it took eight months to do that, I think most folks in the tech world would be like, What in the world are you doing with your money? Right? But in order to know the process behind it and how people’s lives are affected, and really get to the core of the challenge, it took a lot of time to ask questions of like, what’s important here? How do we work across a ton of different stakeholders that have different interests? How do we centralize brands like working through really tough challenges and then the website’s the outcome for it, but you don’t get to the outcome without all that work ahead of time. And I think a lot of the media focuses on like what you see on the front and but really the work behind it is what makes it valuable.”

Eliza: “In some ways, [government is] 15 years behind the arc of technology and innovation in the private sector. And it’s not an exaggeration to say that. … I think that as we recognize more and more the need of real, high quality technology in the public sector, we are finding ways to invest in that talent, recruit that talent, keep that talent.”

From the Q&A: Skills developed in government efficiency are highly valuable in the private sector, for those looking to get out of a related federal job.

Government workforce development programs should put a greater focus on apprenticeships rather than college student internships. Apprenticeships are more impactful because they help people get into well-paying jobs without needing to be in college, while college students are already heading toward these jobs and often get less out of an internship than the value apprentices gain.

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

Common problems with your pitch

The Honing Your Pitch: For Sales, Investors & Employees begins in the Fishbowl Room.

What can go wrong in pitching? ‘Show up and throw up,’  giving too much information. You need to simplify your responses that hook the listener and make them want to know more.

Asking people for money is hard, and it should be. It’s even more difficult for minority and women founders. You have to know the answers to all potential questions because women/minorities are not given the benefit of the doubt.

How do you think about bringing your own personal experience to a pitch? Folks only listen to stories as much as they relate to them. When delivering a pitch/telling a story, it has to connect with the investor.

Walk into a room with confidence, and unlearn being conservative. Founder market fit is extremely important.

The simplest pitch is most often the best pitch. Founders should be as clear and concise as possible. “Go simple to go big.”

What do you do when pitching and someone doesn’t let you get a word in? — Be excited in that situation and be inquisitive. In some situations, investors are questioning forward, so go with the flow and try to link it back to the most important points.

The only goal for a pitch is to get a second meeting.

If an investor is dominating a conversation, founders should ask themselves questions: What is this investor trying to tell me?

How do you practice pitching? A founder should start their first pitch with the investor they want the least. By the time a founder gets to an investor, they want they have practiced the most.

Founders should get to a no as quickly as possible. And a no now is not a no forever. A founder’s time is limited and they shouldn’t be on the hook for months.

When should a founder start pitching? Some start too early. Sometimes it isn’t worth doing so many VC calls early on. Founders should sometimes work on building a company that can stand on its own and more VCs will come to them.

Default alive — cash flow positive, founders can pay themselves and operations are paid for.

How do you get to the ‘no’ fast? A couple of standard questions at the end of a pitch can help: can you tell me your current close cycle? Is there anything that I presented here that causes you doubt? Then follow up: We’re looking to close in X time, how does that timeline sound?

If it’s not an enthusiastic yes, then it’s effectively a ‘no, not right now.’

What are missed opportunities in storytelling that are common for founders? Founders often share a story about how their startup’s solution perfectly matches a problem they had.

A founder’s storytelling about their startup should be tailored to the person they are talking to, whether that be an investor or customer.

A founder using the term ‘startup’ versus ‘small business’ can change someone’s perception of their venture. ‘Small business’ has a very positive connotation versus ‘startup’, which some see more negatively.

Time is a big factor. For shorter pitches, determine what parts of your pitch can be shortened based on the audience. For example, if the person being pitched already knows the problem you’re solving is a problem, you don’t need to prove it.

A founder should front-load their pitch with the info they believe that particular investor is most interested in. Founders need to do their research on who they’re pitching to.

Closing questions for founders to ask investors: What’s the best way to follow up with you? Or say, ‘I’ll follow up with you in a week to see if you have any additional questions.’

How much research should a founder do on investors and should they send a readable pitch beforehand? Send some bullet points about the timeline and your process. Also, send a teaser deck, not the full pitch.

Founders should gather information on how they relate to the investor. Having something in common with the investor can be a big plus. A founder might not use all the info, but it can help draw a human connection.

— Alice Crow, Technical.ly’s lead Pittsburgh reporter

‘You can’t fake it’

Starting Ecosystem Storytelling is about People, Not Just Places panel.

There’s the idea of traditional ecosystem development and ecosystem innovation development, but to be successful, it’s all the same thing, Lakey Boyd from Greater Baltimore Committee said.

