Portland, Oregon, startup news - Silicon Florist

Filming on location in Central Oregon during High Desert Innovation Week and Bend Venture Conference, a rough week and a massive week of Oregon tech news. Intel-alum founded Mueon raises $65M (bringing total funding to $80M) to pioneer modular 3D "cublet" AI compute architecture, cybersecurity and AI identity company C1 (formerly ConductorOne) is acquired by Workday, and the Oregon UAS Accelerator brings its defense and autonomy demo day from Pendleton right to Big Pink in Portland. Let's get into it…

CHAPTERS

00:00 - Opening thoughts from Bend & episode overview

01:59 - Vancouver Tech Crawl reminder (Oct 21 with Dave Barkos)

03:10 - Addis Ventures coffee & donuts gathering with Andrew Chen

04:00 - Muon raises $65M: AI "cublets" & 3D modular chip architecture

07:09 - Workday acquires Portland-rooted cybersecurity startup C1 (ConductorOne)

09:39 - Oregon UAS Accelerator demo day comes to Big Pink in Portland

11:44 - Secrets Segment: High Desert Innovation Week & Bend Outdoor Works

13:39 - Saturday Swimwear wins Bend Outdoor Works demo day

13:52 - Patreon thank you & monthly community sticker club

14:55 - Catching up with Jason Schneider: Oregon ecosystem builder event preview

16:15 - Mitch Daugherty interview on The Long Con (Authentic community building)

17:11 - Closing: Take care of yourselves & keep up the good work

LINKS:

Take the opportunity to crawl your way around the tech community in Vancouver, Washington — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/09/take-the-opportunity-to-crawl-your-way-around-the-tech-community-in-vancouver-washington/

North Bank Vancouver Tech Crawl — https://luma.com/northbankcouvecrawl?coupon=SILICONFLORIST

Andrew Chan of Atas VC brings The Road Show to Portland on October 23 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/15/andrew-chan-of-atas-vc-brings-the-road-show-to-portland-on-october-23/

The Road Show (request to join) — https://luma.com/ycmlzr0z

Atas VC — https://atas.vc

Portland startup Mueon raises $65 million Series A with OVF and Intel Capital in the mix — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/15/portland-startup-mueon-raises-65-million-series-a-with-ovf-and-intel-capital-in-the-mix/

Mueon — https://mueon.com

The Information: Mueon raises $65 million — https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/exclusive-mueon-raises-65-million-rework-data-centers-put-together

C1 – formerly known as ConductorOne — to be acquired by Workday — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/13/c1-formerly-known-as-conductorone-to-be-acquired-by-workday/

Workday to acquire C1 — https://www.c1.ai/news/press-release/workday-to-acquire-c1-ai

Oregon UAS Accelerator cohort to take the stage in Portland — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/15/oregon-uas-accelerator-cohort-to-take-the-stage-in-portland/

Oregon UAS Innovation Showcase — https://oregonuas.org/showcase

Bend Outdoor Worx — https://www.bendoutdoorworx.com

Bend Venture Conference — https://www.bendvc.com/

Chatting with Mitch Daugherty about community — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/14/chatting-with-mitch-daugherty-about-community/

Mitch Daugherty on community and connection (The Long Con) — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot54ZfmafTk

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

#pdx #portland #oregon #startup #entrepreneur

Leading the week: Latino Founders opened a 15,000-square-foot Founders Hub on the North Park Blocks, with Senator Ron Wyden on hand for the ribbon cutting. Then Pitch Latino Portland where all ten companies took home $2,000 and crowd favorite Hey Doc Clinic took an extra $10,000, non-dilutive and unrestricted. Then the pitch feedback I kept repeating at OEN's Angel Oregon Tech pitch practice: hook them before you introduce yourself, feed us the logo candy, and don't show up and throw up. Plus the Oregon AI Accelerator's second cohort of 14 companies and the eight Bend Venture Conference Growth Stage companies, with me heading to Bend next week. Quick hits: the North Bank Vancouver Tech Crawl (Oct 21), Demolicious Champion of Champions (Dec 3), and Clarence Bethea's What VCs Won't Say workshop. Then the secrets.

