As consumers continue to stock their pantries by browsing online during the ongoing pandemic, San Diego tech companies have been building the technology powering today’s digital grocery industry. This is enabling millions of people to live a little easier during Covid-19. At the enterprise level, UTC-based Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods engineering teams build the technology that makes online ordering, routing, and delivery happen. WalmartLabs’ Carlsbad team also creates tech to enable...

The journey of an entrepreneur can be so wild, which is what we try to highlight on the Tacos & Tech Podcast . Speaking of entrepreneurship, on the heels of NASA/SpaceX’s manned launch to the Space Station, I gave a talk with Caitlin Wege and Tech Coast Angels on large scale liquid rocket propulsion and areas we can possibly invest in (video coming soon). We highlighted hot areas of interest in space junk cleanup and services related to tiny satellite building and launching, including...

Hey friends. I really appreciate the responses we’ve gotten for community resources since last week’s email. There are  a lot of ways to get your voice heard about the nation's ongoing pandemic, racial injustices, and inequality. There are organizations being started and technologies being developed, but if you don’t VOTE, it doesn’t matter. Register if you haven’t yet. Related to tech, local startup Voterfied continues to help connect those running for office hear from their...

This week marks two years since we launched this newsletter. Since the beginning, our goal has always been to provide a voice to San Diego’s tech ecosystem, including entrepreneurs and startups that have flown under the radar. We also shine a light on our region’s tech roots, as well as resources to help enrich skills or better a business, and events to make a connection. Providing resources to underserved company founders is another goal. The recent wave of nationwide protests focused...

What a weekend - We saw cumulative violence against black Americans by law enforcement inspire important action and unity, and at the same time, we also experienced inspiration from sending two astronauts to space in a historic mission. While on opposite sides of the spectrum, hopefully these experiences will motivate you to step outside your comfort zone. Venturing into the unknown can be scary, but taking risks can also lead to several benefits, including positive...

So today would have been the first day of San Diego Startup Week, so I am officially missing seeing you all, but have no fear, there are great plans for this fall coming together. Listen to this recent podcast for more background and info.  We’re also eagerly awaiting the announcement of this year’s Cool Companies by Connect with San Diego Venture Group, coming out May 28. Keep an eye out. 👀 For Fresh Brewed Tech, this week we have Part 5 of the HNC story, the godfather of San...

Hey friends, While it’s a couple days later, we can never say enough thanks to our mothers, especially during this pandemic, for looking out for us, including the ones on the front lines keeping so many safe. Thank you! Meanwhile, this week on the Tacos & Tech Podcast, Alexa-Rae Navarro of Startup San Diego and Amy Chang, entrepreneur and angel investor, join me to chat about what’s been going on lately in San Diego tech, including the postponement of Startup Week. We also talk...

Hey friends, while March felt like a year, April felt like a week. I hope you are all doing OK. I attempted to go for a run with a mask on this weekend and it did not work out well. I did join a pretty fun virtual beer festival this past weekend where 1,500 San Diegans were shipped 10 local beers and watched recorded tasting notes from brewers and music performances. What are you doing that’s new lately? With the switch to digital everything, it’s been fun to experiment with new ways to...

Hey all you cool cats and kittens. How are you doing? It really feels like San Diego and California are working hard at quarantining. We know we’re sacrificing short-term gratification to have a better long-term outcome from COVID-19. Thanks for being diligent. We really are going to get through this together. In terms of our local ecosystem, we just ended Q1, and we took a deep dive into our funding (which is up year-over-year for now) and other attributes in San Diego. We are also...

I hope you are all staying safe and healthy during the quarantine. With this new “normal” of our lifestyles and work setting in, it’s incredible to see our community come together and our resiliency to help our health care workers continue to save lives. This week, our senior writer Andrea Siedsma had the chance to connect with a UC San Diego researcher on his lab’s work to find a cure for COVID-19. We also have started aggregating content on local companies that are helping with the...