2022 Luncheon

After two years online, the 2022 State of Technology Luncheon was one of the Tech Alliance’s first in-person events following the peak of the COVID pandemic. We were thrilled to have Yoko Miyashita, CEO, Leafly as our keynote speaker alongside Pallavi Wahi, Co-Managing Partner, K&L Gates. Additionally, it was a lively discussion with additional speakers Jonathan Sposato, Magda Balazinska, and Michelle Reid. This year’s diverse panel of speakers helped celebrate the Tech Alliance’s 25th anniversary by bringing insight related to our three pillars - education, research, and entrepreneurship.

2021 Luncheon

The 2021 State of Technology Luncheon was held virtually for the second year in a row. Adam Selipsky, CEO, Amazon Web Services (AWS) was joined in conversation with Hanson Hosein, Emmy Award-winning storyteller, educator, and co-founder of the Communication Leadership graduate program at the UW, to speak about the role of leadership through business transformation and its influence as organizations across the globe accelerate their digital ecosystem.

2020 Luncheon

In an extraordinary year, the TA hosted our landmark State of Technology Luncheon entirely virtually for the first time ever. We were thrilled to welcome Mary Kipp, CEO, Puget Sound Energy as the featured speaker alongside Heather Redman, Partner, Flying Fish Ventures. Ms. Kipp shared her thoughts on innovation in the energy sector and her plans to make Puget Sound Energy a leader when it comes to solving climate change - a timely discussion as more big companies work to become carbon negative, tech employees challenging their corporate leadership to make improvements in sustainability, and a worldwide conversation around changing weather patterns continues.

In addition, three local leaders discussed how to maintain our local innovation community through continued support of our educated workforce, research capacity building and encouraging an entrepreneurial climate:

• Lauren Sato (CEO, Ada Developers Academy)

• Andre-Denis Wright (Dean, College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, WSU)

• Andriane Brown (Venture Partner, Flying Fish Ventures)

2019 Luncheon

That technology is revolutionizing everything from the way airplanes fly to the way we send satellites into space was highlighted in this year’s State of Technology Luncheon on April 26th, 2019 at the Seattle Sheraton. The Technology Alliance was thrilled to welcome Brad Tilden (CEO of Alaska Airlines) in conversation with Ken Worzel (President of Nordstrom.com) as keynote presenters.

Showcasing the region’s entrepreneurial spirit, three local companies using technology to innovate air and space shared their stories:

• Tom Gibbons (CEO of APiJET)

• Roei Ganzarski (CEO of magniX)

• Curt Blake (CEO of Spaceflight).

2018 Luncheon

More than 750 regional executives and leaders from business, education, research, and government joined Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman at the Technology Alliance’s annual State of Technology luncheon at the Seattle Westin. The event also featured three local companies - Loftium, Blokable, and Quadrant Homes - using technology to change housing and our homes. Both Redfin and Blokable recently won GeekWire Awards, Redfin for IPO Deal of the Year and Blokable for best new hardware.

Kelman was interviewed by Streem Chief Revenue Officer Liz Pearce (formerly CEO of LiquidPlanner), who is also a board member of the Technology Alliance. The conversation covered a wide-range of topics with Pearce and Kelman discussing the challenges of leadership when the country seems divided both ideologically and economically, maintaining an entrepreneurial culture in a larger organization, and the growing role that technology companies play in shaping the region and our society at large.

Showcasing the region’s entrepreneurial spirit, three local companies using technology to change different aspects of the housing market each also shared their stories.

• Yifan Zhang, CEO & Co-Founder of Loftium, shared that startup’s approach to using Airbnb income to help first-time home buyers afford a down payment.

• Aaron Holm, Co-CEO of Blokable, discussed the company’s modular, smart housing units.

• Ken Krivanec, President of Quadrant Homes in Washington, provided the sizzle the audience was looking for when he highlighted the HomeSmart features that now come standard in most Quadrant Homes.