Stories help treat everyone as interconnected and create a place people want to be, Boyd said.

When we present the list of products and features for your region to stakeholders, it has to be targeted, Jason Bannon from the Greater Philly Chamber of Commerce said. You have to be honest and clear about what’s in your region. “You can’t fake it.”

People have different lived experiences inside a region, you have to find ways that people can see themselves in the story, Boyd said.

When you don’t lead with your strengths, you’re not helping to solve the problem, she said.

Establishment wants to find a way to access newer voices and you have to meet them in the middle, Bannon said. Not every org finds ways to introduce people who don’t know each other, but people who do have to stay on top of it.

When you have access and walkable space and human-scale buildings, it allows for more natural conversations in Atlanta, Birdsong said. Having engineered serendipity is important.

Lean into things like Rocky and cheesesteaks and pretzels, or the equivalent for your region, because they’re good stories to tell about the experience there, Bannon said. Being authentic is important

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

11:00 a.m.

The AI Tools Basics workshop with Jason Michael Perry and Jeremy Gatens, a hands-on demonstration of tools including ChatGPT, Suno and Lovable.dev.

The workshop demonstrated how to set up ChatGPT to “know” you better, and how to use it as the base tool for other tools like Sumo, which creates music, and Lovable, which can create code for apps and other ideas.

— Holly Quinn, Technical.ly’s reporter-at-large

10:30 a.m.

Go hybrid or stay remote?

Hey everyone! We are about to start a founder fishbowl focused on remote/hybrid work setups, plus recruiting and engagement.

With the rise in remote work, it changes how workers and founders interact in ecosystems, the panelists are discussing. But events like conferences help bridge gaps, said Ray Magee, the founder of BloomCatch.

There are also startup hubs and incubators emerging now after COVID, Dan Winston explained, the founder of BalancedWork. But it’s not gathering every day, it’s more intentional. He gave DC Tech Meetup as an example. 

Aspects like running into people in the hallway and small talk with coworkers are lost when working remotely, noted Jake Stein, founder of Common Paper. He coordinates in-person bonding activities for staff to feel more connected.

Founders and leaders at a company have a major influence on employee engagement and customers, Winston added. Attitude and actions really matter. Not just what they say, but how they operate. “Practice what you preach,” Winston said.

It’s still important to meet with people one-on-one, now more than ever — especially for junior hires, Winston said.

Stein added it’s been fruitful to schedule time on the calendar to just chat about things outside of work to build rapport. “There’s no stakes and no way to do it wrong.”

Magee talks to his junior staff every day for their first 6 months to make sure they are engaged. It deepens the relationship, when talking about work or otherwise.

— Kaela Roeder, Technical.ly’s lead DC and Baltimore reporter

How to build an ecosystem 101

Good morning everyone! Downstairs in the main hall, we’re moving to a panel on ecosystem building as a job now.

We’re kicking off with Michael Binko, a longtime Baltimore-area ecosystem member who cofounded and is a regional CEO with Startup America, breaking down some emblematic figures and history around ecosystem building as a lens and process. He highlights such figures with whom he worked as Victor Hwang of Right to Start (who co-hosts the Builders Live podcast with our own Chris Wink), Steve Case (with whom Binko worked) and the late EcoMap Technologies CEO Pava LaPere  (with whom Binko worked at Johns Hopkins).

It’s fitting that Smitha Gopal, EcoMap’s COO, is moderating this one.

For a better understanding of what ecosystems entail (because people, including me, use the term a lot!), Binko has a helpful breakdown in this slide.

Fellow panelist Tammi Thomas of TEDCO, the State of Maryland-founded funder of early-stage companies (and, in full transparency, a Technical.ly client), cited the story of a founder covered in a Technical.ly article who, after the article’s publication, got follow-on funding, connections to other experts to help it scale and more resources that may not have come through without such a visible story being told.

To Thomas (who recently became president of the board of the Maryland Economic Development Association), stories like these offer an example of how local storytelling and coverage can help amplify stories beyond the company’s immediate geography.

Here’s some recent editorial coverage and sponsored content that talks about TEDCO’s impact:

• Maryland cybersecurity startups are coming in hot as AI sends chills through the industry

• Maryland’s innovation challenges, solutions and players take center stage at expo’s return

• Maryland launches $500k Pava LaPere grant program for student entrepreneurs in Baltimore

Despite the relative newness of ecosystem-building as a lens and job, it’s ultimately rooted in much older work. Case in point: Ashli Sims, managing director of Build in Tulsa, talked about developing this org in the legacy of the Greenwood district, Tulsa’s Black Wall Street, that was largely destroyed in a racist massacre in 1921 — one that very intentionally sought to eliminate Black economic power and self-sufficiency.

