Member news: January 2023
2023 Arizona SciTech Festival set to kick off
Sensory-stimulating science experiments. Awe-inspiring robots. Automated vehicle advancements. Sustainable farming innovations. Life-science breakthroughs. Arizonans of all ages will be able to experience all of this and much more at the 2023 Arizona SciTech Festival, the state’s annual celebration of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). The Festival is set to kick off Saturday, Jan. 21, from the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction at WestWorld of Scottsdale, where attendees can enjoy a STEM pavilion, exhibitor booths, automobiles, electric vehicles and more. Read more >>
Eurofins CellTx Cellular therapy-focused laboratory opens at UA Tech Park in Tucson, AZ
Eurofins CellTx which provides comprehensive laboratory services to meet the unique testing and processing needs of the transplant community, has officially began operating in the new laboratory located at the University of Arizona (UA) Tech Park. Eurofins CellTx is a member of the Eurofins Transplant Diagnostics family of laboratories and part Eurofins Scientific, a leading international group of laboratories providing an unparalleled range of testing and support services to the pharmaceutical, food, environmental and consumer products industries and to governments. Read more >>
Higher ed meets Hollywood: ASU-incubated VR company raises $20M to transform STEM education
Terkel guest post: How to make the most out of a technology conference
Do you find yourself looking forward to conferences, but being unsure of how to make the most of the experience while you’re there? AZTC member Terkel compiled a list of 16 tips from business leaders that vary from researching the speakers before attending to constructing your pitch to be ready for networking opportunities. Read more to get prepared for your 2023 conference schedule today. Read more >>
Valley hospitality tech co. partners with Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee to staff Super Bowl LVII events
Qwick, the technology-enabled leader in staffing for hospitality businesses and freelancers, has partnered with the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee in preparation for the massive tourism influx expected throughout the Phoenix metro area leading up to February’s game. The new partnership between Qwick and the Host Committee, a nonprofit corporation that drives lasting social and economic impact by serving as the trusted organizational resource and concierge for hotels, restaurants, and other hospitality venues, positions Qwick as the Committee’s exclusive hospitality staffer and recommended staffing platform. Read more >>
Transportation, workforce, water among 2023 policy priorities for AAED
Transportation and broadband infrastructure. Clear development agreements. Make Arizona more competitive. Ensuring a qualified workforce. Water conservation. Those are some of the main policy priorities for 2023 being embraced by the Arizona Association for Economic Development (AAED), according to Executive Director Carrie Kelly. “Our 2023 policy priorities are part of the ongoing multi-year strategic plan we set for the organization,” Kelly said. Read more >>
Wells Fargo launches $20M Invest Native initiative for Native American communities
Wells Fargo announces a $20 million commitment to advance economic opportunities in Native American communities working with Native-led organizations. The Invest Native initiative aims to address housing, small business, financial health, and sustainability among Native American communities in Arizona, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The program is designed as a grantmaking initiative — to support a more equitable and prosperous future for Native Americans. Read more >>
Intel extends performance leadership with world’s fastest mobile processor
At CES in Las Vegas, Intel announced its 13th Gen Intel® Core™ mobile processors that bring superior performance and experiences to mobile platforms. Intel introduced 32 new 13th Gen Intel Core mobile processors with a rich suite of features and capabilities for all laptop segments. “The 13th Gen Intel Core mobile processor family delivers unrivaled, scalable performance for leadership platforms across all laptop segments,” said Michelle Johnston Holthaus, executive vice president and general manager of the Client Computing Group at Intel. Read more >>
ASU faculty members selected to lead proposal for microelectronics research, development in the Southwest
Two Arizona State University faculty members were selected to lead a regional proposal that will advance microelectronics research, development, education, and training in the Southwest. ASU President Michael Crow appointed Sally Morton, executive vice president of ASU’s Knowledge Enterprise, and Kyle Squires, dean of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, to lead a team of faculty, staff and strategic partners to establish the Microelectronics Commons, a national network funded by the CHIPs and Science Act of 2022. Read more >>
