High-profile investors from the ABC TV show Shark Tank will co-headline this year’s kickoff event for Tech Week Grand Rapids, September 14-19.
It's a multi-day festival highlighting topics such as AI, medical tech, manufacturing and cybersecurity.
Shark investors Daymond John and Robert Herjavec will lead discussions on scaling businesses during a time of rapid technological change.
“Tech Week, contrary to its name, is not just for techies. It really is for all of us in different fields, in different careers, those of us starting businesses in various industries. It doesn't really matter. Tech is impacting nearly every industry.”
Andria Romkema is Senior Vice President of Business Development at The Right Place which organizes Tech Week.
She’s banking on the popularity of the Sharks to break down the intimidation factor of “tech” and encourage everyday West Michigan residents to attend events.
“We want to make tech week a space for people to come out, learn more, have their questions answered, get to experience some of the new technology that's going to impact their businesses and that's coming their way. And we think that Damon and Robert will be a great kickoff to future conversations throughout the week.”
Last year saw more than 15,000 attendees.
Most of the more than 100 events are free and open to the public, with networking opportunities for students, entrepreneurs and curious residents.
Schedules and free registration are available at techweekgr.com.
For a weekly dose of news right to your inbox, sign up for the WGVU newsletter.
