Portland startups, open source, and tech news, jobs, and events #pdx
The Pacific Northwest FIRST Robotics tournament is an annual competition modeled after varsity sports, pitting high school student teams and their full-size robots—some weighing hundreds of pounds and standing as much as six feet tall—against one-another on a playing field about the size of a basketball court. Read More
No matter how much you love technology, getting into the magical world of smart homes can be daunting. Because it’s not immediately obvious how to do it. Or how much effort and money it will take. And if you’re renting, it’s nearly impossible—no matter how much technical acumen you possess. That’s why IOTAS is rethinking the way we engage with smart home technology, by building the infrastructure in at the start. Read More
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: Portland is a great R&D shop. Especially for ideas that involve community and collaboration. Test it here. Iterate. And then look for opportunities to repeat what you’ve learned. That’s why I’m super happy to hear that Portland’s ChickTech—a tech program designed to encourage high school girls and career level women to pursue technology careers—is looking to take its programming to a much larger stage. Read More
Portland startup types are known for being fairly mellow about the way the City of Portland manages things. We’re not a terribly politically motivated crew, for whatever reason. But there are a few recent events—which directly impacted the way the City works with startups who are upending status quo—that have the community a little more engaged than usual. Perhaps no flashpoint has been more obvious than that whole Uber thing. Read More
In many ways, Eugene is way ahead of the Portland startup scene—especially when it comes to the tightly knit gaming community. In other ways, Portland has taken the lead with some concepts. Whatever the case, it’s always nice to have a comparable community to gauge progress and share ideas. That’s why I’m psyched to share these new resources for the Eugene community. Read More
Unless you’ve been under a redstone for the past few years, you’ve undoubtedly come across Minecraft, the game that allows multiple players to build, mine, and battle within a blocky 8-bit-esque environment. You can build practically anything there. And now, some folks have decided to recreate Portland on the platform. Read More
Portland is home to its fair share of hackathons, but it’s not often that they’re held by major corporations in town. That’s why I’ve been watching the Nike Women’s Hackathon with interest. It’s sold out. But they have a waitlist if you’d like to sign up. Read More
You know me. I’m a sucker for a good video. Mostly because it means I don’t have to write a lot of copy. Err… I mean, you’ve seen me go all giddy over those Techtown Portland videos. But what’s even better? When you get a single startup showcasing what they’re trying to do. And how they work. And what makes them special. Whether they hype Portland or not. That’s why I was really happy to see this new video from Portland’s Puppet Labs. Read More
One of the most popular reasons for relocating to the Northwest centers around “easier access to the outdoors.” Camping, hiking, boating, skiing… yada yada yada. I could go on and on. But sometimes having access and getting out are a little more far apart than they should be. That’s why Outdoor Project wants to help. Read More