For Sims, drawing on this history and the mission of developing multigenerational wealth in this city offers both narrative inspiration and pathways to real economic impact.

For more perspective on Tulsa and its innovation history/future, check out Alanah Nichole Davis’ 2023 dispatch from a conference here.

Applause around the room for Thomas, saying 56% of TEDCO’s investments went to people from marginalized groups.

Binko also referenced Paolo Harris and his work to build guides and resources for Black entrepreneurs in Baltimore. That work grew into Cohado, which we named one of our 2025 RealLIST Startups in Baltimore.

Good news: Cohado and Paolo are going on a roadshow soon! So y’all can learn more about how these resources can help your work, too — and do so in person!

Closing advice from panelists:

• Sims: “Listen to your community.” They’ll tell you what the challenges look like.

• Thomas: “Go out there with gusto” and do so from “a mindset of joy.”

• Binko: “Ecosystem builder burnout is real … Rely on your ecosystem when your energy is low.”

— Sameer Rao, Technical.ly’s DC and Baltimore editor

9:30 a.m.

Stroytelling matters

Welcome to Builders 2025. We’ll be covering sessions live on here all day — say hi if you see any of the Technical.ly team! First up, we have Team PA kicking off the keynote.

Technical.ly editorial director Danya Henninger is up there sharing logistics for today — and some fun Technical.ly news, like this recent partnership with Silicon Prairie News, our Map of Innovation Ecosystems and a coming-soon RealList Startups index.

Chris Wink, our CEO, just shared some of our recent immigration reporting about a student on an F-1 visa struggling to land a job. Read Maria’s full story here.

Now, he’s talking about the case for storytelling, which he shared his full thoughts about in a column earlier today.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly national and market editor

May 7, 2025

Now for the fun

6:30 p.m.

Former RealLIST Startups honorees, local founders and others gathered at Morgan Lewis’ patio for a founder happy hour this evening.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

5:00 p.m.

Like many PTW events, the Developers Conference today is ending with a happy hour. This event is also the annual Super Meetup to rally the leaders of tech-related meetups in town and gather for one big mixer.

— Katie Malone, Technical.ly national and market editor

Code for Philly shares its latest projects

4:00 p.m.

Code for Philly is presenting some of its projects during the last session of the day.

First up is PaX, a web app that works to help generate petitions for expungement of criminal records in PA.

If you want to get involved with Code for Philly, visit codeforphilly.com/volunteer.

Next up is Kat Jost and Tai Chan presenting Balancer, a tool that suggests medication options to prescribers to treat patients with bipolar disorder. 

The last presentation is from Clean and Green Philly. The project pulls relevant public data on vacant properties in the city and provide insights to residents, local orgs, city agencies, etc. The goal is to address quality of life issues related to these properties.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

WTF is quantum computing?

3:30 p.m.

A huge crowd came out to listen to How to Program a Quantum Computer with Gushu Li.

Quantum computers can be used for a variety of things, but mostly scientific applications, like doing simulations, machine learning or understanding the behavior of molecules, Li said.

To use a quantum computer, you need to determine the simulation and expression of your programs, then deploy the programs to devices.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

Meet the exhibitors at Developers Conference 2025

5:00 p.m.

Alexandra McGill is a 2025 grad from Temple University’s Geospatial Data Science Program.

Technical.ly: What are you looking forward to this Philly Tech Week?

Alexandra: “Networking! I’m a recent grad, so I’m definitely still on the hunt for jobs. I’m most interested in networking, seeing what jobs are available, and who’s hiring.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about Temple’s Geospatial Data Science Program?

Alexandra: “Just how much you’re gonna learn and how accessible it is to people from all different backgrounds, and no matter where you come from, geography really encompasses everything because everything happens in a physical location. No matter what industry you work in, if it’s business, finance, healthcare, environment, if you work for the public sector. There’s something for everyone. It’s definitely like a really useful degree to have.

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

4:45 p.m.

Andrew Grems and Kevin Bagosy from Comcast NBCUniversal, which presents and hosts PTW events.

Technical.ly: What are you looking forward to this Philly Tech Week?

Andrew: “I think the one thing I’m looking forward to most today is just networking with other developers and software engineers within the Philadelphia community.”

