Philly Tech Week 2015 presented by Comcast Program & Magazine by Brian Kirk

WWW.PHILLYTECHWEEK.COM APRIL 17-25

how to build a tech scene

FULL CALENDAR INSIDE FEATURING MORE THAN

A WEEKLONG CELEBRATION OF TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION IN PHILADELPHIA #PTW15

Organized by

EVERYONE WANTS ONE. HERE’S WHAT IT TAKES. >> PAGE 27

MEET PHILLY’S NEW SUPER-MATERIAL MAKER / P. 5 THE STATE OF PHILLY BRAIN DRAIN / P. 5

TECH EVENTS

#PTW15 HIGHLIGHTS Kickoff App Arcade Festival at the new Dilworth Park • Mayoral Candidate Forum on Technology at the Free Library • Signature Event Closing Party at Comcast and more!

Table of Contents

Welcome

Page 05 The state of Philly brain drain Page 06 Why we love float tanks Page 07 Meet these 5 women devs Page 09 PTW2015's complete calendar

MORE THAN 100 EVENTS!

Page 22 Mayoral candidates talk tech Page 25 Women in Tech Summit goes big Page 27 How to build a tech scene

COVER STORY

Page 33 Sponsors & Partners Page 38 Innovation Mapped phillytechweek.com Philly Tech Week 2015 presented by Comcast is the fifth annual celebration of technology and innovation in the Philadelphia region. The week is organized by local technology news organization Technical.ly Philly, in partnership with more than 100 organizations. This magazine serves as the program for this event series and also includes Technical.ly Philly reporting.

technical.ly/philly Technical.ly is a leading local technology news and events organization. It publishes daily content that covers entrepreneurship, access, policy, development and creative trends, issues and people who are making cities better through technology. COVER PHOTO

Kevin Monko CONTRIBUTORS

Tony Abraham, Diana David, Matt Monihan, Juliana Reyes, Jason Sherman, Christopher Wink DESIGN AND PRINTING

Red Flag Media LOGO AND WEBSITE

Jarvus Innovations PUBLISHER

Technical.ly, 4040 Locust Street, Philadelphia 19104

A note from #PTW15 organizers The power of digital culture is how effortlessly it can be created. And, of course, how quickly it can be forgotten. In the first software community build up, the so-called Web 1.0 boom of the late-1990s, wealth was created and infrastructure developed. But visit many tech communities assembling today, like Philadelphia, and outside of a few giants and a few leaders, there is a very real disconnect between then and now. In large part, what we built then did not last. Particularly here in Philadelphia, there was a scattering of talent, via acquisitions and implosions. The places people would meet changed and a new crop of events and conveners grew. All of this can be healthy, but it can also be challenging. Will what we build today last? This is the fifth year of Philly Tech Week, now presented by Comcast. It has grown from a dozen events with hundreds of people to almost 100 events with thousands of people. There are new businesses, some still small and others growing. People here contribute to open source and scalable projects. At Technical.ly, we cover innovators new and old doing amazing things every day. From the launch of OpenDataPhilly.org, a government transparency tool launched at the first Philly Tech Week to this year’s Philly Tech Week Mayoral Forum, this community has rallied the attention of policy makers and influencers. There is a stronger and far more robust network of technologists, entrepreneurs and creative leaders. Institutions and businesses have joined the fray, too, helping to connect the dots — look no further than Comcast becoming the Philly Tech Week title sponsor and showing up at more local tech events, as it works to foster a tech workforce to fill its forthcoming second skyscraper. But this work is easier in this moment because technology and startups are more popular today. They have become shorthand for great thinking and preparing for the future — the torchbearers of innovation. To make it last, we need to build and defend processes for building a future workforce — robotics clubs and coding classes and entrepreneurial programs for everyone. We need to demand more of our current leaders — better businesses and smarter policies. We need to transition our collective mindset, too — building a tech community will reach a logical conclusion, but building for the future is by definition a task without end. If Philly Tech Week 2015 presented by Comcast has a defined theme this year, it would be Innovation Legacy, how to make change last. We hope you’ll think about that (and join in with the #ptw15 conversation) at nearly 100 events over the coming days. Thank you. With great admiration, Your Technical.ly Philly Staff (In photo above, left to right: Business Director Brian James Kirk, Business Intern Caroline Clark, Business Manager Peter Erickson, Lead Reporter Juliana Reyes, Contributing Web Editor Jim Smiley, Events Coordinator Catherine Sontag, Editorial Director Christopher Wink, Kate Leshko, Events Director Engagement Coordinator Cary Betagole, Events Intern Meghan Ho. (Not pictured: Editor-in-Chief Zack Seward.)

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

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News

The ones who got away. The founders of Drop Diagnostics saw opportunity in San Francisco.

Graphene Frontier’s sensor chips on a silicon wafer.

Manufacturing 2.0: Graphene Frontiers A Philly company is tapping the vast potential of an exciting new super material. What’s thin, flexible, transparent, highly conductive, ten times more durable than diamond and won a Nobel Prize back in 2010? That’s right, we’re talking about graphene. Graphene Frontiers CEO Mike Patterson says that back in 2010, one square centimeter of graphene could cost tens of thousands of dollars. Now, thanks to his company’s costeffective manufacturing process, square inches of the carbon-based super material can be produced for just tens of dollars. While other graphene manufacturers are mixing graphene with rubbers and steel to enhance flexibility and conductivity, respectively, Graphene Frontiers is mass producing large sheets of the material for a purpose that, in Patterson’s words, can be “gamechanging.” In a few years, you could be using graphene every day. Based at the University City Science Center, Graphene Frontiers is looking into making flexible displays for phones and televisions. “The ‘you can hit it with a hammer and it wouldn’t break’ kind of thing,” Patterson said. Understandably, that notion has caught the attention of companies like Samsung and LG. “Something we’re very focused on is using it for electronics,” said Patterson, “Specifically as the key component in chemical and biomolecule sensors.” So why should we care about graphene right now? “It’s the first in a new family of two-dimensional materials that will revolutionize everything we do, from electronics to filtration to any number of industries,” Patterson said, “in much the same way plastics did 50 years ago.” —Tony Abraham

Brain drain: startups or students? When it comes to retaining the region’s talent, the discussion has shifted // by JULIANA REYES

Philly and others. The latter may be a natural shift, Philadelphia lost Drop Diagnostics. as more and more ventures launch out of Philly The biotech startup, founded by a trio of 22-yeardorm rooms. old bioengineering majors at Penn, finished a threePhilly leaders and universities have themmonth stint at DreamIt Ventures' DreamIt Health selves launched a slew of efforts in the last five accelerator and after spending just a few months years focused on this problem. Venture firm First working out of Washington Avenue makerspace Round Capital launched the student-run Dorm Room NextFab, they left for San Francisco. Fund for investing in college startups (though, out The West Coast funding landscape swayed of their nine public investments, about half have them, they said. That, and how doors just seemed left the region post-graduation). to open faster over there. Within a week of being DreamIt accelerators have become natural next in San Francisco, the team met with Johnson & steps for local college grads looking to develop their Johnson, Stanford, QB3 and UCSF, cofounder Max businesses, like the team from Drop Diagnostics Lamb told us. and another pair of Penn founders from bioprinting Brain drain? Sure. But for every Drop Diagnoscompany BioBots (which is still headquartered in tics, there's another student startup that choose to the city). Meanwhile, universities like Drexel, Temstay, like Tesorio, a startup led by a Wharton MBA ple and Philadelphia University have hired Philly that’s rethinking how suppliers get paid. entrepreneurs-about-town to run their entrepreCEO Carlos Vega liked how livable Philly was, but neurship programs, leading to more collaboration it was the support from the tech scene that struck between the schools and the broader tech scene. him — how everyone was so eager to help, from the heavy hitters like Comcast and Penn Medicine to the grassroots groups like Philly Startup Leaders. ("Rick Nucci is a friggin' gem," Vega said about the group's president.) Vega even got $100,000 from the city's StartUp PHL investment fund, too. That's how you keep a startup here: play to its business interests. And maybe that's how Philadelphia should be thinking about brain drain today. Instead of being so focused on the individual — "How do we get college stuAnother biotech startup, dents to stay after they graduate?" — hone in BioBots, is building its on the startups. The former has largely been “bioprinter” business in Philly. solved, according to reports from Campus T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

News Praneeth Denduluri, cofounder of Filtrest

Why I float Sensory deprivation tanks are increasingly popular among technologists. A local UX designer explains why.

And the young entrepreneur is making a service to fix that // by JASON SHERMAN Praneeth Denduluri, a 19-year-old Temple University student, woke up one day thinking the internet was too noisy. His social media feeds were full of narcissistic updates, baby pictures and other irrelevant information that he just didn’t care about. He also thought to himself how internet giants such as Google and Facebook control the information diet of most web users. So, Denduluri asked himself a pair of insightful questions: Why is most of the information on the internet irrelevant to me, and, furthermore, why can’t I control what I see? This is when the idea of Filtrest was born. Denduluri spent the better part of 2014 working on a platform that intended to connect users based on their interests. He then had a soft launch of his initial product and gained some feedback from a small test group of 500 users. “I created this platform because I found it nearly impossible to curate content from around the internet based on my interests,

and then be able to engage in discussions with people that share those interests with me,” Denduluri said. “There is an overwhelming amount of information available online and it is almost impossible to distinguish the things that are relevant to me.” It’s an ambitious task for the student entrepreneur — a young founder, like many in Philly, learning as they go. Denduluri says Filtrest is currently in stealth mode while he continues to collaborate with an experienced team of developers. He hopes to raise a seed round to take the product to the next level: An effective filter that eliminates unwanted noise from people’s internet lives. “Imagine a world where content delivery is based on what you are interested in, not based on solely what your friends are doing or what the latest trend on Twitter is,” said cofounder Karthik Musunuri. “Essentially, we are allowing people to focus on their interests, and filter out the rest.”