CHAPTERS

00:00 - Oregon startup news intro and quick startup stories

04:45 - Latino Founders opens 15,000 sq ft Hub on North Park Blocks

06:51 - Pitch Latino Portland moves to the Newmark Theatre

08:52 - Hey Doc Clinic wins the $10,000 Pitch Latino grand prize

12:50 - 8 Rules for Stage Pitching:

18:37 - Oregon AI Accelerator reveals Cohort 2

20:03 - Bend Venture Conference 2026 Growth Stage finalists

21:28 - Secrets

LINKS:

Take the opportunity to crawl your way around the tech community in Vancouver, Washington — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/09/take-the-opportunity-to-crawl-your-way-around-the-tech-community-in-vancouver-washington/

North Bank Vancouver Tech Crawl — https://luma.com/northbankcouvecrawl?coupon=SILICONFLORIST

Demolicious Champion of Champions 2026 tickets are now on sale — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/05/demolicious-champion-of-champions-2026-tickets-are-now-on-sale/

Demolicious Champion of Champions tickets — https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/31863486/demoliciouschampion-of-champions-portland-mcmenamins-mission-theater

Latino Founders share insights on Latino Entrepreneurship Week on KGW — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/06/latino-founders-share-insights-on-latino-entrepreneurship-week-on-kgw/

Latino Entrepreneurship Week — https://www.latinoentrepreneurshipweek.com/

Pitch Latino Portland 2026 is in the books. Who took home the big check…? — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/09/pitch-latino-portland-2026-is-in-the-books-who-took-home-the-big-check/

Hey Doc Clinic — https://www.heydocclinic.com/

Latino Founders — https://www.latinofounder.com/

Pitching your startup soon…? Here's the feedback I kept repeating — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/07/pitching-your-startup-soon-heres-the-feedback-i-kept-repeating/

Angel Oregon Tech — https://www.oen.org/2026-technology/

Books for Amazon — https://siliconflorist.com/2021/02/03/what-do-i-mean-when-i-say-that-your-startup-story-should-be-books-for-amazon-lets-let-jeff-bezos-tell-it/

Oregon AI Accelerator launches second cohort — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/06/oregon-ai-accelerator-launches-second-cohort/

Oregon AI Accelerator — https://oregonaix.com/

Bend Venture Conference finalizes Growth Stage slate for 2026 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/05/bend-venture-conference-finalizes-growth-stage-slate-for-2026/

Bend Venture Conference — https://www.bendvc.com/

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

Who knew AI would be the thing that reboots the Silicon Forest? This week: a16z says capital is rotating back to hardware, Portland lands at 53 out of 1,000, and I ran a diff between a governor's debate and my earlier coverage and came up with — not much. Plus, I'm giving away copies of Anika Horn's *It Takes a Valley* to premiere watchers and paid Patreon supporters — and if you stick around for the secrets, it's our third anniversary, and I'm cranky.

LINKS:

Struggling to choose between Pitch Latino Portland and What VCs Won't Say…? Now you can do both — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/29/struggling-to-choose-between-pitch-latino-portland-and-what-vcs-wont-say-now-you-can-do-both/

Pitch Latino Portland — https://www.portland5.com/event/pitch-latino

Investor Ready Workshop with Clarence Bethea — https://luma.com/workshopor

Bend Venture Conference finalizes Early Stage slate for 2026 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/28/bend-venture-conference-finalizes-early-stage-slate-for-2026/

High Desert Innovation Week returns to Bend, October 13–16, 2026 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/high-desert-innovation-week-returns-to-bend-october-13-16-2026/

High Desert Innovation Week — https://www.hdinnovationweek.com/

Bend Venture Conference — https://bendvc.com/

Portland's Prelude Early Learning secures $2M NIH SBIR grant — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/29/portlands-prelude-early-learning-secures-2m-nih-sbir-grant/