Kevin: “What I’m looking forward to most is really providing some career development, career advice to people coming in here, be able to point them in the right direction, how to go about applying for positions, how to go about presenting yourself in different directions to go in.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about Comcast NBCUniversal?

Andrew: “I think it’s really cool to have them get ingrained into our building, our culture, and what we’re all about. You can see the building from the outside, but being on the floor, at the product experience floor, really helps to really understand how tech-forward we are.”

Kevin: “I think, going back to the products that we build, be able to see what we’ve made, what our engineers have made and built firsthand on the product experience floor, being a part of the customer experience…and be able to make somebody happy with the product.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

4:00 p.m.

Vera Adam HR generalist, Chandrasekhar Oruganty IT technical director, and Dani Trimmer at University of Pennsylvania senior talent acquisition are here at the conference to tell everyone about new opportunities at UPenn and the recruiting process. 

Technical.ly: What’s your favorite Philly Tech Week memory?

Vera: “The opportunity to connect with different people…We didn’t know who would be here, but just connecting with different people. I think it’s just connecting with different people. I don’t know if I have a favorite, but I think that’s what I enjoy.”

Dani:  “My favorite memory probably is when we were in the Strawbridge building. There was definitely a lot more space with folks, being able to talk more to folks, and a lot more job seekers. That was a really good time for us, I think because we actually recruited a couple people from the event.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’re looking forward to this Philly Tech Week?

Chandrasekhar: “I’m looking to meet people, and there are a lot of people, especially the students. They’re asking questions, ‘Hey, what are your suggestions if we have to fill a role in software development?’ So I’m just giving my thoughts and making sure that they go into the right direction they want to go.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about what you’re offering at UPenn?

Chandrasekhar: “We also do recruiting and IT. We are not just only the university, but we also have a lot of enterprise applications, and we need people to develop and support those applications.”

Dani: “We’re here, we have a lot of different opportunities within Penn, but also to hopefully get them not only to look at the University of Pennsylvania, but also the University of Pennsylvania health system. They have a lot of opportunities if they look at both of us. There’s always a lot of confusion that we are just one and we’re not. We’re actually two separate entities, but we’re all part of Penn.”

Vera: “If they ever asked, I like to talk about Penn’s culture, so just more of a family feel. I think there’s a lot of knowledge that’s held in Penn. It’s a really good place to work. It’s a really good institution.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

3:45 p.m.

Jay Aigner is the owner of JDAQA and Will Dalley is an account executive from XRAY here to talk to you all about their products. If you’re interested in learning more you can reach out to Jay at jay@jdaqa.com and Will at will.dalley@idera.com.

Technical.ly: What’s your favorite Philly Tech Week memory?

Jay: “There [was] a really great talk last year, I don’t remember who it was by. It was a Comcast engineer talking about actual usages of gen AI and AI they were actually using for products at Comcast.”

Technical.ly: What are you looking forward to the most this year’s Philly Tech Week?

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like everyone at Dev Conference to know about JDAQA?

Jay: “That we’re here. We work with a lot of product-based software development shops and SaaS companies. And we love the city. We love the community that’s around in tech, and we want to be a little more present, and kind of want people to know that we’re here to support them.”

Will: “I think just meeting people that kind of run the spectrum … It’s just so cool to meet people that are in the tech space and play different realms and fields. We’re often so siloed, either by industry or specific product or a really niche aspect. But here, it’s a broad spectrum of industries, but the same geographical area. It’s just cool to view tech from a different lens than just from ‘here’s our product and here’s our use case.’”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about XRAY?

Will: “We’d love for everyone to know that we’re here. We are the best software testing management tool on the market. We’re originally based in Europe, we’re growing fast and so it’s just an exciting time to help people improve their test management practice.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

3:30 p.m.

John McLaughlin is the sales representative from L3Harris here to tell everyone about their radio communication products for emergency response. Interested in working together? You can reach out to their team at justin.frank@L3Harris.com.

Technical.ly: What’s the number one thing you’re looking forward to this Philly Tech Week?

John: “This is my first year, first day, first time. I’m definitely interested in hearing everybody’s feedback and what they’re doing. You kind of don’t know what you don’t know until you know it. I work for Tactical Public Safety, which is a L3Harris reseller for radio equipment, so it’s nice to talk to a lot of the engineers and the software that goes behind a lot of the things that I don’t know. I just know the physical product, the technical aspect of it is a little off topic for me, but it’s nice to learn new things.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about L3Harris?