Arizona healthcare co. partners to offer healthcare services to active-duty members and veterans
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona announced that it will be supporting the contract awarded to TriWest Healthcare Alliance to administer the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) next generation TRICARE program, known as “T-5,” for its 26-state West Region territory. TRICARE is the uniformed services health care program for active duty service members (ADSMs), active duty family members (ADFMs), National Guard and Reserve members and their family members, retirees and retiree family members, survivors, and certain former spouses. Read more >>
Phil Gallagher of Avnet: The stalwart CEO
In 1982, Phil Gallagher was attending Drexel University in Philadelphia, near where he grew up in South Jersey. Cash-strapped and tapped out on loans while in a co-op program with classes half the year and full-time employment with a business the other half, he was worried he wouldn’t be able to finish his degree. Then a manager at a company where Gallagher had worked set up a lunch for him with a man named Jack Green, an employee of Hamilton Avnet, to talk about a sales job, paid on a 100% commission scale. Read more >>
Quarles to combine with California law firm Paul, Plevin, Sullivan & Connaughton LLP
Quarles & Brady LLP is set to significantly boost its national footprint with its combination with California-based Paul, Plevin, Sullivan & Connaughton LLP, a management-side labor and employment law firm. The deal is set to close on Jan. 1. The expansion establishes Quarles’ brick-and-mortar presence in California and brings its attorney headcount to about 500 lawyers across 11 U.S. offices. Paul, Plevin, Sullivan is headquartered in San Diego, with 30 attorneys plus 25 other professional services employees on the payroll. Read more >>
Final phase of Phoenix Sky Harbor’s rail train system to open
The final stage of of the PHX Sky Train has been completed and will open later this week to the public. The train system that connects the terminals of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to its parking lots and public transit stops now has been extended to a new station in Phoenix at 24th Street and Buckeye Road and to the Sky Harbor Rental Car Station. The project cost $745 million to complete. It was funded with rental car customer facility charges and airline passenger facility charges. Phoenix boasts that no tax dollars were used for the completion of the final phase of the Sky Train. Read more >>
Finland-based Vincit expands by leasing Scottsdale office space
A year and a half after the acquisition of a Valley tech company, Vincit is expanding into a new office in Scottsdale. Vincit will move into a 4,268-square-foot space in south Scottsdale at the Quad, bringing 25 employees to its new space located just southwest of Old Town. The firm first expanded into Arizona in April 2021 after it acquired Scottsdale web marketing firm Vuria Creative Technology. Read more >>
Phoenix Sky Harbor becomes first airport in the world to offer rider-only autonomous vehicle service
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, America’s Friendliest Airport®, has set another milestone today with Waymo launching fully autonomous vehicle service to the general public at Phoenix Sky Harbor. Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego arrived today at the 44th Street and Washington PHX Sky Train® Station via a Waymo vehicle to launch the new service. This set a global milestone as Phoenix Sky Harbor became the first airport in the world to offer travelers the ability to take a Waymo autonomous vehicle as a means of transportation to and from the airport. Read more >>
Waymo expands ‘rider only’ service in Phoenix
Waymo has expanded the area it is operating its autonomous ride-hailing service in Phoenix, which will include service to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The company, a subsidiary of Google owner Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL), announced Friday that it will now operate its Waymo One in an expanded service area in Phoenix. Now it roughly runs between I-17 to 40th Street and from Camelback Road to the Salt River. Waymo One is the name of the company’s fully autonomous service. Read more >>
Phoenix Community Alliance announces 2022 Center City Awards winners
December 2022 TechCast | The Key to Improving Tech Outcomes: Project Management
The December 2022 episode of the Arizona Technology Council’s AZTechCast podcast featured experts including Mary Kirk, principal consultant and lead DEI at Allata; J.T. Moomau, vice president, solutions delivery at Per Scholas; and Joe Pusz, president, The PMO Squad. These leaders joined Karen Nowicki, president and owner of Phoenix Business RadioX, and Steve Zylstra, president and CEO of the Arizona Technology Council, in discussing how technology companies can utilize project management to better deliver strategic initiatives. Read more >>