Prelude Early Learning — https://preludeearlylearning.com/

My recap of the latest Oregon gubernatorial debate from a startup perspective — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/02/my-recap-of-the-latest-oregon-gubernatorial-debate-from-a-startup-perspective/

Watch the debate — https://www.youtube.com/live/WNCfGur9iwk

Could the AI era mean a reboot of more traditional Silicon Forest activity…? — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/could-the-ai-era-mean-a-reboot-of-more-traditional-silicon-forest-activity/

a16z State of Markets II — https://a16z.com/state-of-markets-ii/

Subsea geothermal startup Endurance Energy drills off the Oregon coast — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/subsea-geothermal-startup-endurance-energy-drills-off-the-oregon-coast/

Endurance Energy — https://www.enduranceenergy.com/

Oregon Entrepreneurs Network secures ~$172K grant. Well, that was FAST. — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/oregon-entrepreneurs-network-secures-172k-grant-well-that-was-fast/

Oregon Entrepreneurs Network — https://www.oen.org/2026/09/28/oregon-entrepreneurs-network-receives-sba-fast-grant-to-expand-support-for-oregon-innovators/

Portland ranks 53rd in the 2026 rankings of top global cities — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/portland-ranks-53rd-in-the-2026-rankings-of-top-global-cities-but-unfortunately-thats-three-spots-shy-of-garnering-a-dedicated-report/

Oxford Economics Global Cities Index 2026 — https://www.oxfordeconomics.com/global-cities-index/

City Observatory — https://cityobservatory.org/what-global-rankings-say-about-successful-cities-and-portlands-performance/

Interested in building more resilient startup ecosystems…? It Takes a Valley — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/10/01/interested-in-building-more-resilient-startup-ecosystems-it-takes-a-valley/

It Takes a Valley — https://bookshop.org/a/128693/9798995796312

Friday night watch party — https://luma.com/nlez8wxy

Matt Schulte for Portland City Council — https://mattschulte.org

Leading the week: Phil and Penny Knight's $1B gift to build a new Knight College of Engineering at the University of Oregon — which, fun fact, walks straight into the territory the state system carved out for Oregon State a century ago, so consider this the moment that rivalry got a very expensive new chapter (with Jensen Huang's OSU gifts as the friendly counterweight). Then Rapta closed an $8M round for its manufacturing intelligence platform, and what caught my eye wasn't the number — it was the all-local cap table: Voyager Capital, Elevate Capital, Portland Seed Fund, and Bend Venture Conference, with Diane Fraiman and Kirk Holland taking board seats. I also did a two-part startup-lens read on the Oregon governor's race — comparing Kotek's and Drazan's actual plans, then sitting through the PBJ/OBI forum where neither candidate said the word "startup" once — and landed on a closing thought that's stuck with me: OBI has a room, we don't. Plus Built Festival felt like a genuine family reunion (save the date — 10th anniversary is October 1, 2027), Selena Deckelmann made TIME's Executives of the Year list, and there's now a Calagator-style map for Portland's pop-up food scene, courtesy of a Canard bar manager who got $40K dev-shop quotes and had a regular build it for free instead.

LINKS:

Selena Deckelmann recognized among 2026 TIME Executives of the Year — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/22/selena-deckelmann-recognized-among-2026-time-executives-of-the-year-tech-and-data/

TIME Executives of the Year: Tech and Data — https://time.com/collection/executives-of-the-year-tech-data/2026/selena-deckelmann/

Looking for Portland pop-ups and food events? Try The List PDX — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/24/looking-for-portland-pop-ups-and-food-events-try-the-list-pdx/

The List PDX — https://thelistpdx.com/

Apply to the Oregon Growth Board — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/22/if-youve-ever-been-interested-in-impacting-how-capital-flows-in-oregon-you-may-want-to-apply-to-the-oregon-growth-board/