John: Our products are very military-based, police, fire, EMS — basically every kind of communication that you would need for an emergency response. Our L3Harris products are top of line … We have pretty much led the gold standard in radio communications.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

2:30 p.m.

First up, Erica Dercole from Penn State Great Valley.

Erica is the academic programs representative from Penn State Great Valley here to chat with everyone about academic programs at Penn State. Get in touch with Erica at her email: elm5022@psu.edu.

Technical.ly: What’s the number one thing you’re looking forward to this Philly Tech Week?

Erica: “It’s my first year — and my first year representing Penn State — so I’m just excited to talk to the attendees, see if they’re interested in graduate programs in tech. We have AI, software engineering, data analytics. So just excited to be in the atmosphere with everybody.”

Technical.ly: What’s one thing you’d like to everyone at Dev Conference to know about Penn State?

Erica: “At Penn State Great Valley. We have graduate degrees and graduate certificates in the technology and engineering realm, artificial intelligence — that’s our newest and, of course, a growing industry. We have software engineering, data analytics, and we have our campus in Mount Vernon, Pennsylvania. We have evening classes, flexible for working adults. So if anyone’s interested, they can always reach out to us and we can answer questions.”

– McKenzie Morgan, audience product manager at Technically Media

Poetry and coding collide

2:15 p.m.

Technical.ly Developers Conference just kicked off. One of the first sessions is The Functions as a Breath of Thought: On the Computer as a Compositional and Performance tool for Poetry with Ghost Harmonics’ Mike Bagwell and William Hazard, producer at flat imagination workshop.

Hazard’s interest in poetry led him to looking at different formats for writing poetry using different devices like computers, typewriters and smartphones.

He got into modular synth and found that he liked writing scripts to program it and started live coding to play around with sounds.

He started working with text to speech software. Originally he wanted a synthesizer to play the words he wrote, but found he was stuck in a tight structure. So then he started thinking about what sounds he wanted to to make and figured out what letters and words would correspond, Hazard said.

This work has made him mindful of the tools he uses, Hazard said. Technological progress shapes how artistic expression can happen, Bagwell said.

He showed multiple examples of software that can be used for creative purposes. For example, interaction with the software ripple brings out meaning in certain poems and sonnets, he said. Digital poetry amplifies Interaction between the reader and the poet.

Perlin noise generates controlled randomness in poetry and computing, Bagwell said. It then gets tied into the poem. Computers can be agents for instantaneous communication and collaboration between readers and authors, Bagwell said.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

A legislator’s guide for regulating AI

12:30 p.m.

This afternoon the World Affairs Council is hosting a panel about AI innovation, ethics and regulatory compliance.

In global discussions about AI, the biggest difference between countries is about values, Anna-Maria Osula, cyber and economic counselor at the Estonian Embassy in DC. There is a consensus about approaching ai governance globally. How do we engage private sector and government in a discussion about AI governance?

AI is a power multiplier, said Frederic Miskawi, VP and AI innovation expert services lead at the Global AI Enablement Center of Expertise. It’s important we decentralize access to the power.

Politics is usually late to any issue, including AI. They’re now at an entry level engagement with AI, looking at disclosure, said state representative Ben Waxman. 

“The United States has to win AI” for military and economic reasons, said George Krautzel, managing partner at Mission OG. But regulation to some extent will be good for business. But it will be really hard to come up with a global policy.

Waxman said his colleagues should get comfortable using an AI tool so they can understand the technology. That’s the entry point and then they can think about other ways to be more efficient with it, he said.

The rules for AI should be agnostic and tied to intent, consequences and the process of using it, Osula said.

Miskawi is seeing waves of interest in AI regulation, he said. They need to build solutions that will work for all 50 states and companies of all sizes. Less regulation is better for companies, but they need to understand the rules they need to operate within, Krautzel said.

Regulation is important because there are certain things you can’t automate with tools like agentic AI, he said. Understanding the rules is important for supporting innovation.

Alliances between countries, communication between government and the private sector and a general awareness and education around the technology are all ways we can prevent AI from causing a massive negative impact, Osula said.

This technology has the potential to create the tools we need to prevent massive tragedies, Miskawi said. Transparency within AI will help mitigate negative effects,

Some things should be totally automated, but some are better just augmented by AI to help humans be more effective, and have a better use of their time, Krautzel said.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

May 6, 2025

Learn how to improve your pitch

6:30 p.m.

Resilient Coders is hosting a pitch workshop at CIC this evening.