2017 Luncheon

In May 2017, the Technology Alliance welcomed Co-Founder of LinkedIn and Partner at Greylock Partners Reid Hoffman and angel investor Sarah Imbach at its annual State of Technology Luncheon. The event showcased the region’s tech and innovation strengths and pointed to areas where more work is needed. A summary of the data shared is noted in this brochure. The message at the luncheon was clear: innovation drives economic growth, both opportunity and impact, and it is incumbent on all of us to work together on the areas that need strengthening (view full presentation).

Following Hoffman and Imbach was surprise guest speaker UW President Ana Mari Cauce to introduce and recognize Ed Lazowska for his advocacy and contributions to advancing computer science across the state for nearly four decades. Lazowska is the Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering at UW and a long-time Tech Alliance board member. Lazowska then provided closing remarks.

The State of Technology Luncheon is the premier annual event for Washington’s innovation community, and this year brought nearly 800 leaders from more than 250 businesses, educational institutions, leading non-profits, and government to listen and learn from one of the tech and innovation industry’s foremost leaders. Washington has a robust economy, and the Tech Alliance works to broaden and deepen the reach of our tech-driven economic growth.

2013 Luncheon

The 2013 luncheon featured a keynote conversation with Rich Barton, Co-founder & Executive Chairman, Zillow, Co-Founder & Non-executive Chairman, Glassdoor, Founder and former President & CEO, Expedia, facilitated by Ed Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering, University of Washington.

Rich Barton has a passion for using technology to empower people, increase transparency, and challenge the status quo - building multi-billion dollar companies and disrupting entire industries in the process. He forever changed the travel landscape while building Expedia into a household name. He demystified residential real estate at Zillow, putting more information than ever before at homebuyers' fingertips. And, he brought us unprecedented access inside the halls and cubicles of America's employers with the creation of Glassdoor.

On May 29th, nearly 800 business, research, and policy leaders from around the state joined us to explore, with one of Seattle's most prolific and successful entrepreneurs, how far we can go in using technology to revolutionize business as we know it - and how Washington can be more competitive in this new transformation economy.

2012 Luncheon

The 2012 luncheon, "Building a Billion Dollar Business, Optimizing Economic Opportunity," featured a keynote conversation with John McAdam, President, CEO & Director of Seattle-based F5 Networks, Inc., facilitated by Ed Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering.

King County Executive Dow Constantine opened the luncheon with a welcome address. TA Chair Jeremy Jaech shared highlights from our latest economic impact study measuring the growing contributions of Washington's technology-based industries to statewide employment. In addition, TA Chair-elect Cheryl Vedoe, CEO of Apex Learning Inc., recognized Mobisante as the 2012 Innovation Showcase Company of the Year during the luncheon program.

2011 Luncheon

The 2011 State of Technology Luncheon featured a keynote conversation with the USA's first-ever Chief Technology Officer, Aneesh Chopra. Chopra serves as Assistant to the President and Associate Director for Technology in the Office of Science & Technology Policy. Chopra shared his vision for harnessing the power of technology and innovation in a keynote conversation facilitated by Ed Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington.

Governor Chris Gregoire delivered the welcome address to open the luncheon program, while TA Chair Jeremy Jaech delivered an impassioned speech in which he urged Washington business and policy leaders to rally behind strategic investments and innovative reforms to improve K-12 and higher education outcomes in our state. Chad Waite, Managing Director at OVP Venture Partners, announced the latest investment results of the Alliance of Angels and recognized LiquidPlanner, developer of online project management software, as AoA Company of the Year.

2010 Luncheon

Other Previous Keynote Speakers

• 2009 Ray Ozzie, Microsoft

• 2008 Vint Cerf, Google

• 2007 Steve Ballmer, Microsoft

• 2006 Jeff Bezos, Amazon

• 2005 Eric Schmidt, Google

• 2004 Nathan Myhrvold, Intellectual Ventures

• 2003 Alan Mullally Boeing

• 2002 Bill Gates, Microsoft

• 2001 Geoffrey Moore, Author

• 2000 John Stanton, VoiceStream/Western Wireless

• 1999 Lee Hood, University of Washington

• 1998 Bill Gates, Microsoft