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

A float pod at Halycon Floats, in Kensington

JASON SHERMAN; MATT MONIHAN

This Temple student thinks the internet is too noisy

Stepping in is precarious. The bottom of the tank is slippery from all the salt. Once I’m in, I close the lid, lay down, extend my body. Gone. In water filled with 800 pounds of epsom salt your body floats effortlessly. And, with the water heated to 93 degrees, you can’t tell where you end and the water begins. When you notice this, it can be disorienting. It can feel like you’re floating down a long, calm river when in reality, you’re in a box at 2nd and Girard. “All that’s left is my mind.” I got interested in floating after hearing about it on the Joe Rogan podcast. I had just started meditating once a day. That is, sitting on the floor and focussing only on my breath for about 20 minutes at a time. After a few weeks I was pretty impressed by the results. I was sleeping better, and, more importantly, I became very slow to frustration. I found if there was an obstacle in my way, it didn’t bother me as much as it did in the past. This sounds small, but had a pretty profound impact on my personal and professional life. It’s not the actual practice of meditation that is what’s so powerful, it’s the ability to, in the present moment, realize that some of your thoughts are useful, and some simply aren’t. I’m not alone. Many other people in tech are using meditation to not only manage stress, but have an edge at work and supercharge productivity. All this from sitting in one spot for 20 minutes, and trying to think about nothing. Floating takes these benefits and lowers the activation cost required to achieve them. When the only thing left is your breath, it becomes vastly easier to focus on it. This may sound weird, but my favorite part of floating is getting out. It isn’t until you’ve showered off, looked around and come back to reality that you realize you’re slightly different, and definitely better. —Matt Monihan

5 female technologists you might not know yet

Meet these leading voices in the Philadelphia tech community. // by DIANA DAVID We’re so bored by the cliche of a male-dominated IT sector. Proportionally there’s still a heavy male influence, but too much progress has been made in recent years to highlight how plainly normal it is to have strong gender parity in a city’s tech community. ¶ So with all due respect for those concerned that calling out female technologists reinforces the misconception that they’re rare, we just recently noticed a handful of developers with outsized reputations in Philadelphia who deserve more credit — and, oh, they all happened to be women.

STEPHANIE LIU : RJMetrics

SARAH GRAY : Neat Company

Stephanie Liu graduated from Villanova University two years ago with a degree in biology but decided that software was her true passion. After interning at a web design and marketing firm for six months, Liu was hired at business analytics firm RJMetrics in Center City as a front-end developer.

As a full-stack engineer at Neat Company, Sarah Gray works with a team of developers distributed throughout the globe to create new features and enhance the performance of Neat’s cloud application. “One of the things I love most about software development is that you are never bored,” Gray said. “There is always something new to learn.” PHOTOS BY MAR CUS MCCARTHY (01–04) AND MICHAEL MCAGHON (05)

ELISE WEI : Monetate

ZOE ROONEY : Freelance

YESENIA PEREZ-CRUZ : Intuitive

Elise Wei started her career with a degree in photography from Drexel University and a job in underwriting insurance before she moved into the technology scene. She has been working in technology for close to a decade and has been at Monetate, the Conshohocken-based ecommerce optimization firm, since 2012.

Zoe Rooney is a front-end developer who has run her own small business for nearly three years. Working from her home, Rooney doesn’t have the average workday, starting with getting her two children to school. Rooney has taught web design and development for both Girl Develop It and TechGirlz.

Yesenia Perez-Cruz is a designer with Intuitive Company in Manayunk and has worked with companies like Zappos and MTV. She previously worked with creative agency Happy Cog and received a bachelor’s degree in graphic design from Drexel University. Though her focus is in design, her user experience work requires familiarity with front-end development.

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Tracks P

Access

C OL L A BORATION POW ERE D BY

Business

P RESENTI NG SPONSOR S SAUL EWING • SAFEGUARD SCIENTIFICS

S UPPOTI NG SPONSOR S COMCAST BUSINESS UK TRADE & INVESTMENT MORGAN LEWIS SILICON VALLEY BANK

BEN FRANKLIN TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS SOUTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA

refer to phillytechweek.com for the most up-to-date details, including accurate locations and timing for each event. You can also bookmark events and RSVP via the website.

Wednesday, April 15

SCIENCE CENTER CBRE

(Zivtech)

This is a special Philly Tech Week Edition of the Node. js meetup. As usual, Zivtech will be providing drinks (free as in beer) and pizza. TRACKS4

AppItUP Demo Day 2015 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut Street - Free (PCI Ventures)

Civic P RESENTI NG SPONS OR MICROSOFT

Creative P RESENTI NG SPONS OR

This fall, 5 mobile app finalists were chosen out of 427 submissions to AppItUP. These finalists have formed companies and developed app prototypes with their development partners. On April 15th, they will present their companies and prototypes for the chance to be chosen for a $50,000 offer of investment from Ben Franklin Technology Partners.

TONIC DESIGN CO

BOTS N BREWS 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. @ Skirkanich, 3205 Walnut Street (GRASP Lab at the University of Pennsylvania)

Are you a teacher, parent, or administrator Interested in starting a robotics team at your K-12 school? Want to find out how to plug in with existing teams and events? Want to find out what all the fuss is about? This 21+ event will introduce adults into the world of robotics education through presentations from various organizations. TRACKS4

TRACKS

S U PPORTI NG SPONSOR S

JARVUS INNOVATIONS PHILADELPHIA UNIVERSITY

TECH COCKTAIL’S PHILADELPHIA MIXER & STARTUP SHOWCASE 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. @ Location TBA - $5-10 (Tech Cocktail)

D Dev

P RESENTI NG SPONSOR S CHARIOT SOLUTIONS INDEPENDENCE BLUE CROSS

S U PPORTI NG SPONSOR S SUSQUEHANNA INTERNATIONAL GROUP PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT CORPORATION LINODE CAPITALONE

LONGWOOD GARDENS SEVONE NORTHPOINT DIGITAL INTEGRICHAIN EMONEY ADVISOR

Thursday, April 16 CONVENING THE CONVENERS: EVENTS HACKS & TECHNOLOGY 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. @ CityCoHo, 140 South 24th Street (24th and Sansom), 2nd Floor - Free (Convening the Conveners)

Convening the Conveners (CTC) is a quarterly meetup for community event planners. Each meeting, we dissect a new topic, sharing best practices, challenges and opportunities with each other. This CTC will focus on event hacks & technology used to make events run smoother, and to help you work smarter not harder. TRACKS4

Media P RESENTI NG SPONS OR CASHMAN & ASSOCIATES

S U PPORTI NG SPONSOR S

NODE.JS MEETUP, PHILLY TECH WEEK EDITION 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. @ Zivtech, The Philadelphia Building, 1315 Walnut St, Suite 1500 - Free

Tech Cocktail Startup Showcase events highlight, support, and promote local startups in a casual setting designed to showcase local entrepreneurs. The Mixer atmosphere promotes connections and conversations between tech enthusiasts, investors, mentors, founders, and community members who are down for a good time. TRACKS4

Friday, April 17 PHILADELPHIA INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL #8 April 17-25 @ Various Locations - $85

With the Metropolitan City of Philadelphia as its pallet, the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival is an annual 8 day live and virtual gathering that includes screenings, discussions, and parties with filmmakers and creatives you most likely never met before. Filmmakers come from all over the US and the world

MONDO • SEMRUSH IQ MEDIA T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

O f f ic ia l

#PTW15

to participate in our local festival. TRACKS4

K ic k o f f !

EVOHAX April 17-19 @ Location TBA (EvoXLabs)

evoHaX is a hackathon organized by EvoXLabs with the theme of “Web Accessibility”. Free and open to all schools located within the vicinity of Philadelphia. TRACKS4

ADE

AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION HEART SCIENCE FORUM 8:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. @ WHYY, Independence Mall West, 150 North 6th Street, Address - $150 (American Heart Association)

Each year, American Heart Association facilitates a forum that convenes leaders in research, medical, technology, venture capital, investment banking and related industries connected to life sciences. This year, the Heart Science Forum will encourage the opportunities to promote immediacy in advancing science with direct impact to the Philadelphia region. TRACKS4

ARCADE @ DILWORTH

6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ Dilworth Park, Broad & Market Streets, West Side of City Hall - Free (Technical.ly)

Celebrate technology and innovation at the Philly Tech Week kickoff event! Complete with an App Arcade, maker corner, live music, performances, food, a beer garden and more! Come ready to play.