You have to have a unique way of sharing who you are and what you do, no matter if you’re pitching a product or yourself, Ayanna Lott-Pollard, executive director at Resilient Coders, said.

Nobody cares about you as much as you think they do, but you have to act like everyone wants to talk to you, growth advisor Devin Bramhall said.

Then, you have to start talking to people about the most interesting part of who you are and what you’re doing. Asking for help also opens a door, she said. Taking an interest in other people and what they’re doing is the best way to connect with people. Always have a question prepared for people.

Most people don’t know what they’re doing, they’re acting like they do. If people ask you “what do you mean?” that’s a good sign. It shows they’re engaged even if they don’t understand. Start asking about what you don’t know, Bramhall said.

Lean into the unique things about you and your life. It shows other people they can do the same and leads to an authentic connection.

The purpose of having a pitch for yourself is to get what you want from the person you’re talking to, she said.

You should have your own tagline, a more interesting version of your LinkedIn intro. Be excited about the things you’re sharing about yourself.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

Gamers go head-to-head

12:30 p.m.

Nerd Street is hosting an all-day event with studio tours, gaming tournaments and vendors.

Tech education org CoderOgres Academy and tech workforce org Launchpad are set up at today’s event.

During gaming tournaments, Nerd Street’s audio and visual team works out of its control room.

The post-production studio is used by the editing team to create additional content.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

Investor insights and a pitch competition at Pennovation

10:45 a.m.

And the winner is… Sync Labs! The founders will get automatic entry to present at PACT’s Mid-Atlantic Capital Conference.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

10:30 a.m.

Airalux, a 2025 RealLIST Startup, is first up for the pitch competition. The company developed a digital breathing tool to help prevent post-op lung complications.

Next up is Neuralert, which developed a wearable device that detects indications of strokes.

The last pitch today is from Sync Labs, a platform that supplements caregiving work for seniors through data.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

10:00 a.m.

First up is a panel with local investors.

Deal pace is down, Manny Stockman, partner at Osage University Partners, said. There was so much activity from 2019 to 2021 that it was almost too much. There’s probably no better time to start a company because of the available tools and lack of institutional innovation. But he doesn’t know if it’s the right time to invest. His firm is cautious and waiting for valuations to the right size.

There are great venture investors in Philadelphia, but some funds are playing a different game, Stockman said. Being thoughtful about what your investors need is important.

Some big funds are doing 600 checks a year, which is completely different than funds only doing ten, Bianca Schilling, chief of staff and investor at Apprentis Ventures, said.

In 2020 and 2021, founders and firms were spread across the us, but now activity is concentrated in New York and California. We moved back to that trend. It’s frustrating for investors in other parts of the country who know what’s going on, Schilling said.

Hopefully hybrid environment will trigger companies to dig into other markets like Philly, Stockman said. Certain regions launch startup ecosystems better than others do.

There are many ways to make money in venture capital, Dean Miller, president and CEO at PACT, said. Some firms are investing in a lot of companies, hoping that a few are unicorns.

University of Pennsylvania is consistently No. 3 in terms of launching startups, according to PitchBook, Brett Topche, cofounder and managing director at Red & Blue Ventures, said. There’s innovation here, but the ratio of capital is incredibly low.

The university ecosystem here is strong and the state government seems invested in supporting this community, Schilling said.

Every university has its strengths, so Stockman’s firm looks for startups in each school’s strengths. Robotics is a tough space, but there’s a lot of potential there. To get Philly as a region to the next level, there will probably need to be some element of luck, he said.

Storytelling and understanding why a founder is doing something is important to Topche, he said. The best pitches start with why the founder is connected to the challenge. It makes you think this person is committed to the company, no matter how hard it gets.

Make sure your company matches the firm, Schilling said. They also want to see market expertise from the founders and they’re almost obsessed with the industry. “I will always bet on a really strong founder,” she said. 

Keeping potential investors engaged between rounds is important, Stockman said. He resonates with researchers who understand the market and not just the science.

9:15 a.m.

We’re starting today at Pennovation Works for an investor panel and pitch competition with PACT and Penn Center for Innovation.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

May 5, 2025

Digital equity, economic growth and innovative investment panels hosted by 1Philadelphia

5:30 p.m.

The last panel is Innovative Investment Fueling Tech Ecosystems.

Philly needs intentionality to become the next big tech hub, Cory Donovan, cofounder and senior VP of community engagement at ImpactPHL, said. We can talk about what we want, but if we don’t discuss how the systems work and where capital goes, things won’t change. People need to be intentional about engaging with the people who have money and where it’s going.

