In 2017, it seems the emergence of the weeklong tech celebration is reaching a high point.
In September, a group of founders and entrepreneurs gathered together to bring the first weeklong startup celebration, DC Startup Week, to life. Now, it's international tech festival Techweek's turn to bring the community together in its first D.C. event.
Starting Friday and running through Oct. 6, Techweek D.C. will include a variety of networking events, panel discussions and fireside chats in a variety of different locations throughout the District. Techweek collects a group of seasoned entrepreneurs and players in any region they're located in to get their feedback, hear more about who they should include and what the D.C. tech scene is focused on.
DC Inno chatted with Techweek CEO Amanda Signorelli to see what were the top five things she's most excited about from her company's first D.C. event.
1. Speakers
According to Techweek's schedule, speakers run the gamut from 1776's Evan Burfield to EverFi's Tammy Wincup to Ted Leonsis. Signorelli said the speaker lineup is what gives Techweek its clout in the inaugural event.
"I think that this market is our best speaker market in terms of who is going to be presenting, and obviously, that's a very big statement," Signorelli said. "The people who are coming out and speaking are just phenomenal."
2. Demos
Techweek's lineup includes a variety of different pitch competitions and startup showcases to highlight the different startups in the region. Events include the "2017 I Love Black People! Pitch Competition" on Tuesday and the "Launch Startup Showcase" on Wednesday.
3. Variety of Startups
Each market is different in terms of what it focuses on and who they bring together. In Kansas City, the festival focuses a lot on smart cities and Internet of Things connectivity, but Signorelli is seeing a different set of players coming to life in the District.
"In D.C., the themes that are coming to light are much different," she said. "It is much more focused on health tech, edtech, data science and how it pertains to the federal government."
4. Diversity at the Forefront
Each person Techweek's team took input from highlighted how important diversity is in the community. On the last day of the conference, 80 percent of the panels will have women participating, Signorelli pointed out. Techweek is hosting a Women in Tech breakfast and a minority founder pitch competition.
"Everyone in the community, whether or not they were explicitly involved with an organization that was promoting diversity, cared about it," Signorelli said. "So, it was something in the room said we had to focus on. Hearing every organization fight for that was really inspiring."
5. Community Engagement
Signorelli highlights the level of dedication she's seeing from the executive advisory board as a hint to how engaged the community will be. Content throughout the entire day is a reality because of their partners, Signorelli said, and most tickets have been sold through word-of-mouth marketing.
"When we were in some of our other markets, there was a focus on evening networking events and people being able to hear pieces of content played back afterward," Signorelli said. "But now what we're hearing from our executive advisory board is that people want to have a way to engage with the content all day."