FUEL UP FOR PHILLY TECH WEEK 8:00 - 10:00 a.m. @ La Columbe Torrefaction, 130 S 19th St - Free (Tonic Design)

TRACKS4

Everyone’s excited about the start of Philly Tech Week 2015, and what better way to kick off the festivities than with the nectar of the gods? Join Tonic Design Co. at La Colombe in Fishtown for a coffeedriven networking event with Philly’s best geeks. TRACKS4

ADEPM

TECHNICULTURE 8:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m @ Chemical Heritage Foundation, 315 Chestnut Street - Price (Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance)

TechniCulture will present outstanding examples of regional and national partnerships between tech and cultural institutions of varying size and complexity. TRACKS4

APM

PHILLY STARTUP CRAWL 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ Starting Point TBA - Free (Startup Hangout)

Get your stumble on and visit 12 of Philadelphia’s finest tech companies at our first Startup Crawl. Each of them will open their doors (and their kegs!) for anyone interested in learning more about local entrepreneurship and tech. TRACKS4

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

ADEPM

A WEB DESIGNER’S GUIDE TO THE REAL WORLD 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ The Tactile Group, 109 South 13th Street, Suite 3S - Free (The Tactile Group)

So you just finished your degree and have landed a great gig. Now what? Join Tactile Group Lead Designer, Christopher Pross, as he leads a light-hearted discussion on what they didn’t teach you in school and what you’re likely to encounter your first few years in the wild. TRACKS4

PHILLY TECH WEEK SHABBAT DINNER 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. @ Ethical Society, 1906 Rittenhouse Square, - $10 (Tribe 12)

Tribe 12 will be hosting a Shabbat dinner open to all participants of Philly Tech Week. The dinner will give you the opportunity to network, listen to an inspiring speaker, and engage with other Jewish entrepreneurs in Philly. TRACKS4

Saturday, April 18 PHILADELPHIA AREA COMPUTER SOCIETY 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. @ Giant Food Store, 315 York Road, Willow Grove, PA (Philadelphia Area Computer Society)

PACS holds monthly meetings with 16 special interest groups plus a main meeting. Founded in 1976, PACS is a computer user group where members fix problems, share knowledge and learn from each other. All platforms and levels of experience are supported. Guests are welcome to attend their first meeting for free. TRACKS4

COMPUTER DONATION DRIVE AT NTR 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. @ Nonprofit Technology Resources, 1524 Brandywine Street - Free (Nonprofit Technology Resources)

Innovation Mapped Party by Chevrolet Sunday April 19 | 4:30 - 6:30 pm

Celebrate Philadelphiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most exciting tech hubs at this Innovation Mapped release party. Show up early to receive a poster version of the map (see it now on Page 38). Meet members of the locations listed and enjoy casual networking and free beer. TRACKS

EAD Sunday, April 19 S AT UR DAY

APRIL 18

ACCESS

CON F E RE NCE DAY

4TH ANNUAL PHILLY WOMEN IN TECH SUMMIT 8:45 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. @ Chemical Heritage Foundation, 316 Chestnut Street - $40-$80 (TechGirlz.org)

The Philly Women in Tech Summit is an annual event that inspires, educates and connects women in the technology industry from the Philadelphia area and the Mid-Atlantic region. Our goal is to support the community of women currently in working in technology and to help pave the way for adolescent

Discussing diversity and education issues that affect everyday citizens. Join us for a day of curated events focused around these topics. girls who want to enter the industry.

PYRAMID STEM SHOWCASE 12:00 - 5:00 p.m. @ Leon H. Sullivan Community Center, 3601 N. Broad St - Free (DHEx Enterprises, LLC and Color Book Gallery)

The Pyramid STEM Showcase is held annually designed to educate and empower our families through technology and prepare us to become an integral part of the fastestmoving industry of all time.

Drop off your technology equipment in our parking lot and our volunteers will process your donation. Individual and organizational donations are welcome! All computer donations are either refurbished and distributed to underserved Philadelphians or recycled by our e-steward, R2 certified partner. TRACKS4

Free to the public, this showcase provides an opportunity for youth, parents, government, industry, educators and organizations to come together to learn and share.

THE RAD AWARDS 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. @ The Dreaming Building, 618 N Front Street - $15 (Rad Girls)

The first annual Rad Awards is a celebration hosted by Rad-Girls.com honoring women who inspire others in the fields of technology, media, culture and business.

NEXTFAB OPEN HOUSE 12:00 - 3:00 p.m. @ NextFab, 2025 Washington Ave - Free (NextFab)

Visit NextFab for a tour and demonstration of all that goes on here. Each department will be prepared with demonstrations to give visitors an up-close look at the capabilities and possibilities available to NextFab members. TRACKS4

THE PHILLY EDTECH EXPO 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ Oxford Mills, 100 W. Oxford Street - $5 (PhilaSoup, Innovation@PennGSE)

PhilaSoup, Philly EdTech Meetup, and Innovation@ PennGSE are teaming up to bring the most innovative teachers and the best of EdTech to the community. Walk through the event to see teachers share innovative projects happening in their Philly classrooms, and entrepreneurs share their innovative EdTech products. TRACKS4

GREATER PHILADELPHIA YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP COMPETITION & EXPO THE PHILADELPHIA PODCASTING SOCIETY MEETUP 12:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ Tattooed Mom, 530 South Street - Free (The Philadelphia Podcasting Society)

Meet local podcasters, learn about their programs, learn about podcasting and grab a tasty beverage. TRACKS4

5:00 - 8:30 p.m. @ Germantown Academy, 340 Morris Rd, Fort Washington, PA - Free (Schoolyard Ventures)

Join us in supporting 75 area high school entrepreneurs as they pitch their businesses and compete for prizes, sales and bragging rights. The event will consist of a pitch competition followed by an interactive expo where students will demonstrate their products and services. TRACKS4

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY â&#x20AC;˘ P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Monday, April 20 ACCESS DRIVE April 20 - 24 @ Various Free Library Locations Free (Free Library of Philadelphia)

This is YOUR chance to ask about social media! Create a new email or social media account Monday, April 20th through Friday, April 24th at four convenient locations throughout the city! TRACKS4

3D PRINT ME PHILLY - POWERED BY NRI 3D LAB PHILADELPHIA April 20 - 25 @ NRI 3DLab Philadelphia, 1015 Chestnut Street - Free (NRI)

Stop by NRI 3DLab Philadelphia and get yourself 3D Scanned and 3D Printed! Get yourself a mini version of... yourself! Join us for drinks and learn about 3D printing! TRACKS4

PHILLY ROBOTICS EXPO 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. @ Singh Nanotechnology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, 3205 Walnut Street - Free (Robolancers)

Robots are taking over Philadelphia! Central High School’s RoboLancers will unveil the newest and most exciting advances in the field of robotics at the Philly Robotics Expo hosted by the RoboLancers and the GRASP Lab of the University of Pennsylvania. You don’t have to be a science geek to have a blast playing with real robots and learning from local business people, engineers and students who are transforming science fiction into science reality! TRACKS4

ADP

PHILLYR MEETING: DESIGNING NEW PRODUCTS USING CHOICE MODELS IN R 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. @ 3535 Market St., 16th Floor Conf Room B - Free (PhillyR Meeting)

Choice modeling or conjoint analysis is a popular tool among marketers for understanding how a customer will choose from among a set of products. Through this hands-on workshop, Drexel Asst. Prof Elea McDonnell Feit will explain how conjoint data is collected, how it is analyzed using R and how the resulting models can be used to forecast demand for new product or to plan pricing for existing products. TRACKS4

MON DAY

APRIL 20

CIVIC

Business leaders, politicians, bureaucrats and citizens will meet to discuss social enterprise, the creative class and technology’s economic impact.

CON F ERENC E D AY

TECHNOLOGY PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACTS - HOW, WHERE AND WHY 8:30 - 10:00 a.m. @ Pipeline, The Graham Building, 30 S 15th St, 15th Floor - Free (Philadelphia’s Office of Innovation and Technology)

Philadelphia’s Office of Innovation and Technology is supporting a cross departmental effort to make it easier for small and midsize firms, especially technology firms, to know about and apply for City contracts as well as to encourage City departments to try more experimental pilot projects. This event will describe how to find City contracting opportunities and offer guidance on applying for them.

City Council Candidate Lunch on Tech 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. @ Benjamin’s Desk, 1701 Walnut St - Free (Technical. ly, Philly Startup Leaders and Benjamin’s Desk)

Several candidates for the May and November Philadelphia City Council elections will be on hand to share their policy view of tech and entrepreneurship and to field your questions. Join us for the discussion.

OPENACCESSPHL CONVENING 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. @ Pipeline, The Graham Building, 30 S 15th St, 15th Floor - Free (OpenAccessPHL)

Hear from change makers in Philadelphia and beyond speaking about the work

Tuesday, April 21 P R ESENT E D BY

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

they’re doing in their cities to cultivate the entrepreneurial ecosystem (both in and outside government) and how to sustain those efforts over a period of time.

PHILLY TECH WEEK MAYORAL FORUM ON TECHNOLOGY, ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street - Free (Technical.ly)

Come out to the only mayoral forum dedicated to the issues of technology, entrepreneurship, innovation and the retention of this city’s blossoming creative class. All major current and officially declared candidates have confirmed their attendance.

MARKETING TECHNOLOGY: AIN’T WHAT IT USED TO BE 8:00 - 10:00 a.m. @ Innovation Center, 3401 Market St (Point.io)

“Marketing Technology: Ain’t What It Used To Be,” presented by Point.io, will explore the best and newest ways to manage more data, segments, channels, devices and tracking to streamline your sales and marketing process. TRACKS4

BOOTSTRAPPERS BREAKFAST 8:00 - 9:30 a.m. @ Morris Cafe, 30 S. 17th St. - $5 (Bootstrappers Breakfast & Trajectify)

Starting our 4th year in Philadelphia (launched PTW 2011). Join Other Entrepreneurs Who Eat Problems For Breakfast. Bootstrappers Breakfasts meetings are for founders of early stage startups. It is a chance to compare notes on operational, development, and business issues with peers. These breakfasts were designed for entrepreneurs to share ideas and leverage thoughts with other folks who are serious about growing their business. TRACKS4

BIG DATA - BIG RISK: PRIVACY CONSIDERATIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS AND CORPORATIONS 8:30 - 10:00 a.m. @ Pepper Hamilton, LLP, 3000

Two Logan Square (Pepper Hamilton)

We will discuss the big data “trend”, its implication on the right to privacy and what both companies and consumers need to do in order to minimize their risks and maximize their rewards from Big Data. TRACKS4

OPEN GOVERNMENT - A HACKATHON 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. @ Interstate General Media, 801 Market St., Suite 300 - $10 (Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association)

Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association presents: “Open Government,” a hackathon designed to spark creative solutions for increasing or improving access to government. Join us for a fun, creative and competitive environment to develop and create the best piece(s) of media you can that increases or improves transparency in government. TRACKS4

FUNDING YOUR TECH: BEING BANKABLE 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ The Tactile Group, 190 South 13th St, Suite 3S - Free (The Tactile Group)

You have may have the next best thing, but without the proper funding that great idea probably won’t get much further than your desktop. Join us for a primer discussion on finding the right type of financing your product or service and how to go from strictly bootstrapping to “being bankable”. TRACKS4 T U E S DAY

APRIL 21

MEDIA

CON F E R E NCE DAY

Marketing, media and public relations have changed dramatically in the digital age. Hear from leading experts who are not only responding to the change, but helping to shape it.

THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL MARKETING 10:00 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. @ Impact Hub, 1227 N. 4th Street - $125 (Technical.ly)

This full day event will focus on digital trends that marketers, agencies, content producers, and startups need to know. Thought leaders will walk us through marketing challenges— and how to solve them—via series of case study presentations. Includes lunch and happy hour!

PAMA NETWORKING AFTER PARTY 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. @ Barcade, 1114 Frankford Avenue - $10 (Philadelphia Chamber of the American Marketing Association)

This event is open to all area marketers and people in town for Philly Tech Week. Mix and mingle with PAMA members, area marketers and Tech Week attendees. Expand your network, share insights, and celebrate the 5th annual celebration of technology and innovation.

NTR’S VOLUNTEER COMPUTER STRIPPING EVENT 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. @ Nonprofit Technology Resources, 1524 Brandywine Street - Free (Nonprofit Technology Resources )

Immerse yourself in technology during Philly Tech Week AND help low-wealth households in Philly get access to 21st century skills and technology equipment. Use your IT skills for a good cause by participating in a volunteer event at NTR. TRACKS4

TOP IT PROS AWARDS PROGRAM 11:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. @ Sonesta Hotel, 1800 Market Street, Wyeth Ballroom, 2nd Floor (Philadelphia Business Journal)

PRESENTED BY

Philadelphia Business Journal and sponsors recognize area technology leaders at the third annual Top IT Pros awards. Featuring a panel discussing wearable technology.

SUPPORTED BY

TRACKS4

WIN, WIN, WIN! SOCIAL MEDIA CONTESTS THAT CREATE ENGAGEMENT, CONTENT, AND IMPACT T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ Location TBA (SCP)

Online contests and associated social media campaigns can provide powerful win-win-wins for organizations and companies seeking to generate a wealth of crowdsourced social media content and engage new consumers and communities. This workshop will provide participants with helpful how-tos and the opportunity to frame their own contests and campaigns. TRACKS4

DIGITAL EQUALITY FOR ALL: NAVIGATING NET NEUTRALITY AND THE IMPACT ON COMMUNITIES OF COLOR 12:00 - 1:30 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street (Wilco and WURD)

In the wake of the recent FCC rulings on the preservation of Net Neutrality and the Reclassification of the internet as a utility, this 2015 Philly Tech Week WILCO / WURD Panel will explore the complexities of net neutrality, the recently passed FCC legislation, and the impact net neutrality legislation will have on people of color technology innovation, the cultivation of small businesses, and the engagement of community activism. TRACKS4

SANDWICHES WITH A SIDE OF DATA SECURITY 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. @ Blank Rome LLP, 130 North 18th Street (Blank Rome)

Join us for lunch and a discussion of data privacy and security issues impacting tech businesses. You’ll chat with three experienced professionals on mitigating real life risks in cyberspace. TRACKS4

BUSINESS WORKOUT MASTERMIND GROUP 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. @ SeedPhilly, 1650 Arch Street, Suite 1905 - $50 (Trajectify)

Trajectify Business Workout combines expert coaching with the benefits of support from others who face similar situations and challenges. The feedback, guidance and support from those who have recently been in that same situation is impactful. TRACKS4

PRIVACY CHECKUP AT THE E-GADGET HELP DESK 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia,

1901 Vine Street, Main Lobby - Price (Free Library of Philadelphia - Free Library Hot Spot)

Receive personalized recommendations on how to improve online privacy and security on your device (smartphone, tablet, laptop) TRACKS4

THE CLOUD: CHANGING HOW BUSINESS WORKS 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ Pyramid Club, 1735 Market St, 52nd Floor - $55 (PFIT)

A panel of speakers will present short presentations on the VOIP Phone systems, Cloud Servers, Merger and Acquisitions, Environmental Impact, and Real World Use. There will be a Q&A session after presentations. Directly after there will be an open bar and light food for networking. TRACKS4

PSLU ACCELERATOR FINAL SHOWCASE & CELEBRATION 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ World Cafe Live, Upstairs, 3025 Walnut Street (Philly Startup Leaders)

The Philly Startup Leaders University Accelerator is the only for the community, by the community startup accelerator in Philadelphia. At the Final Showcase, our 6 participating teams will take the stage to demo and pitch their startups to some of the community’s most well-respected venture capitalists. TRACKS4

EQUITY COMPENSATION FOR STARTUPS 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. @ Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Drexel University, 3320 Market Street 3rd Floor - Free (Drexel Entrepreneurial Law Clinic)

Join the students of the Entrepreneurial Law Clinic and an expert panel for a discussion of how and when startups should grant equity as compensation to employees, consultants, and contractors. TRACKS4

PHILLYCHI 9TH ANNUAL DESIGN SLAM 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ Artisan Mobile, 234 Market St - Free (PhillyCHI)

The Design Slam is a collaborative event in user experience design where participants compete in teams to develop the best design solution for a given challenge. TRACKS4

ELEMENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL NONPROFIT WEBSITE 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ Friends Center, 1501 Cherry

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

Street - Free (Philly NetSquared)

Building a new site for your nonprofit, or trying to fix up an old one? Join Philly NetSquared for a whirlwind overview of what you need to consider to further your mission and build an effective web presence on a budget. TRACKS4

DEP

STORIES FROM THE TRENCHES: AVOIDING THE PERILS AND PITFALLS OF FUNDING YOUR HARDWARE STARTUP 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ NextFab, 2025 Washington Ave - Free (NextFab)

Join us as we hear from a representative from Ben Franklin Technology Partners and two local hardware companies that have been through the process of raising capital and lived to tell the tale. TRACKS4

LINKEDIN STRATEGIES: CREATING A PROFILE THAT SHINES AND GETS RESULTS! 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, Skyline Room, 4th Floor - Free (Free Library of Philadelphia)

Without strong and persuasive content, tips for using LinkedIn fall flat. In this highly interactive session, Susan Tabor-Kleiman, JD, owner of Your Professional Writer, will discuss the most important components of your LinkedIn profile and guide you in how to create content that moves your profile from one that merely contains data to one that shines and gets results. TRACKS4

PHILLY DRUPAL MEETUP FEATURING TIM PLUNKETT 6:30 - 9:00 p.m. @ Zivtech, The Philadelphia Building, 1315 Walnut St, Suite 1315 - Free (Zivtech)

Join Zivtech and the Philadelphia Drupal Community for a special Philly Tech Week meetup, featuring Drupal core and contrib über contributor: Tim Plunkett. Hear more about Tim’s work with Drupal 8 core contrib, and learn some of the features you’ll likely love, what’s going to drive you crazy, and other assorted Jawns. TRACKS4

Wednesday, April 22

DOING BUSINESS IN THE CLOUD: A TWO-PART EVENT 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. @ Pipeline Philly, The Graham Building, 30 S 15th St, 15th Floor - FREE (Microsoft)

Join Microsoft’s Development, Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Legal experts for a two-part event devoted to helping you better understand and leverage the Microsoft Cloud Platform in your business. TRACKS4

GEOPHILLY BALLOON MAPPING LAUNCH

W E DN E S DAY

APRIL 22

BUSINESS CON F E R E NCE DAY

Participate in targeted business bootcamps for early stage entrepreneurs, get hands-on advice from experts and learn from local leaders on their biggest mistakes and what they’ve learned. ALL EVENTS @ University City Science Center, Quorum, 3711 Market Street | Suite 800

ENTREPRENEUR BOOT CAMP 8:30 - 11:00 a.m.; $25 (Technical.ly)

Geared towards early stage entrepreneurs, this fast paced boot camp will feature experts ready to teach you the basics of starting a business. From figuring out what insurance your business will require, to getting investors, finding the right team and deciding between a private office space and coworking; you’ll leave with a solid understanding of your next steps towards making your startups dreams reality.

LUNCH&LEARN: WORKSHOP YOUR business 11:30 - 2:30 p.m. ; $50 (Technical.ly)

When starting a business, there’s usually not a lot of money, but a ton of questions. Wish you could hire a consultant or expert to help you perfect your business without big paycheck? These Lunch&Learn workshops are perfect for the early stage business owner looking to get specific feedback and advice for their business. In these hands-on, interac-

tive workshops, learn from professionals how you better your business with feedback that is specific to you.

#FAILFEST 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.; $10 (Technical.ly)

Failure is not something to be ashamed of. Failure is inevitable and sometimes an important part of becoming successful entrepreneurs. Without it, how would we learn? In this off-the-cuff, unfiltered and unapologetic event, we’ll hear from a variety of successful speakers on their past failures and what they’ve learned along the way.

9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ Meeting @ Riverside of Independence Seaport Museum, 211 South Christopher Columbus Blvd - $5 (GeoPhilly and Azavea)

Join GeoPhilly for a balloon mapping workshop at the Waterfront during Philly Tech Week! Balloon mapping is a low-cost, easy, and safe way to capture aerial images and stitch them together into a high resolution map. This grassroots technique has been used by journalists and community groups all over the world. TRACKS4

Refurbish Computers for Philanthropy 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. @ Nonprofit Technology Resources, 1524 Brandywine Street - Free (Nonprofit Technology Resources)

Your passion for technology can also power philanthropy in Philly! NTR will walk you through the refurbishment process; directly imaging PC’s, installing software, testing and troubleshooting, etc. If you have expansive IT experience, spend the afternoon using your knowledge to spread access across Philadelphia. TRACKS4

BUSINESS CONFERENCE DAY HAPPY HOUR 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.; $5 (Technical.ly)

Network with current and aspiring entrepreneurs and startups. We’ll have organized networking activities to allow you the opportunity to meet everyone in attendance and make solid new contacts.