“Make sure your money is aligned with your values,” he said. Fund the challenges that are personal to you.

A lot of startup scenes also have a creative economy, Executive Director of the Halloran Foundation Brian Fernandez-Halloran said. Leaning into risk is a crucial part of the art community. And investors can take a lesson from the creative economy as well to take risks.

Philly needs to acknowledge that there are funds and companies here, he said.

PA has a deficit in large companies that do a lot of innovation or spin outs, Jen Gilburg, deputy secretary of technology and entrepreneurship at the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, said. We do ok at tech transfer. If she had $50 million, she would put it towards venture studios, where there’s a theme around a specific problem and companies with solutions come out of it.

What comes out of the venture studios is a pipeline for venture capitalists, she said. It helps start the system.

Lack of capital is a symptom of the problem, not the problem, Gilburg said.

PA can also address markets and challenges that Silicon Valley is not at all thinking about, like age tech, she said.

We can’t only invest in technology, we need other things, but we need to be innovative about how we use our capital, Donovan said. We need to be intentional about how we use that capital. It’s hard to fundraise, but it’s important to align values from the beginning with the people investing in you.

Philanthropy creates limitations early on about what it cares about and what it wants to do with the money, Fernandes-Halloran said.

But even if a company checks all the boxes, you have to determine if you align, he said.

State government doesn’t have the resources to evaluate startups, Gilburg said. But they can fund orgs that do that mission. The governor’s budget innovation fund includes an SBIR match program. The intention with the Ben Franklin Technology Partners, for example, is to get more investment out the door and create equity in the space.

Nine local foundations have shifted focus to impact investing with a local lens. They’re looking for local impact down the line. More foundations will hopefully be shifting that way, too, Donovan said.

If you’re a founder looking for money, find people who align with your values and treat you with respect, the panelists said.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

4:45 p.m.

The next panel is Mobility Beyond the 2026 Moment.

The Fed has a dual mandate for price stability and maximum employment. They’re thinking about whether people have jobs that provide stability and upward mobility, Ashley Putnam, director of the economic growth and mobility project at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, said. The Feds’ research found that economic mobility means something different to everyone, but Philadelphians are seeking stability first.

When you talk about economic mobility, you talk about barriers to access, like childcare and transportation. But the Fed found that most people said they just need a better job, Marek Gootman, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said.

This matters because the needle wouldn’t dramatically move unless there were enough quality jobs being created, he said, there needs to be a balance and connect people from the community. We need to make the economy work better and focus on areas where quality job creation will happen.

The economy here doesn’t look great compared to peers, but the region has so much untapped potential, he said. We’re missing 70,000 quality jobs in our economy. We need to focus on the potential.

We’re good at life sciences, but need to shift the focus a little bit and capture more of the production side of therapeutics and medical devices, he said. We’re good at manufacturing with small and mid size firms. Most of them said they could grow, but don’t have the workers to do so.

Enterprise digital solutions and B2B software services have seen a lot of success here and could offer a lot of jobs, he said. They could be an even bigger opportunity.

A quality job has many different definitions, but for most people it means they make enough money to pay basic living costs, Putnam said. It also includes dignity and choice and the ability to move up in the company.

The Chamber of Commerce views its role as organizing the demand for jobs, Claire Marrazzo Greenwood said. She’s the executive director, CEO for the Council for Growth and SVP of economic competitiveness at the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. One of the real opportunities is the region is sharing priorities and trying to work on a shared strategy to grow jobs.

They’re thinking about growing and filling jobs at the same time because there isn’t enough job growth in traded sectors, she said, having a shared strategy for economic growth and workforce development provides an opportunity for a new approach.

“Investing in people is economic development,” Putnam said. If we’re going to grow sustainably and resiliently means there needs to be communication.  

It requires business and community leadership, Gootman said, forcing systems to work together. We need more focused and business-led investment.

2026 is a big opportunity for Philly and the city is getting organized in a way it hasn’t before, Greenwood said. In the next decade, she would like to see headlines about how we blazed a trail to be a community focused on growing inclusively and has success to show for it. Ideally, the local narrative would also change to say we’re asset rich.

There’s is an opportunity to change the narrative, Putnam said. Philadelphia has decreased in its economic mobility, but in the next faced, the hope is that the opposite will happen. Even though people have complaints about a lack of opportunity, they don’t want to leave. They want to stay and be part of the community. The future narrative should be about investing in those people.

