Tech248 branding county as a technology hub

Tech248 meetups attracted more than 400 technology industry professionals and students, including the founder of an Oakland County-based company who was among 50 people nationwide recently invited to the White House to talk tech.

The meetups are vital to Tech248’s mission of connecting the county’s 2,000 tech companies to collaborate and network while marketing Oakland County as a global technology hub. Thanh Tran, founder of Wixom-based  Kidpreneur: Kids + Entrepreneurship + Technology, met with technology leaders from across the United States earlier this month at the White House. The event was designed to create project collaboration and foster technology interconnections.

“The tech industry is prospering here,” Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson said. “We have a wealth of IT innovators who are shaping the future of this dynamic global industry and it’s happening right here in Oakland County.”

Tran, who is also founder of D-NewTech – a group of nearly 1,200 members which foster and encourage startups – was understandably excited by his recent visit to Washington, D.C.

“Among the fifty or so invited to the White House, I was the only representative from Michigan,” Tran said. “Detroit is one of the fastest growing tech areas in the country. Opportunities to network with others, finds jobs and learn to code is so important. Groups like D-NewTech and Tech248 help meet that need.”

Tech248 meetups are scheduled monthly and have included locations in Auburn Hills, Southfield, Waterford, and Wixom. Each event features a tech update, a series of speakers and an opportunity to network. Speakers have included Jason Raznick of Benzinga Networking, Brian Hudson of Templar Games, Brian Wassom of Honigman, and Kidpreneur’s Tran.

The participant list is a virtual who’s who of the IT industry, with representatives from nearly 200 companies, including ASG Renaissance, DASI Solutions, Eaton, General Motors, iDashboards, Lawrence Technological University, Media Genesis, SunTel Services and ThyssenKrupp.

The next meetup is Thursday, May 21, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at 365 Retail Markets in Troy. Speakers include Reed Bingaman, CFO of 365 Retail Markets; Lauren Bigelow, CEO of Growth Capital Network; Antoine Dubeauclard, president of Media Genesis; and Mark St. Peter, managing director and CEO of Computing Source. Most events are free of charge. To register for this or any other Tech248 meetup, go to AdvantageOakland.EventBrite.com.

Oakland County tech professionals are encouraged to join the Tech248 network at MITech248.com. Automation Alley, southeast Michigan’s 1,000-member business technology association, is offering a 10 percent membership discount for companies that join the Alley by May 31. Joining the Tech248 network also allows Oakland County companies to have their company’s Twitter feed featured on the Tech248 feed.

Oakland County has 42,000 jobs in the tech field – more than twice the number of any other county in Michigan. About 100 tech companies have located in Oakland County in the past 10 years, investing over $586 million and creating more than 10,500 jobs. The focus includes software development, network/data, mHealth, game development, connected cars, digital media, mobile technology, cyber security and other evolving technologies.

For additional information about Tech248, visit MITech248.com.

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