APM

TRASH YOUR FLASH DRIVE! (VILLAGE OF ARTS AND HUMANITIES) 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. @ Village of Arts and Humanities, 2544 Germantown Avenue - Free (Free Library of Philadelphia - Free Library Hot Spot)

Understanding the benefits and ease of cloud storage.

PRESENTED BY

TRACKS4

SUPPORTED BY

“LMS” MEANS MORE THAN “LIKE MY STATUS” 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. @ Career Wardrobe, 21 South

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

12th St, Suite 110 (JumpWireless.org)

Join JumpWireless.org for lunch, networking, and a discussion on Learning Management Software (LMS) and how it has become an important and effective tool for workforce development. TRACKS4

HOW USING TECHNOLOGY CAN PREPARE ADULT LEARNERS FOR THE WORKPLACE 12:00 - 2:00 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, Ground Floor Room 26 - Free (Mayor’s Commission on Literacy)

Are you tech-savvy and interested in helping a fellow Philadelphian bridge their digital divide and develop workforce and literacy skills? Join us for lunch and learn about the Mayor’s Commission on Literacy’s Tech Tutors program. TRACKS4

Cable Franchising, Why It Matters 12:00 - 2:00 p.m. @ PhillyCAM, 699 Ranstead St (PhillyCAM)

Live from the TV studios of PhillyCAM, representatives from the Media Mobilizing Project, Indy Hall and local and national PEG access television station staffers will engage in a lively conversation about the upcoming renegotiation of the City’s cable franchise with Comcast. TRACKS4

PHILLY VIZ WARS 2015 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ Saint Joseph’s University, Haub School of Business, 5600 City Ave - Free (Acumen Analytics)

Artists, data scientists, technology geeks, graphic artists, computer science nerds, students and the inquisitive all come together for networking, some know how, prizes, refreshments and a one hour competition to show their finest visualization of data sets (provided 48 hours in advance) on one HUGE screen. TRACKS4

6:00 - 9:30 p.m. @ Washington Square Park, Walnut Street - Free (MilkCrate, Green Philly Blog)

Think you have what it takes to survive the startup lifestyle? This scavenger hunt will challenge you to the life of a sustainable tech startup. Get in teams (or find one at the start line). Follow the clues, take out your smartphones and take your team to the top. (Don’t worry, prizes for the best team await you at the finish line.) TRACKS4

TAKE A TOUR OF ANGULARJS 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ Chariot Solutions, 515 Pennsylvania Avenue, Fort Washington - Free (Chariot Solutions)

What’s this JavaScript framework everyone’s been talking about? Join Chariot’s Ken Rimple as he takes you on a tour of modern JavaScript development with AngularJS. He’ll discuss the reasons Angular exists, why it’s taken over the developer community by storm, and where it is heading next. TRACKS4

MIND HACKING AND UNPLUGGING WITH BUDDHIST GEEKS 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ Devnuts, 908A N 3rd St (Devnuts and Buddhist Geeks)

Join us for a Buddhist Geeks presentation by Vincent Horn, as he talks about mind hacking, meditation, unplugging, and guides us in a meditation, followed by food and conversation. TRACKS4

ADEPM

SUPERCHARGE YOUR SMALL BUSINESS WITH TECHNOLOGY

DAILY

I-SITE & PHILLYCHI PRESENT: QUIZZO 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ Trestle Inn, 339 N 11th St Free (PhillyCHI)

WEEKLY

Join I-SITE and PhillyCHI for a technology and designthemed Quizzo! TRACKS4

PTW SCAVENGER HUNT: THE GREEN CHALLENGE

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

QUARTERLY

EACH FEBRUARY

6:30 - 8:00 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, Skyline Room, 4th Floor - Free (Free Library of Philadelphia)

Join Amy Larrimore to learn what you need to know to take your business to the next level. She will help you unravel what’s really holding you back, where you need to focus, how to delegate the pesky business-ey things and teach you simple tricks to know that it’s working or when to make a change. TRACKS4

PHILLY NEW TECHNOLOGY MEETUP - FOOD AND TECH 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. @ Above CityCoHo, 2401 Walnut St, 2nd Floor - Free (Philly New Technology Meetup)

Celebrate what is the almost first birthday of the Philly New Tech Meetup. This will be a big networking event, bringing Philly food, beverage and spirits entrepreneurs together with our Tech community. Eat, drink, talk. Special guest speakers. TRACKS4

ADEPM

PSL ENTREPRENEUR EXPO 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. @ The 23rd Street Armory, 22 S. 23rd Street - Free (Philly Startup Leaders)

The 2015 Entrepreneur Expo is your best opportunity to celebrate Philadelphia’s entrepreneurial spirit with more than 500 colleagues and peers. Over 50 tech entrepreneurs will display their ideas and work at this trade-show and party, hosted at the incomparable 23rd Street Armory. TRACKS4

Thursday, April 23

DIGITAL PROJECTS FOR ARTS AND CULTURE 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. @ CultureWorks, 1315 Walnut St, Suite 320 - $20 (Interactive Mechanics)

Increase your understanding of digital projects in the arts and culture sector, and learn how to plan and manage your web or mobile projects. Join Interactive Mechanics’ Creative Lead Mike Tedeschi and Content and Interpretive Strategist Stacey Mann for a lunch and learn to increase your understanding of digital projects in the arts and culture sector. TRACKS4

LOCAL PRESENCE AND GLOBAL REACH 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ Slice Communications, 111 Independence Mall East, Suite 340 - $10 (Slice Communications)

Whether you’re new to programming or wanting to sharpen your skills, this full day conference will include beginner workshops on popular programming languages, a dev-focused conference with over 15 high level developers and an inclusive after party.

T HU RS DAY

APRIL 23

DEV

CON F E RE NCE DAY

ALL EVENTS @ PHMC, 1500 Market Street, Suite 1500

DEV DAY INTRO WORKSHOPS

DEV DAY TALKS

8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. - $60 (Technical.ly)

Whether you’re new to programming or wanting to sharpen your skills, the Dev Day Intro Workshops are perfect for you. Workshops will be focused around today’s most used languages and programs and taught by local experts. PRESENTED BY

1:00 - 7:00 p.m. - $30 (Technical.ly)

Join us for an afternoon of high-level dev talks focused around problem solving and innovative solutions. You’ll hear from over 15 dev experts talking about real world scenarios and the tools they’re using.

Center for

Health Care Innovation

DEV DAY AFTER PARTY 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. - Free (Technical.ly)

After a busy day of programming workshops and high level dev talks, gather together to network, eat and drink at our Dev Day After Party! We’ll be bringing out the local developer community in this fun, inclusive event!

Slice Communications and Philly media experts will help you cut through the clutter and get your local story the attention you deserve on a global scale by integrating public relations and social media initiatives. TRACKS4

SUBURBAN INNOVATION 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. @ Veterans Square, 24 Veterans Square, Media, PA (Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, HeadRoom)

The Delaware County Chamber of Commerce wants to celebrate innovation and business development in the Philadelphia suburbs. TRACKS4

E-LEARNING DEVELOPMENT - THE BASICS 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. @ Harrisburg University, 111 South Independence Mall East - $15 (ATD PHL)

Join the Learning Tech Group of the Philadelphia Chapter of the The Association for Talent Development (ATD) (the world’s largest organization for professionals who work in Learning & Development ) as they explore how to create e-Learning programs. TRACKS4

SUPPORTED BY

GET-KINETIC AERIAL VIDEO PANEL AND DEMO 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. @ Venturef0rth, 417 North 8th Street - Free (Get-Kinetic)

PMS: CMYK: RGB: HEX:

Pantone 354 C c95 m0 y100 k0 r 0 g 174 b 66 #00AE42

Pantone Process Black C c0 m0 y0 k100 r0g0b0 #000

PMS: CMYK: RGB: HEX:

Pantone 300 C c100 m58 y5 k0 r 0 g 99 b 190 #0063BE

PMS: CMYK: RGB: HEX:

80% Pantone Process Black C c0 m0 y0 k80 r88 g89 b91 #58595B

Fly confidently and safely while obeying the laws as Get-Kinetic and friends show off the capabilities of their unmanned aircraft during a series of demonstration flights followed by an educated panel discussion. TRACKS4

PHILLY KEYSPOT: DIGITAL DIVIDE HACKS FOR THE TECH INDUSTRY T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Proud sponsor of Philly Tech Week and the entrepreneurs that make it happen

Partners with a Purpose

partnerswithapurpose.org

is proud to be a sponsor of

Philly Tech Week

DESIGNING AND BUILDING DIGITAL PLATFORMS TO MAXIMIZE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND ENGAGEMENT TURN TO NORTHPOINT DIGITAL FOR

Web CMS Platform Strategy Web Development Digital Strategy Design and User Experience Content Strategy Mobile App Design and Development Stop by our table at: Dev Track Day & Signature Event

northpointdigital.com | @northps

New York Philadelphia Boston T: 215.558.2700

Join our Team!

