Summer 2006
Thank You to Speakers, Sponsors and Friends for a Successful 2006 Luncheon!
Business, research, and government leaders from across the state gathered in Seattle on May 15th for the Technology Alliance’s State of Technology luncheon, an exciting and informative event which culminated in an entertaining and insightful keynote conversation between Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos and TA board member Ed Lazowska. The program also featured incoming TA chair Marty Smith presenting a preview of the results of our latest, comprehensive benchmarking study measuring Washington’s progress in education, research and entrepreneurship against that of our competitor states.
The Alliance of Angels kicked off the event with the announcement of its third annual Startup of the Year Award, which was presented to Pacific Bioscience Laboratories by TA board member John Stanton. And the audience received a special treat when William H. Gates, Sr., the TA’s founding chair back in 1996, took the stage to speak about the origins of our technology economy and the smart choices that business and government leaders made over the past several decades, and must make today, to position Washington for the future. Current chair Tom Alberg rounded out the celebration with a retrospective of the TA’s accomplishments over our ten-year history.
The Technology Alliance thanks everyone who participated in the luncheon for helping to make it a great success. In particular, we gratefully acknowledge our sponsors, whose support makes possible not only this event but also many worthwhile programs and initiatives produced by the TA throughout the year.
Did you miss it?! View portions of the luncheon program online at the Seattle Channel and TV-W web sites at www.seattlechannel.org or www.tv-w.org.
Progress and Pitfalls: Measuring Washington’s Performance in the Key Drivers of a Vibrant Technology-based Economy
Excellent K-12 and higher education systems, to prepare our kids for the knowledge-based jobs of the future...
Strong research capacity, to generate the discoveries and technologies of tomorrow...
A robust entrepreneurial climate, to support the growth of innovative young companies that create new products, services, and jobs...
These are the essential elements of a successful technology-based economy. In 2003, the Technology Alliance benchmarked Washington’s performance in these critical areas against that of eight peer states with similarly technology-intensive economies: California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Texas and Virginia. Now, three years later, we measure Washington’s progress and examine the potential pitfalls for our state’s long-term competitiveness.
Alliance of Angels Startup of the Year Award: Sonic Science and Skin Care Prove a Heavenly Mix for Pacific Bioscience Laboratories
Pacific Bioscience Laboratories, the Bellevue-based developer of the CLARISONIC skin care brush, rose above a strong field of six finalists to capture the 2006 Startup of the Year Award, which recognizes entrepreneurial excellence in the Pacific Northwest. The award was presented to CEO David Giuliani and COO Mike Stull at the State of Technology Luncheon in Seattle on May 15th.
Learn Something New – Register for the Science & Technology Discovery Series!
Get up close and personal with our state’s leading scientists. Discover groundbreaking research taking place in your own back yard. Experience science and technology like you never have before.
You don’t have to take notes, but you just might find that you want to.
The new season of the Technology Alliance’s popular Science & Technology Discovery Series* starts in September! With programs in Seattle and Spokane, the Discovery Series features presentations on the latest research at our preeminent institutions and innovative companies in an intimate setting.
The Seattle Discovery Series kicks off on September 8th with Dr. Steve Malone, professor of earth and space sciences at University of Washington, sharing his expert insights on the recent volcanic activity at Mt. St. Helens. The Seattle program features ten monthly breakfast presentations from September through June. For more information or to become a member, click here.
The Spokane Discovery Series has expanded! The new season will feature seven breakfasts between September and June, starting with Dr. Lee Siwek, cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at Sacred Heart Medical Center, on September 22nd. Dr. Siwek will speak about the use of the da Vinci robot in cardiac bypass surgery. For more information or to become a member, click here.
*Formerly Science & Technology Roundtable
Flour Power: WSU Wheat Breeder Kimberlee Kidwell Concludes the 2005-2006 Season of Seattle Science & Technology Roundtable
Some fascinating science goes into the bread that we buy. Oatmeal may be the perennial favorite of the STRT faithful, but as we learned from Dr. Kimberlee Kidwell at the final breakfast of the 2005-2006 season, wheat is really neat.
Technology Alliance Board Elects Marty Smith as New Chair, Welcomes New Members
The Technology Alliance is pleased to announce the election of Marty Smith, partner in Preston Gates & Ellis LLP and a long-time advocate for education, as our new chair. We also welcomed four outstanding business and community leaders to the board at its May 25th meeting: Mic Dinsmore of the Port of Seattle; Michael Martino of Sonus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Tom Vander Ark of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; and Peter Wilson of Google.
Welcome New Alliance of Angels Fellows!
A warm welcome to our 2006-07 AoA program managers: Rebecca Lovell, full-time Preston Gates & Ellis Fellow, and Avniel Dravid, part-time Alliance of Angels fellow.
Our thanks and best wishes to our departing 2005-06 fellows, Edward Hansen and Erik Hanson.
Thank You to Our Geoffrey Moore Workshop Participants!
On July 13th in Seattle, the Technology Alliance was proud to present a special luncheon workshop with Geoffrey Moore, bestselling author of Crossing the Chasm and Inside the Tornado. Geoffrey explored the different ways in which companies innovate and revealed how companies can overcome their own inertia and manage resources more effectively in pursuit of innovation. After the workshop, Geoffrey took the time to chat with members of the audience and sign copies of his latest book, Dealing with Darwin: How Great Companies Innovate at Every Phase of Their Evolution. If you missed it, you can download the podcast here.
The Technology Alliance would like to thank Geoffrey, Kim Ricketts Books, and the following sponsors for their part in making the workshop a great success: Cisco Systems; Enpria, Inc.; F5 Networks, Inc.; Microsoft Windows Live; Onyx Software; and Wells Fargo Bank.