Oregon Growth Board — https://www.oregon.gov/biz/aboutus/boards/ogb/pages/default.aspx

Uncle Phil has entered the engineering chat — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/23/uncle-phil-has-entered-the-engineering-chat/

Phil and Penny Knight give $1 billion to launch a UO engineering school — https://www.oregonlive.com/silicon-forest/2026/09/phil-and-penny-knight-give-1-billion-to-launch-university-of-oregon-engineering-school.html

People seem pretty excited about the $1B donation to the UO Knight Campus — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/24/people-seem-pretty-excited-about-the-1b-donation-to-the-university-of-oregon-knight-campus/

While Rapta's $8M raise is newsworthy, it's who's on the cap table that struck me — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/21/while-raptas-8m-raise-is-newsworthy-its-whos-on-the-cap-table-that-struck-me/

Rapta — https://rapta.com/

Comparing the Oregon gubernatorial candidates' published plans — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/22/comparing-the-oregon-gubernatorial-candidates-published-plans-from-a-startup-perspective/

Kotek's "Building Oregon's Future Together" — https://www.tinafororegon.com/oregons-future/

Drazan's six-part plan — https://www.christinefororegon.com/drazan-plan/

Gubernatorial candidates sit down to discuss one another's plans for Oregon — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/24/gubernatorial-candidates-sit-down-to-discuss-one-anothers-plans-for-oregon/

Built Oregon — https://www.builtoregon.com/

Portland startups have a long, storied history of engineers building tools for other engineers—from Tektronix oscilloscopes to Puppet. This week, we look at how that open-source builder tradition is roaring back with a fresh $2M round for AI agent infrastructure, alongside major hardware and clean energy headlines across the state.

In this episode, we cover Agility Robotics unveiling their new Digit 5 humanoid robot, PIE alum James McDermott raising $2M for AntFly (led by HeavyBit), Mazama Energy raising $135M to tap Oregon geothermal power for AI data centers, Bend Venture Conference early-stage semifinalists, the 10 Latine founders pitching at Pitch Latino Portland, and a very candid Secrets segment.

CHAPTERS

00:00 - Intro

00:46 - Agility Robotics unveils Digit 5 (Humanoid redesign & 20-hr battery)

02:08 - Bend Venture Conference (BVC) early-stage semifinalists

03:15 - Fresh Hop Finder map for craft beer season

03:57 - Built Festival reminder (Sept 25 at The Redd)

04:36 - AntFly raises $2M: Open-source AI retrieval engine backed by HeavyBit

08:08 - Mazama Energy raises $135M: Tapping Oregon geothermal for AI data centers

11:09 - Pitch Latino Portland: 10 Latine founders at the Newmark Theatre (Oct 8)

13:42 - Secrets

LINKS

AntFly: https://antfly.io

Pitch Latino Portland https://www.portland5.com/event/pitch-latino

Built Festival https://builtoregon.com

FashioNXT https://fashionxt.com

Fresh Hop Finder Map https://freshhopfinder.com/

It Takes a Valley by Anika Horn https://bookshop.org/p/books/it-takes-a-valley-how-to-build-thriving-entrepreneurial-ecosystems-that-transform-our-communities/83432271bcd8886b?ean=9798995796312&aid=128693&listref=startup-books

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- Portland Oregon startup news on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/portland-oregon-startup-news-silicon-florist/id1711294699

- Portland Oregon startup news Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2cmLDH8wrPdNMS2qtTnhcy?si=H627wrGOTvStxxKWRlRGLQ

- Startup Stories on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/1Tk7bbzaNYowGouI9ucKC3

- Startup Stories on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startup-stories-with-silicon-florist/id1849468494

- The Long Con on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-con/id1810923457

- The Long Con on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/48oglyT5JNKxVH5lnWTYKA

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------

For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

#pdx #portland #oregon #startup #entrepreneur

Talking to venture capitalists often feels like that scene in The Notebook—"What do you want?!" This week, we preview a rare, candid workshop coming to Portland with Clarence Bethea designed to decode "VC speak" and share the quiet parts out loud.