Ten years is a reasonable amount of time to see progress, so we need to be working on a shared strategy between economic and workforce partners. Not worrying about a few years at a time, but focusing on long-term change, Gootman said. He wants to see enterprise digital companies double and have people know what our specific strengths are.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

4:00 p.m.

First up is the panel on Opportunity Begins with Digital Access.

Fifteen years ago, 40% of households in Philly did not have reliable internet, Kate Rivera, executive director of the Technology Learning Collaborative, said. The Obama era keyspots program helped provide access to the internet. In 2019, they found that 30% did not have internet. When the pandemic hit, people realized how important access to the internet and devices was. There was a big push to get connected at that time. In 2021, the city found that 16% of households didn’t have internet.

This issue impacts low-income families, older adults and non-English speaking households more than others. But there are a ton of collaborations happening at the local level, she said.

In the last 15 years, there has been a lot of progress with K-12 schools getting internet, Techademics Founder and CEO Al Motley said.

You need private companies to help provide access to the internet, Jonathan Latko, assistant VP of IT business operations at Temple University, said. High speed internet means something different than it did then, he said. But now that people have access to the internet, there are other layers including digital skills, digital literacy and device access.

Internet is the next level of access, it goes all the way back to the printing press in terms of allowing communications and sharing information, Latko said.

Now, there are digital unity plans, strategic advertisements and community hubs to advance digital access, Marcus Hall,, director of workforce operations at Philadelphia Works, Inc., said. There needs to be more workforce innovation to help with this distribution. We are moving in that direction with the public workforce to help people connect to these resources.

National Skills Coalition found that 90% of job postings in PA require digital skills. The workforce tie-in for digital access is so important, Rivera said.

The introduction of widely available AI is making the gap bigger for gaining digital skills and access, Motley said. The ability to personalize the tools someone uses is another layer to this, as well. The infrastructure pieces made progress.

Access to technology and broadband is increasing, but navigating the space is still difficult and unfriendly to people who are learning, Hall said. The system isn’t making it easier to have full access.

The idea that young people growing up with tech means they’re good at using it is true to an extent, but unless they’re being taught in school certain skills, there’s still a gap, Rivera said.

Rivera said she is pessimistic about the next few years. We’ve made a lot of progress, but historically, whenever a new technology comes out, people who are historically disadvantaged are left behind. We don’t do a great job at trying to reach those folks, she said.

Federal funding that was supposed to be coming is unclear if it’s still coming, she said.

Motley is optimistic because this is the most accessible innovation to come out in a while. Entrepreneurs are also creating things so quickly that it’s disrupting our systems. This is the first time people are actually able to build what they want to, especially in the education space, he said.

Hall is cautiously optimistic because he’s seeing a lot of interest in workforce development from young people. They are using the tools needed to pursue opportunities like a summer internship portal, he said.

Latko is optimistic that funding will be figured out eventually and accessibility is increasing, which will help everybody, he said.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

3:15 p.m.

1Philadelphia is hosting its Spring Exchange at the Franklin Institute this afternoon. The panels will look at the state of tech and innovation in Philly.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

Kicking off the week at Mid Atlantic Dreamin’

10:30 a.m.

Now, the next talk is DevOps is More Than Just Deployments.

DevOps is important now because Salesforce is asking its employees to do more with less, said Jack McCurdy, DevOps advocate at Gearset.

The DevOps lifecycle is not new, it’s broken down into planning, building, validating the change to make sure it works, releasing to users, making sure operations are steady and observing how it’s maintained.

Success for DevOps depends on making the lifecycle work for you, he said.

The key is small incremental releases that are reliable, he said. And this strategy can work for every part of your business.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly

10:00 a.m.

One of the first sessions is about choosing Salesforce certifications called Choose Your Own (Cert) Adventure: Finding the Right Path.

There are over 80 Salesforce certifications across multiple career paths, including consultants, designers, developers, marketers and architects, said Healey Sutton, multi-certified Salesforce administrator.

Some people let their certifications expire because they have enough experience and don’t think they need them anymore. But Sutton thinks they’re worth it because it’s harder to set yourself apart in the job market now.

When deciding what certifications to pursue, you have to consider what career path you want to pursue and what your current experience looks like. Mentorship is also valuable for helping to decide those paths, she said.

You can pursue a general path or a specialist path, which can help you stand out in the job market. You can also think about what the future of the industry looks like and try to future-proof your career, she said.

— Sarah, Technical.ly lead reporter in Philly