IntegriChain is a rapidly growing leading data commerce platform in the healthcare industry. If you are looking to join a team of innovators, be among the best and brightest in the technology industry, build the career of your dreams, and work for a company you can be proud of, this is the place for you! We are continually hiring in the areas of: • Data Science

• Programming

(including Python,R,

(including Java, Scala,

and Hadoop)

R, and Python)

• Advanced Analytics • Sales • Marketing • Operations • Customer Service

Join us! Learn more at www.integrichain.com. 8 Penn Center | 1628 JFK Boulevard Philadelphia, PA 19103 | 609.806.5005 www.integrichain.com | @IntegriChain

5:30 - 7:30 p.m. @ Innovation Lab in the Municipal Services Building, 1401 JFK Blvd, 16th Floor Rooms C&D (Philly KEYSPOT)

Philly KEYSPOT, a network of 51 city-funded, public computing centers, serves a diverse client-base including people experiencing homelessness, formerly incarcerated individuals, and the chronically unemployed. Hear from KEYSPOT users facing these challenges, plus organizations in Philadelphia working to address their needs using technology, and discuss actionable ideas and opportunities for partnership and collaboration. TRACKS4

INNOVATE. TRANSFORM. LEAD. 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ Comcast Center, 1701 JFK Boulevard - $15-$75 (MIT Enterprise Forum of Philadelphia)

Join the MIT Enterprise Forum of Philadelphia and a discussion with leaders in the energy, health care, and media and technology sectors about incubator opportunities, investments, and partnerships available to the region’s most innovative corporations and entrepreneurs. Reception and networking to follow. TRACKS4

MEDIA AND THE CITY: FUSING JOURNALISM & TECHNOLOGY FOR BETTER STORYTELLING 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. @ La Colombe Fishtown, 1335 Frankford Avenue - $10 (AL DÍA News)

AL DÍA News Media leads a unique discussion between journalists and developers about the future of digital storytelling. TRACKS4

SPEED MENTORING WITH #TECHINCOLOR 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. @ First Round Capital, 4040 Locust Street - Free (YIKES Inc)

Last year we helped Philly’s most diverse technologists meet one another and forge new connections. This year, we want to help build connections and mad skills! Join #techInColor for an evening of speed mentoring and group problem solving...and beer! TRACKS4

ADEPM

TO AND FROM: DESIGNING THE URBAN COMMUTER EXPERIENCE 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. @ AIGA Philadelphia SPACE, 72 N. 2nd Street - Free (AIGA Philadelphia)

To and From: Designing the urban commuter experience In his debut AIGA Philadelphia exhibit, designer and educator Alex Yampolsky explores visual navigation concepts to enhance urban commuter experience. TRACKS4

FAST & FREE DIY WEBSITES 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. @ Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901

Vine Street, Ground Floor Tech Lab - Free (Free Library of Philadelphia)

Are you an entrepreneur, startup, crafter, or service provider looking to launch your website quickly and free of cost? Start here. Go anywhere. “Fast & Free DIY Websites” an introductory class that covers Google Sites and Blogger for small business owners and entrepreneurs. TRACKS4

STARTUP PITCH NIGHT 6:30 -9:30 p.m. @ Dave & Busters, 325 N Columbus Blvd, “The Showroom” - Price (Startup Pitch Night)

Startup Pitch Night is the proven platform to practice and improve your pitch. We’ve helped thousands of startups at our fun, relaxed, and informative events. From the east coast to the west coast, we’ve held events in a bunch of select cities. Join us and “Pitch. Watch. Learn. Network!” TRACKS4

THE N3RD STREET SQUARES 8:00 - 10:00 p.m. @ National Mechanics, 22 S 3rd St - Free (WebLinc)

WebLinc is proud to present N3rd Street Squares, an interactive web and technology-focused game based on the famous 1970’s TV show, Hollywood Squares. With this web-app game, everyone in the audience is a contestant, competing for free drinks and prizes at Old City hot spot, National Mechanics. TRACKS4

ADE

Friday, April 24 10 Great Techs in 2015 8am - 10am @ (The Marks Group)

Join us for a lively conversation about the latest tools, technologies and services that every startup (and even non-startup) CEO should be considering in 2015 to help run their businesses lean and profitable. TRACKS4

TECH360 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. @ The Conference Center at Penn State Great Valley, 30 East Swedesford Road, Malvern, PA 19255 - $149 - $199 (Ideas x Innovation Network, ITAG, Chester County Economic Development Council)

Tech360 is a full day tech experience supported by the Innovative Technology Action Group (ITAG) and the Ideas x Innovation Network (i2n), initiatives of the Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC). Tech 360 will focus on tech edu-

cation, leadership development, innovation and networking, sharing best practices that you can apply today. TRACKS4

MEASUREOPS DIGITAL ANALYTICS TRAINING BOOTCAMP 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. @ MaassMedia, LLC, 1819 John F Kennedy Blvd, Suite 430 - $500 (MaassMedia, LLC)

MeasureOps is a one-day coding bootcamp designed to introduce and teach the science of digital analytics through a hands-on approach taught by two instructors who have been in the digital analytics industry for more than 10 years. TRACKS4

FREELTT WITH MASTBAUM HIGH SCHOOL 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. @ Nonprofit Technology Resources, 1524 Brandywine Street Free (Nonprofit Technology Resources, Philadelphia Academies Inc., Philadelphia City Council)

NTR’s donor-supported Free Learning Through Technology (FreeLTT) program has provided nearly 4000 low-income youth, people with disabilities, and families with free computers and training since 1999. During Philly Tech Week twenty freshman from Mastbaum High School will receive free computers funded by NTR’s generous donors. TRACKS4

TRASH YOUR FLASH DRIVE! (HEAVENLY HALL) 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. @ Heavenly Hall, 4015 Poplar Street, Annex Building - Free (Free Library of Philadelphia - Free Library Hot Spot)

Understanding the benefits and ease of cloud storage. TRACKS4

IDEAS IN LIFE SCIENCES 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. @ Independence Blue Cross Center for Health Care Innovation, 1700 Market Street, 7th Floor - Price (Center for Health Care Innovation - Independence Blue Cross)

Join us to generate ideas around how we can leverage new technology and social media to engage and impact the health care community. TRACKS4

ELECTRONIC MUSIC WORKSHOP WITH BEEP 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. @ Temple University,

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Tuttleman Learning Center Room 107, 1809 N 13th St - Free (BEEP)

Join the Boyer Electroacoustic Ensemble Project (BEEP) at Temple University for a hands-on workshop exploring methods for using computers and emerging digital technology for real time music performance. Ensemble director Dr. Adam Vidiksis will lead the group in a concert of works for electronic musicians, and demonstrate how computers can be used expressively. TRACKS4

MUSEUMS AND 3D TECHNOLOGY 4:30 - 7:00 p.m. @ URBN Center, Drexel University, 3501 Market Street (Drexel University Museum Leadership Program)

Find out how museums like the Metropolitan, the Smithsonian and others are using 3D printing in their programming. See a demonstration of 3D scanning and printing. TRACKS4

A PHILLY TECH WEEK SIGNATURE EVENT

Saturday, April 25

7:30 - 10:00 p.m. @ Comcast Center, 1701 John F Kennedy Blvd - $40 (Technical.ly)

Come out to the annual premiere Philly Tech Week Signature Event, a cocktail reception meets an interactive local technology expo and demo party in the lobby of the city’s tallest building.

CITYSTREETS: RACE THROUGH HISTORY - PHILADELPHIA

TRACKS4

8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. @ Creative Tech Works Design Studio @ Beech Interplex, 15th & Cecil B. Moore Avenue - $50-100 (Creative Tech Works)

2-person teams sign up for the City’s 1st Ever Youthled Technology Race to improve Civic Engagement in Philadelphia! 4 miles. 10 challenges. 1 app.1 WearableTech Device. Walk, jog, bike across the city using a special app designed to trigger your wearable tech device. Support urban STEM education for Philly’s upcoming tech-prenuers. TRACKS4

ADEPM

PHILLY STUDENT STARTUP SUMMIT 3.0 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. @ Location TBA - Free (nvigor)

Philly Student Startup Summit is a one day conference where student entrepreneurs from Greater Philadelphia Area meet each other and learn from seasoned entrepreneurs. TRACKS4

#100BUSINESSGIRLS LET’S DO BRUNCH! PHILLY MEETUP 20

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

ADEPM

2:00 - 4:00 p.m. @ City Tap House Logan Square, 2 Logan Square - $12 (#100BusinessGirls)

Join #100BusinessGirls for our signature Brunch Meetup, an enlightening afternoon geared towards growing your network and connecting with like minds featuring Majella Mark, Founder and CEO of BeauExchange.com. TRACKS4

MASHED MEDIA AWARDS 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. @ Kimmel Center, 300 S. Broad Street - Free (PhillyCAM, Phila Youth Media Collaborative)

spoken word and features features media screenings and live performances. TRACKS4

BRING.YOUR.OWN.BEAMER PHILLY IV 7:00 - 11:00 p.m. @ Little Berlin, 2430 Coral Street - Free (Little Berlin)

BYOB is a one-night event for anyone to bring their own projectors (LCD, overhead, slide, DIY). BYOB was founded by Rafaël Rozendaal (www.byobworldwide. com) in 2010 and has become a global phenomenon. TRACKS4

The 2nd Annual Mashed Media Awards celebrates the best in youth voice, creativity and vision in a Gala Awards event recognizing the best in youth media in Philadelphia from video to photography, music to

refer to phillytechweek.com for the most up-to-date details, including accurate locations and timing for each event. You can also bookmark events and RSVP via the website.

A proud sponsor of Philly Tech Week 2015 presented by Comcast The Center for Health Care Innovation at Independence Blue Cross is committed to addressing the complex challenges facing health care today. By fostering a culture of human-centered innovation and collaborating with employees, thought leaders, best-in-class partners, and the community at-large, we develop new initiatives and technologies to help lower the cost and improve the quality of health care. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re reimagining health care through innovation.

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Microsoft is a proud sponsor of Philly Tech Week. Microsoftâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission is to help people and businesses around the world realize their full potential. Our citizenship work plays a vital role in delivering on that mission. We serve communities, helping to create a better future for young people and fostering healthier, more vibrant communities worldwide. We also maintain responsible practices in our own operations, ensuring we act as a good corporate citizen everywhere we do business.

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THE 2015 FIELD: (LEFT TO RIGHT) LYNNE ABRAHAM, JIM KENNEY, ANTHONY WILLIAMS, MILTON STREET, NELSON DIAZ, DOUG OLIVER

Mayoral candidates talk tech

Ahead of a Philly Tech Week Mayoral Forum, we at Technical.ly Philly gave a questionnaire on tech policy to the city’s Democratic mayoral candidates.