We also break down new local tech developments: YC alum Ravoy raising $27M and building out a Portland engineering presence, Experatas launching AI-driven digital health malpractice tools, the Portland Office of Small Business releasing its first data-driven impact report, and the full speaker lineup for the 2025 Built Festival.

PORTLAND STARTUP NEWS CHAPTERS

00:00 - Why talking to VCs feels like "The Notebook"

01:20 - Experatas: AI-enabled digital health for malpractice reviews

02:56 - Portland Office of Small Business 1st Year Impact Report

06:24 - Startup Stories shoutout: Peter Kirwan & mebot ai

06:55 - What VCs Won't Say: Clarence Bethea workshop at Instrument (Oct 8)

11:15 - YC alum Revoy raises $27M & hires in Portland

14:14 - Built Festival 2025: Celebrating Oregon consumer products (Sept 25)

16:17 - Built Festival speaker & maker highlights (Steelport, TLE, and more)

19:23 - Secrets

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------

For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

#pdx #portland #oregon #startup #entrepreneur

Leading the week: Kelly Lyons steps into the Innovation Hub's empty chair right as PSU — the Hub's fiscal sponsor — lands $6M for innovation and commercialization, and Rick had the story out before the Hub itself put out a statement. From there, Josh Carter's UpStart Collective marks 4 years and a full floor of Big Pink, a decade after Portland first waved him off. The Bend Venture Conference narrows its Growth Stage field to 15 semifinalists — heavy on Oregon names like Caravel Bio and Looptworks, with a few out-of-state ringers along for the ride — ahead of its October main-stage finale. And if you're building anything, circle September 15: that's the deadline for the Oregon AI Accelerator's zero-equity cohort, the Oregon Innovation Showcase's deeptech call, and Founders Inc's hardware program, all landing the same week. Plus: August's top 10 posts, in case you missed Panthalassa's $2B moment or the news that Portland Startup Week isn't what it used to be.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 - Oregon startup news intro

02:15 - Oregon Innovation Showcase: Deep tech and hardware applications

03:18 - Oregon AI Accelerator: Cohort 2 applications (Due Sept 15)

04:25 - Founders Inc: Hard tech opportunities in the Bay Area

05:23 - Metro Region Innovation Hub: New Executive Director Kelly Lyons

09:18 - Bend Venture Conference: The 22-year angel investor legacy

11:55 - BVC Growth Stage Semi-Finalists: Tech Category

19:00 - Silicon Florist turns 19: The 20-year celebration preview

24:45 - Upstart Collective: Celebrating 4 years in Big Pink

30:20 - Secrets

LINKS:

Innovation Hub names new director — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/01/portland-metro-region-innovation-hub-names-new-director/

Portland Metro Region Innovation Hub — https://www.portlandmetrohub.org/

Oregon AI Accelerator wants you — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/02/building-with-ai-oregon-ai-accelerator-wants-you/

Oregon AI Accelerator — https://oregonaix.com/

Learn to stop worrying and embrace AI with Scott Hanselman — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/02/learn-to-stop-worrying-and-embrace-ai-with-scott-hanselman/

Steam Circuit — AI Without the Hype — https://www.steamcircuit.com/events/ai-builder-series-ai-without-the-hype-september-5-2026

Oregon Innovation Showcase 2027 call for founders — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/03/interest-in-showcasing-your-innovation-youre-in-luck-oregon-innovation-showcase-2027-is-looking-for-folks-to-feature/

Oregon Innovation Showcase — https://www.oregoninnovationshowcase.org/

Bend Venture Conference reveals Growth Stage semifinalists — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/04/bend-venture-conference-2026-reveals-growth-stage-semifinalists/

Bend Venture Conference — https://www.bendvc.com/

Hardware / deep tech accelerator — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/04/looking-for-a-startup-accelerator-for-your-hardware-or-deep-tech-startup/

Founders Inc Blueprint — https://f.inc/blueprint

Top 10 Silicon Florist posts for August — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/09/01/top-10-silicon-florist-posts-for-august-2026/

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

A notable startup acquisition is reshaping the tech landscape. Learn how this deal affects operations following the merger.

