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The energy in Charleston’s tech scene isn’t hype—it’s momentum you can feel. We kick off Silicon Harbor Hot Take with Dig South founder Stanfield Gray to map the forces turning a coastal city into a serious launchpad for scalable startups. From the origin of “Silicon Harbor” to the nuts and bolts of building a summit that founders actually use, we unpack what makes this ecosystem work: practical access, operator‑led insights, and an abundance mindset that rewards collaboration without dulling competitive edge.

We go deep on the strategy behind Dig South’s curation. Instead of celebrity flybys, we bring the people shipping products and signing deals—engineers from OpenAI, Microsoft, Nordstrom AI, and Amazon Prime Video, plus investors like 11 Tribes and long‑time partners from CRDA. You’ll hear how growth‑stage companies find customers and capital, how early founders get hands‑on with platforms, and why legal, cloud, and go‑to‑market lounges matter when you’re moving fast. We also talk timing: LLMs, agentic AI, and world models are exciting, but only some tools move the bottom line today. Learn how to test, adopt, and sequence new tech without derailing your roadmap.

Underneath it all is a simple playbook: “Who Not How.” Swap solo heroics for the right collaborators, advisors, and partners. Leverage year‑round membership, rise‑and‑grind meetups, and a community demo stage to turn introductions into pilots and pilots into revenue. With Dig South anchoring Charleston Tech Week (June 8–12) and the summit set for June 11–12 at the College of Charleston, this is your chance to plug into a network designed for real outcomes, not vanity metrics.

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Support the show

Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association

Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions

Annual Sponsor: ‪SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority

Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus

Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow, Mike Compton, Rachel Backal, Tom Keppeler, Amanda Bunting Comen

Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising

Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse

Score by: The Strawberry Entrée; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu
Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary and Mathew Chase

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