Builders Live

Entrepreneurship, small business growth and tech workforce development are among the few reliably bipartisan issues left in Washington. Do the midterm election results change that? Does a divided federal government put more pressure on states to support entrepreneurs? And what does the new makeup of Congress mean for multi-year initiatives like the EDA Tech Hubs and NSF Engines?

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Jason Rittenberg, Principal at Excel Regional Solutions for a conversation about how the midterm election results could impact new business formation, and how local ecosystems can build sustainable, homegrown economic momentum regardless of who’s in power.

Recorded November 11, 2026.

What are the systemic blockers holding back founders?

At the 2026 International Economic Development Council conference in New Orleans, Victor Hwang of Right to Start, venture investor Rae'Mah Henderson, Tony Zanders of Nexus Louisiana, Taylor Eubanks of BlendHQ and Technical.ly cofounder and publisher Christopher Wink discuss the evolving relevance of "ecosystem building," the necessity of embedding startup advocacy into state policy, the disruptive impact of AI on the future of entrepreneurship and more.

Recorded October 28, 2026.

When we look at emerging multi-city economic corridors across the US, is megaregional scale an automatic economic superpower — or an unmanageable governance challenge? The Austin-San Antonio area can provide lessons, with two distinct anchor metros merging into a unified megaregion, balancing rapid tech cluster formation with critical resource limits like water, power and transit.

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Henry Cisneros, Founder & Senior Advisor at American Triple I and former Mayor of San Antonio, and Jon Roberts, Managing Partner at TIP Strategies, for a conversation about how neighboring metros can collaborate to grow their ecosystems together.

Recorded October 20, 2026.

What are the challenges and opportunities of growing a company in a rural setting? What's different about an entrepreneurship economic development strategy in a lower population state as opposed to a denser one?

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Rich Garman, Director of Economic Development & Finance for the North Dakota Department of Commerce for a conversation about what's unique about rural ecosystems and North Dakota's bets on its economic future.

Recorded October 15, 2026.

Pittsburgh just completed its StartUp PGH event series, with fifteen partner organizations shifting their flagship annual events into a single coordinated week along with new programming. Since the 2010s, collaborative and distributed startup weeks like this have become one of the most prominent methods of ecosystem building — but are they still working?

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Matt Smith, Chief Growth Officer of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development for a conversation about how the startup week model has evolved and lessons for other regions planning their own innovation festivals.

Recorded October 7, 2026.

West Virginia recently established the nation’s first Office of Entrepreneurship operating directly under a statewide elected official, rather than an embedded sub-agency. Secretary of State Kris Warner now spearheads the WV Office of Entrepreneurship, with more than 35 years as a small business owner, real estate developer, incubator owner, and entrepreneur himself. What makes this new office different, and what should other states consider about this approach?

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner for a conversation about how state governments can make entrepreneurship easier and why that matters for economic development.

Recorded September 30, 2026.

What's actually working in supporting high-growth entrepreneurs today, and how can regions help create the next tech unicorn? (And is that even the right goal?)

Co-hosts Victor Hwang of Right to Start, venture investor Rae'Mah Henderson, Taylor Eubanks of BlendHQ and Technical.ly cofounder and publisher Christopher Wink discuss this and other trends in ecosystem building and entrepreneur-led economic development.

Recorded September 23, 2026.

Over the past few years, traditional venture capital funds have increasingly moved up-market toward larger, later-stage rounds, leaving early-stage founders scrambling for initial checks. How are regional and public-private tech funds adapting to fill that widening seed-stage gap across the country? And how can ecosystem leaders balance the driving economic growth with the financial realities of early-stage tech investing?

Technical.ly publisher and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Jonathon Beschen, Managing Director of the Tech Investment Group for Ben Franklin Technology Partners for a conversation about how regional tech ecosystems can build momentum.

Recorded September 2, 2026.

Companies are getting smaller. What does that mean for economic development? The median size of American firms has been declining for years, so are there better metrics to focus on than job growth? How do solopreneurs and "necessity entrepreneurs" fit into the picture? And how will AI impact this trend?

Co-hosts Victor Hwang of Right to Start, venture investor Rae'Mah Henderson, Taylor Eubanks of BlendHQ and Technical.ly cofounder and publisher Christopher Wink discuss this and other trends in ecosystem building and entrepreneur-led economic development.

Recorded August 26, 2026.

Imagine two communities with nearly identical physical assets, institutions, and tax incentives, but dramatically different economic outcomes. What causes the difference? Amy Holloway believes it's trust.

Technical.ly CEO and cofounder Chris Wink is joined by Aha! Advisors president Amy Holloway for a conversation about how to build and measure trust in your ecosystem and the importance of social infrastructure in economic development.

Recorded August 12, 2026.