Tech Week Grand Rapids

So one of my co-workers alerted me to this event, so I went to check it out on their web site.

Wow!  What a load of useless "panels" and Woke trash.  Let's unpack this.

Monday 9/18 - Kickoff with Malcolm Gladwell

• This guy is just an author.  He has no technical knowledge, yet has a 3 hour speech.  On what?

Tuesday 9/19

• Tech Showcase for students - Pretty much just local companies displaying information about their companies.
• SURGE AI Talk: Unleashing the Power of ChatGPT and AI in Your Business! - ChatGPT is 99% marketing right now.  Its usefulness is very questionable.
• Supercharge Your Applications with Artificial Intelligence - Continuing the AI hype.
• Creative Solutions that Change Lives: The Engineering & Computing Mindset - Just fluff.
• Diversity & Inclusion in Tech - Woke trash
• Student Pitch Competition - Practice pitching your idea!  Wow.  An ounce of image is certainly worth a pound of performance.

And no mention of pirates (9/19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day)

Wed. 9/20

• Code, Culture, and Coffee - "Conversations about the Tech Industry", with people who know nothing about the tech industry.
• Tech Trends Reshaping Business - "Sessions on generative AI, cyber, & AI in the workplace" continuing the AI hype.
• Bridge 96: Building a Statewide Startup Ecosystem - No details, but smells like more Woke trash.
• GVSU Tech Talks - "Tech expert presentations".  No list of who these tech "experts" are, though.
• Freshwater Digital Technology Showcase - Just demonstrations of tech.
• Twisthink x Failure Lab - "Presentations and happy hour".  Translation: People who know nothing speaking jibberish.
• AI in Communications: Understanding Impact & Unlocking Potential - And still more pushing of the AI hype.
• VC Happy Hour - i.e. a bunch of stupid lushes pretending to speak on topics of which they know nothing about.
• Demo Day - Maybe interesting, but probably not.

Thurs. 9/21

• Black & Brown Founders Brunch - Woke trash
• Attracting & Retaining Talent in the Work-From-Home Era - Wow!  Something potentially useful, but seeing the amount of Woke trash already here, I doubt it.
• Latinx in Tech - More Woke trash.  Let me check my BINGO card.  I think I might have won.
• Building the Workforce You Need - Another something that's potentially useful, but I doubt it.
• Drinks on the Deck - Even more lushes pretending to speak on topics of which they know nothing about.
• Innovation at Scale: A Playbook for Building High-Growth Ventures - Did we learn nothing from the .COM bust?
• GR in XR on the Blue Bridge - "Extended reality experience".  Potentially interesting, but 1 out of how many? isn't very good.

Fri. 9/22

• Twisthink Breakfast + Panel - I have no idea what Twisthink is, so why would I think this is interesting?
• It Started at State! - Propaganda that tech ideas started at MSU.
• Confluence Music Summit - And more non-tech fluff.

Sat. 9/23

• Confluence Festival - "Free festival with art, music, science, and tech".  Seriously?  That's like saying "I have a smart watch, so I'm tech."

I'll be going to Tandy Assembly later this month and there will be more tech talking in 1 hour there than a whole week of "Tech Week Grand Rapids".