// by CHRISTOPHER WINK

Among the Democratic mayoral candidates in Philadelphia, there appears to be broad consensus: one of the city’s newer constituent groups has something to say worth hearing. The candidates appear to be listening to the Philadelphia tech community. After Technical.ly Philly curated feedback from a dozen tech community leaders about issues they care about, we submitted a questionnaire to the five primary Democratic mayoral candidates who are competing to win on Tuesday, May 19. (A city GOP field hasn’t emerged and no independent has officially announced a candidacy, so, with voter registration heavily favoring the Democrats 6-1, the May primary, as is often the case here, is regarded as the decisive campaign, not the November general election.) Of the 14 questions we posed to these five candidates, the surprise lies in the consensus. We asked each candidate to respond either “Yes,” “No” or “Not yet determined” to explain their support for those issues. Here’s this: There wasn’t a single “No.” Find our questionnaire below. Most questions have the support of all candidates, and we put asterisks next to the few that don’t. CALENDAR ALERT! Join us at the Philly Tech Week Mayoral

Forum on Technology, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, held April 20 in partnership with the Free Library, Philly Startup Leaders, Code for Philly and Young Involved Philadelphia.

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

1. I support that if “civic innovation” is the use of new and more efficient ways to better serve citizens, then the City of Philadelphia would continue to develop a reputation for being one of the most innovative cities in the country under my tenure as Mayor. 2. I support the need for supplementary educational opportunities in STEM, like robotics, and entrepreneurship for Philadelphia school children to be better prepared for careers of the future. 3. I support prioritizing computing centers and digital literacy training in the City of Philadelphia budget for modern workforce development, leveraging the Free Library of Philadelphia, Community College of Philadelphia and other existing stakeholders to help develop a more inclusive and diverse innovation ecosystem, including more women and people of color. 4. I support programs that aim to attract, retain and grow early stage businesses, like Startup PHL, Jump Start Philly and the Commerce Department’s strategy for establishing Center City ‘gateway offices’ for suburban knowledge economy firms. 5. I support developing and implementing a plan for comprehensive municipal tax reform that includes rebalancing the percentages of city revenue that come from property and business taxes.* 6. I support the development and execution of a plan for reducing the city’s wage tax to below three percent by 2020.* 7. I support upholding the spirit of the 2012 Open Data Executive Order (1-12), including developing processes for the release of high-value city data and the use of an open data advisory council for outside guidance on modern standards for ethics and efficiency.

8. I support retaining the Chief Data Officer position as an internal advocate for open data, transparency and efficiency and facilitating the position’s collaboration with pre-existing government agencies to do the same. 9. I support using OpenDataPhilly.org, the country’s only big-city, community-operated, open data portal, to make releases of city data. 10. I support the development, maintenance and use of APIs to distribute and leverage city data whenever possible, rather than static snapshot data sets. When necessary to provide static snapshot data sets, I support the delivery of city data and information in machine readable formats, like .XLS, .XML and .JSON. 11. I support city procurement reform to enable the City of Philadelphia to more efficiently, transparently and modernly acquire the best goods and services, including the use of open source software when appropriate and preferring locallybased firms. 12. I support maintaining the PhillyStat program (and related departmental programs such as Compstat) to create an internal consumer ecosystem for the City’s open data activities and facilitate better governmental performance and efficiency.** 13. I support the role private investment, like venture capital, must play in growing local communities through social entrepreneurship and other civic-minded business growth. 14. I support a “dig once” policy, in which conduit for high-speed internet infrastructure must be installed whenever relevant city streets are uncovered for other maintenance, like on public water and gas infrastructure.***

* Lynne Abraham has not yet committed to these two specific tax reform policies. ** Doug Oliver said he has ‘Not Yet Determined’ whether he’d support the PhillyStat program, an existing city initiative for overseeing agencies through data-driven peer review. *** Anthony Hardy Williams said he has ‘Not Yet Determined’ whether he’d support a ‘dig once policy.’

Nightscape A Light and Sound Experience Coming July 1, 2015

This summer explore the Gardens by day—and by night. Get ready for an immersive evening journey around our Gardens. Through patented projection and digital mapping technology, you’ll encounter moving imagery and light set to music, brought to life by the natural canvas of our plants, leaves, trees, and lakes. Created by Klip Collective of Philadelphia, this innovative display will showcase never-before-seen views of Longwood at night. For tickets and information visit longwoodgardens.org/nightscape

In the heart of the Brandywine Valley in Chester County, Pennsylvania

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Interior First Floor Social Center with Bleacher

Opening in 2016 Pennâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dynamic hub for innovation, research and entrepreneurialism brings together extraordinary scholars and students, with the private sector to advance knowledge and explore entrepreneurship. The Pennovation Center will house: Wet and dry labs, shared support equipment, meeting rooms and social areas Co-working space for individual entrepreneurs and startups Pennovation Center East and North Facades

Vibrant and open floor plans Workshops, programs and professional-development resources

Interested innovators and entrepreneurs should contact: Paul Sehnert Director, Real Estate Development Facilities and Real Estate Services University of Pennsylvania sehnert@upenn.edu Pennovation Works 3401 Grays Ferry Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19146 pennovation.upenn.edu

Aerial Site Perspective

At the 2013 Women in Tech Summit

Women in Tech Summit 2015

The April 18 event provides more hands-on learning opportunities than ever before. // by TONY ABRAHAM The fourth Women in Tech Summit is April 18 this year, and it’s exponentially bigger and better than ever before. As in years past, the conference will host an assemblage of tech-minded women — changemakers, innovators and entrepreneurs — for the sole purpose of helping each other learn. Between keynote speakers, networking sessions, workshops and classes, Women in Tech has continued to consolidate a year’s worth of tech education into a single day. Last year’s summit was held at WHYY. This year’s event is being moved to the Chemical Heritage Foundation on Chestnut Street in order to make room for more attendees and sessions. Speaking of sessions: last year, each block of workshops and classes contained three sessions to choose from; each block this year contains four. And the speakers? Women in Tech received over 125 applications from prominent women wanting to get on stage to inspire. Make sure to catch the opening keynote from Kelly Hoey, founder of tech

networking agency Cuurio and cofounder of the Women Innovate Mobile accelerator. Don’t miss the closing remarks from NBC10’s Renee ChanaultFattah, either. “We have an embarrassment of riches this year,” said event organizer and TechGirlz founder Tracey Welson-Rossman. “We believe we’re continuing to blaze a trail of creating a conference for women in tech that is about teaching,” she says. “It’s not just about telling the story of somebody who became successful.” While those motivational storytelling sessions do

have their place in a conference focused on learning and building tech skills, Welson-Rossman says that every year, the summit gets deeper into adopting a hands-on approach to education. “You’ll find there’s a lot of energy in a room,” she said. “Not only are you going to learn, but you’re going to meet women in the community.” Whether you’re a CIO, a developer, or someone just thinking about getting into the tech industry, WelsonRossman says there’s something for everyone at the Women in Tech Summit. For starters, sessions and workshops this year will provide attendees with the opportunity to learn JavaScript skills, get familiar with Git, find out how to better build a digital brand, explore the future of big data and even adopt basic business skills like negotiating and networking. “Women in the industry, we really need to be helping each other,” said Welson-Rossman. “Economically, it’s where the money is continuing to be at,” she added. “Each year we’re continuing to learn more and more about what’s going on in the tech world, but doing it in a way that we believe is more substantial.”

“You’ll find there’s a lot of energy in a room. Not only are you going to learn, but you’re going to meet women in the community.” —TRACEY WELSON-ROSSMAN, EVENT ORGANIZER AND TECHGIRLZ FOUNDER

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Proudly sponsors

Philly Tech Week 2015 PHMC is a nonprofit public health institute that creates and sustains healthier communities. It fulfills its mission to improve the health of the community by providing outreach, health promotion, education, research, planning, technical assistance and direct services. PHMC has served the region since 1972. Member FDIC. Citizens Bank is a brand name of Citizens Bank, N.A. and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. 493258

Centre Square East 1500 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19102 P 215.985.2500 F 215.985.2550 PHMC.ORG

At the 2015 NET/WORK Philly jobs fair

How to build a tech scene

Entrepreneurs and academics have identified the ingredients. Does Philly have them? // by JULIANA REYES

o one would hire him. ¶ Sick of his corporate job, Wil Reynolds went from Philly tech company to tech company, resume in hand, literally knocking on doors in search of a new gig. Half.com. GSI Commerce. Omnient. His asking price was $48,000. With three years at an online marketing startup under his belt, it was reasonable, right? He didn’t get one interview. ¶ The bubble had just burst and Reynolds had not so long ago watched that online marketing startup, a Connecticut company called NetMarketing, implode along with it. He thought he’d take a break from the all-consuming startup life by taking a gig at a big company, but it quickly became obvious that he didn’t belong there. He needed out. PHOTO BY NEAL SANTOS

ohn Moore fell into angel investing. A biomechanical engineer by trade, he spent the first half of his career at international companies like the Bethlehem, Pa.-based B. Braun Medical and a Norristown automotive leather supplier called Seton Company. In early 2000, he quit the corporate world and moved to the city. In between jobs, he started working with startups, helping them build business plans and strategies. It’s a move he laughs at now, calling it a “dumb T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

Wil Reynolds

idea,” because it’s hard to get paid when consulting for cash-strapped startups. But, he said, with startups, “you just get sucked in.”

aurie Actman is helping build the new Penn. The university’s is forgoing its conservative, traditional Ivy League image for one that’s more bustling entrepreneurial hub, a place that supports and encourages faculty to start their own ventures. It’s trying to change the culture of Penn where, as one Penn Medicine grad-turnedfounder put it, entrepreneurialism was sometimes seen as “dirty” or “evil” compared to the ivory tower of academia. With a series of recent spinouts, Actman is trying to change that. A tech scene is more than the sum of its parts, but Reynolds, Moore and Actman are representatives of three key pillars of the region’s growing innovation ecosystem. They represent, respectively, the entrepreneurs, investors and institutional anchors needed to make a tech community hum. As Philly Tech Week turns five, we at Technical. ly Philly went searching for the elements that make a successful tech scene — and how that recipe is playing out in the Philadelphia area. Academics and entrepreneurs alike have tried to tease out the factors that make a tech scene strong. We’re no different. For this report, we talked to experts, read reports and went through our past coverage. Here’s what we found.

il Reynolds’ breaking point came when his boss refused to let him shift his schedule so he could play with sick kids at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Sick kids, people. So he quit and started his own search marketing firm, SEER Interactive. A dozen years later, Reynolds, now 37, has built a tiny online marketing empire in a corner of Philadelphia that’s seen its fortunes turn, too. His team of nearly 100, including a growing office in San Diego, helps clients like Alibaba, ASOS and Amazon Web Services boost their web presence. SEER has since relocated to get the whole Philly team in one place, but most of the team has long worked out of an iconic former church (“the Search Church”) in Northern Liberties, in whose sanctuary they’d host tech events, with attendees lining the old wooden pews. Entrepreneurs like Reynolds, those running web development firms and software consultancies and venture-backed startups, are perhaps the most obvious pillar of a tech scene. They’re the lifeblood, the ones that other players in a tech scene exist to serve. But what else does it take to build a tech scene? Does Philly have those qualities? And where does the the region’s tech scene veer from the norm?