This video examines the recent move by a prominent startup that gained major attention during the iPad launch era to purchase a Portland-based company. We break down the core motivation behind this business strategy and what it signals for their future market positioning. If you follow corporate growth trends, this analysis provides clarity on why established companies are consolidating their assets now.

By integrating new talent and infrastructure from the Portland team, the startup aims to streamline its internal operations. We look at the specific goals behind this tech industry news and how such shifts often indicate broader changes in how companies manage their product ecosystems. Understanding these moves helps observers track the trajectory of major players in the space.

Subscribe for weekly startup analysis breakdowns and comment below on which company merger you want us to cover next.

CHAPTERS

00:00 - Portland startup news

01:12 - Hatchable helps vibe coding

02:47 - Angel Oregon: OEN Applications Open

04:40 - Steam Circuit: Scott Hanselman Workshop

06:31 - Upstart Collective: 4th Birthday Celebration

07:46 - Flipboard Acquires Graze Social

13:50 - Digs Raises $25.3M Series A

15:46 - $6M Federal Grant for PSU Innovation

19:40 - Secrets

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- Portland Oregon startup news on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/portland-oregon-startup-news-silicon-florist/id1711294699

- Portland Oregon startup news Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2cmLDH8wrPdNMS2qtTnhcy?si=H627wrGOTvStxxKWRlRGLQ

- Startup Stories on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/1Tk7bbzaNYowGouI9ucKC3

- Startup Stories on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startup-stories-with-silicon-florist/id1849468494

- The Long Con on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-long-con/id1810923457

- The Long Con on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/48oglyT5JNKxVH5lnWTYKA

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------

For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

#pdx #portland #oregon #startup #entrepreneur

The Ducks might be #2 in football, but the Beavers are #1 when it comes to startup accelerators. Meanwhile CBRE says Portland slipped to 34th for tech talent, and I spent part of the week sitting across from a consultancy from Ohio who told me, flat out, that we've been lucky, not good — and luck is not a strategy. Nothing sharpens the picture like an outsider holding up a mirror and making you actually look at it.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Oregon startup news

01:28 Quick news bytes

04:53 OSU on TIME's list of startup incubators and accelerators

06:43 Oregon UAS Accelerator

09:14 Yak wins OEN Angel Oregon Tech

11:30 CBRE Tech Talent report for 2026

13:44 Feedback on Oregon's Innovation Plan

24:42 Secrets

LINKS:

OSU Advantage Accelerator on TIME's list — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/18/time-ranks-osu-advantage-accelerator-among-best-startup-accelerators-in-the-us/

TIME America's Best Incubators and Accelerators 2026 — https://time.com/article/2026/08/18/americas-best-incubators-accelerators-2026/

Yak wins OEN Angel Oregon Tech — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/18/yak-walks-away-with-oen-angel-oregon-tech-win/

Yak — https://yaktech.io/

Oregon UAS Accelerator Fall 2026 cohort — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/20/oregon-uas-accelerator-welcomes-17-startups-to-its-fall-2026-cohort/

Oregon UAS Accelerator — https://oregonuas.org/

Portland slips in CBRE Scoring Tech Talent — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/21/portland-has-definitely-slipped-among-tech-communities-but-at-least-were-still-registering/

CBRE Scoring Tech Talent 2026 — https://www.cbre.com/insights/books/scoring-tech-talent-2026

What I told the Teconomy team — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/18/for-transparency-here-is-what-i-told-the-teconomy-team-assessing-oregons-10-year-innovation-plan/

Teconomy Partners — https://www.teconomypartners.com/

Darius Monsef on Life After Launch — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/18/former-portland-founder-darius-monsef-sits-down-with-life-after-launch/

Angel Medina on TODOS Media — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/19/chatting-with-angel-medina-about-todos-media/

Panthalassa cofounder explains their solution — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/17/curious-about-panthalassa-listen-to-the-cofounder-and-ceo-explain-their-solution/

Hasaan Hates Portland Kickstarter — https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mischawebley/hasaan-hates-portland

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

ABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------

For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.

ABOUT RICK TUROCZY ----------

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for nearly 30 years. He has been recognized as one of the “OG”s of startup ecosystem building by the Kauffman Foundation. And he has been humbled by any number of opportunities to speak on stages from SXSW to INBOUND and from Kobe, Japan, to Muscat, Oman, including an opportunity to share his views on community building on the TEDxPortland stage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0).

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com

#pdx #portland #oregon #startup #entrepreneur

Twenty years ago Boeing bought Insitu, the drone company built up in the Columbia Gorge — and this week Boeing basically un-bought it, selling Insitu, along with Wisk and SkyGrid, to Archer, the flying-taxi startup people keep calling "Waymo for air taxis." Then Boeing turned around and invested in Archer anyway — which is either a very tidy circle or proof nobody's actually settled on what to call this stuff yet. "Physical AI" is the phrase everyone's reaching for. I'm not sure it's landed.

From there: 38 Portland-metro companies made the Inc. 5000 this year, and if you squint at the top ten — Studson, Zeal Logistics, Daniel House Club, Omorpho, Portland Gear — almost none of them are software, which says something about what this region's actually good at building. Panic shipped Big Walk, a co-op multiplayer adventure landing on Steam, PS5, and Switch 2. Geoff Jensen made the case at Portland Startup Week — RIP — for solopreneuring in the age of AI. Plus a ViddyScribe founder conversation about AI audio descriptions for the blind, a founder-insight piece from Nicole Schmidt of Source (which came through PIE back in the day), and TiE Oregon's TiE Women 2026 finalists. And, as always, secrets.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Intro

01:29 Quick startup news

04:37 Insitu sells to Archer

07:47 Inc. 5000: Portland's top 10

10:32 Panic ships Big Walk

13:51 The solopreneur advantage

15:54 Secrets

LINKS:

Insitu gets acquired… again — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/12/insitu-gets-acquired-again/

Archer / Insitu press release — https://www.insitu.com/news/archer-to-shape-physical-ai-future-of-aerospace-and-defense-with-acquisition-of-boeings-wisk-aero-insitu-and-skygrid-subsidiaries-boeing-to-invest-in-archer-and-collaborate

Inc. features the 10 fastest growing Portland companies — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/inc-features-the-10-fastest-growing-portland-companies/

Inc. 5000 — Portland's top 10 — https://www.inc.com/esther-lian/meet-portlands-top-10-inc-5000-honorees/91385716

Panic publishes a new game — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/10/panic-publishes-a-new-game-from-the-makers-of-untitled-goose-game/

Big Walk — https://bigwalk.game/

The solopreneur advantage — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/14/the-solopreneur-advantage/

Chatting with ViddyScribe — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/chatting-with-viddyscribe/

ViddyScribe — https://viddyscribe.com/

Nicole Schmidt of Source — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/12/nicole-schmidt-founder-and-ceo-of-source-shares-advice-for-startup-founders/

TiE Oregon reveals TiE Women 2026 finalists — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/tie-oregon-reveals-local-finalists-vying-for-tie-women-2026/

TiE Women — https://www.tieoregon.org/programs/tie-women

Business Oregon survey — closes Aug 15 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/reminder-provide-feedback-to-business-oregon-by-august-15-2026/

Oregon Innovation Plan survey — https://teconomypartners.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5A4Wnf2JCrwFrEO

FIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…

- https://patreon.com/turoczy

- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy

- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social

- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/

- https://pdxslack.com

ABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------

For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.

All because of a blog. Weird.

https://siliconflorist.com