P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M • T E C H N I C A L . LY/ P H I L LY

Laurie Actman

ntrepreneurs, investors and what one academic described as “a culture of openness.” Those are the main three things that came up again and again in our hunt for the elements of a thriving tech scene. Those are the “obvious ones,” Babson professor Daniel Isenberg said in an interview with the Harvard Business Review about how to create a startup ecosystem. All three contributed to the rankings in the Startup Genome’s 2012 Startup Ecosystem Report, a 125-page paper written by a crew of entrepreneurs and academics that might be the most ambitious and buzzed-about effort to rank tech scenes around the world. Silicon Valley won the top spot, with non-U.S. cities like Vancouver; Sao Paulo, Brazil and Santiago, Chile taking the bulk of the spots in the top 20. Philadelphia did not make that list — though the Startup Genome’s 2014 research is now underway and local leaders are encouraging Philly founders to participate in the survey so the city can be represented. Researchers looked at eight categories, including the usual suspects: amount of venture capital in a city, number of startups and entrepreneurial activity, “the mindset index” (“how well the population of founders in a given ecosystem thinks like a great entrepreneur,” according to the report) and the quality of a tech scene’s support system. Philadelphia’s support system is one of its strong suits. It boasts the thousand-member-strong, volunteerrun Philly Startup Leaders group (Reynolds joined its board late last year) that runs a popular listserv

John Moore

where anyone can ask for help and regularly taps more experienced entrepreneurs to share their knowledge with up-and-comers. Time and time again, we’ve heard that Philly’s entrepreneurs are, above all, accessible. You only have to ask. The current mayoral administration has also spent the last few years throwing its weight behind the tech scene, launching a seed fund and other grant programs under the StartUp PHL umbrella, as well as conducting more symbolic gestures like attending ribbon cuttings every time a 10-person startup moves to a new office. (With the Nutter administration scheduled to be out the door this year, this element could be dialed back.) On the flip side, Philadelphia’s early-stage capital landscape is one area where the ecosystem falls short. While the number of venture capital deals in the region increased 42 percent from 2009 to 2013, according to a report from World Class Greater Philadelphia, it still hasn’t broken into the top ten list of U.S. locations with the largest volume of venture capital investment. The deals are simply smaller. The 2013 value of an average Philly deal was $3.3 million, which is less than half the national average of $7.2 million, the report said. How to build up that investment community? It’s kind of a chicken-or-egg problem.

“You need that ecosystem full of good entrepreneurs,” said Martin Kenney, a professor at the University of California, San Diego who studies venture capital. “Entrepreneurs come first. Then VCs follow. Then VCs attract entrepreneurs. It’s a virtuous circle.” Philadelphia’s flourishing, venture-backed startups like RJMetrics, DuckDuckGo and Curalate, have imported their venture dollars. If enough startups import venture dollars, venture capitalists will take note, Kenney said. That’s when they’ll set up shop in a city. (The city’s bootstrapping community would argue about the importance of venture capital, though Kenney said that bootstrapping can’t always take you far enough. Reynolds himself has never raised money for SEER Interactive and doesn’t plan to — “That’s freeing because I’m nobody’s bitch,” he said.) Philadelphia investors do exist, though, and a look at the city’s angel investment community offers a window into how the city is trying to find a regional identity.

ohn Moore admits it was a little awkward. Back when he had first fallen in to advising startups, he found himself staying on to work even after a contract (and the startup’s cash) had run out. So why not get paid in equity? The natural next step was to start angel investing. The company that led Moore into the investing game was Black Gold Biofuels, a spinoff of the Energy Co-op that turns grease from Philly’s sewers into diesel fuel. That was in 2005. The decade that followed was all about upping his participation in the community. He joined angel group Robin Hood Ventures in 2006, became managing partner there a few years later, joined social impact angel investment group Investors Circle in 2010 and became president in 2012. Today, Moore’s portfolio, which he describes as “modest,” includes more than two dozen companies from the Philadelphia region, like sustainable laundry service Wash Cycle Laundry, litter-fighting clothing retailer United by Blue and women’s financial advice website DailyWorth. If you noticed a trend in Moore’s portfolio, that’s by design. He tends to invest in entrepreneurs who have an eye toward both profit and social change. That’s because of a personal belief that these types of companies can have a real impact on the world but also because it plays to how this city’s tech scene can thrive. “It’s hard for us to compete on tech,” he said, invoking giants like Silicon Valley and New York City and arguing, like others have, for creating an identity around the region’s strengths, like healthcare IT and social entrepreneurship. If we create a place where those kinds of startups want to be, the thinking goes, the startup scene could flourish. That points to another element in judging the health of an ecosystem: how different it is from Silicon Valley. “Since Silicon Valley is the #1 ecosystem it is assumed that other ecosystems will perform better if they differentiate themselves from Silicon Valley and establish their own strengths,” the Startup Genome

It’s worth noting that part of what makes Philadelphia’s tech scene strong is its breadth: it touches many corners of the city, from civic hackers building apps for the greater good to the tech education groups paving the way for more women to enter the tech industry. report said. Philadelphia is working on finding its innovation identity, as some declare that it should be “the Silicon Valley of health IT” or “the countrywide hub of social entrepreneurs.” It’s worth noting that part of what makes Philadelphia’s tech scene strong is its breadth: it touches many corners of the city, from civic hackers building apps for the greater good to the tech education groups paving the way for more women to enter the tech industry.

nother important element of tech ecosystems is the anchor institution. Silicon Valley has Stanford, Boston has MIT and San Diego has its University of California outpost, whose spinouts have helped turn that city into a telecommunications hub. Philadelphia has the good fortune of having several universities, all of which are angling to groom entrepreneurs and birth companies and talent. Penn is arguably the leader, at least in terms of research investment: it has historically spent 9x more than its three neighboring universities in terms of research. (In 2012, Penn spent $911.1 million on research; the second biggest spender, Temple University, spent $130.6 million.) But despite its deep pockets, Penn hasn’t been a huge force in launching startups borne of faculty research. That’s where Laurie Actman comes in. Actman’s trajectory in the Philadelphia tech scene is coming full circle. In the early 2000s, Actman, as policy director for the business attraction outfit Select Greater Philadelphia, helped author a study about tech transfer in Philadelphia. She wrote about the city’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, specifically trying to answer the question: What’s holding it back? Ten years later, after stints at City Hall, a cleantech startup and a multimillion-dollar energy research project, she’s back again, trying to answer that question, but this time, as the chief operating officer of Penn’s new Center for Innovation. The Center builds upon the work of Actman’s boss, John Swartley, who led the entrepreneurial charge when he came to the university in 2010. Penn spinouts have seen some recent success: Graphene Frontiers, a spinout of Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences, closed a $1.6 million Series B last year and

KMeL Robotics, spun out of Penn’s robotics lab, was recently acquired by Qualcomm for an undisclosed amount. If Swartley and Actman have their way, that’s just the start. They’re running a number of efforts, like the launch of a business incubator in Grays Ferry (where KMeL Robotics, among others, is headquartered) and a National Science Foundation-backed accelerator for students, faculty and staff. They’re also hosting events to promote university research, which they hope will help build a culture of celebrating entrepreneurialism in tandem with academia, rather than seeing them as adversaries.

hiladelphia, as a tech ecosystem, is also looking for its success stories. “When one entrepreneur succeeds, it inspires a whole generation of entrepreneurs to say it’s possible, I can do it too,” said Isenberg, the Babson professor. Consider Josh Kopelman, the cofounder of Half. com, which he sold to eBay for $350 million in 2000. He’s now the managing partner of First Round Capital, one of the country’s top venture capital firms. First Round has “given back” to Philadelphia, symbolically, by moving from the suburbs into the city to support the growth of the city’s tech sector. On the practical side, however, the contribution is more pronounced: The VC firm is running the city’s StartUp PHL seed fund, bringing its expertise (and additional funding) to the effort. Despite Kopelman’s great success, his story’s dotcom era roots may be a bit removed from the current cohort of entrepreneurs building tech companies in Philadelphia. Which brings us to one more element in healthy tech scenes: time. “In the first decade, you are largely making it up,” wrote New York City venture capitalist Fred Wilson on his blog. “In the second decade, you start to get it right.” Finally, “in the third decade,” he wrote, “the ecosystem is fully formed and producing great companies.” Depending on how you count it, Philly’s startup scene is nearing the end of its first decade. The second should be exciting. Now it just has to make it to the third.

T E C H N I C A L . LY / P H I L LY • P H I L LY T E C H W E E K . C O M

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