GeekWire
GeekWire provides technology news, analysis, and resources for tech professionals, entrepreneurs, and enthusiasts. It covers developments in the technology industry, produces events and podcasts, and offers tools such as job boards and startup rankings to support the tech community. Its mission is to inform and connect people interested in technology and startups.
Facts
- HQ
- Seattle
- Sectors
- Online Audio and Video Media
- Founded
- 2011
- Type
- LLC Seattle business license
- Employees
- 26
- Registered name
- GeekWire LLC Seattle business license
- Founders
- John Cook, Todd Bishop
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Publication
- Last published Oct 15
Authors & Editors
A silver lining for Seattle in the DJI ban, and the verdict on the 2007 Camry tech retrofit
The FCC delivered a massive shakeup to the drone industry right before the holidays, adding foreign-made drones (most notably from industry giant DJI) to its "Covered List" of national security threats. While the move effectively bans the sale of future DJI models in the U.S., GeekWire’s Todd Bishop and John Cook explore why this might be a golden economic opportunity for the Pacific Northwest. Featuring highlights from a recent interview with Blake Resnick of Brinc, the Seattle-based maker of public safety drones, who lobbied for the U.S. policy change and supports the move. Related story: Drone capital of the world?…
Landline phones in 2025? How this tech vet is helping kids connect
If you're looking for an uncommon thinker, how about a tech industry veteran developing and selling landline phones in 2025 — and selling out of them in the process. Chet Kittleson is the co-founder and CEO of Tin Can, a Seattle startup making Wi-Fi enabled landline phones designed to let kids talk to friends and family with just their voices. No screens, no AI. GeekWire recognized Kittleson as one of our Uncommon Thinkers for 2025, a program presented in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners honoring inventors, scientists, and entrepreneurs transforming their industries in unexpected ways. In this episode, he talks…
Uncommon Thinkers 2025: Solar spacecraft, sci-fi biology, destroying PFAS, beyond AI chatbots, and better social media
On this special episode of the GeekWire Podcast, recorded backstage at the GeekWire Gala at the Showbox Sodo, we sit down with five of the inventors, scientists, and entrepreneurs selected as the Seattle region's 2025 Uncommon Thinkers, in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners. Jeff Thornburg spent years building rocket engines for Elon Musk at SpaceX and Paul Allen at Stratolaunch. Now, as CEO of Portal Space Systems, he's moved past chemical rockets to revive a concept NASA studied decades ago but never pursued — a spacecraft powered by focused sunlight. He calls it a "steam engine for space." Read the…
Bezos is back in startup mode, Amazon gets weird again, and the great old-car tech retrofit debate
This week: Jeff Bezos is back in startup mode (sort of) with Project Prometheus — a $6.2 billion AI-for-the-physical-world venture that instantly became one of the most talked-about new companies in tech. We dig into what his return to the CEO title really means, why the company’s location is still a mystery, and how this echoes the era when Bezos was regularly launching big bets from Seattle. Then we look at Amazon’s latest real-world experiment: package-return kiosks popping up inside Goodwill stores around the Seattle region. It’s a small pilot, but it brings back memories of the early days when…
Seattle’s history of hardware heartbreak: Big raises, high hopes, hard landings
Seattle’s consumer-hardware ambitions are once again colliding with economic reality. The struggles of Glowforge and Rad Power Bikes echo a long regional history of big raises, high hopes, and hard landings — shaped by the pandemic, VC, and the unforgiving nature of building real products. GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook recorded this conversation for the purpose of providing the audio to an AI tool that turned the conversation into a written column that was edited and reviewed before publication. Check it out here. Related Stories: Glowforge hits restart: After restructuring, co-founders acquire key assets of laser engraver startup…
Vibe-coding a new reality: Chris Pirillo on the rise of AI-powered apps, features, and founders
Chris Pirillo, the longtime tech enthusiast and entrepreneur, joins the show this week to discuss how AI software development tools are opening up new possibilities for everyday users, as illustrated by his own experience going from commentator to creator, building nearly 100 apps and games. He’s launching a free, in-person event series called CTRL+ALT+CREATE Live, where anyone can build something real using AI and no-code tools. The first event takes place from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m on Thursday, Oct. 16 at the Amazon AWS Skills Center in Seattle. With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Agentic Entrepreneur: How the next wave of AI is changing the startup playbook
This week on the GeekWire Podcast: How artificial intelligence is changing the way companies are created, built, and operated. We're on location at Pioneer Square Labs in Seattle with investor and entrepreneur T.A. McCann, a managing director at the startup studio and venture capital firm. He explains how AI agents are automating complex functions, letting small teams do the work that once required large groups of people. As AI makes product development easier, he says, the key strategic moat for many startups is now shifting to distribution and data. Other topics include: The wearable AI recorder that captures everything he…
A $100k wall for talent: Tech leader and author Shirish Nadkarni on the H-1B fee and the impact of immigrants
The U.S. tech and startup community was stunned by an executive order last week imposing a $100,000 fee for employers seeking new H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers, a program heavily used by the technology industry. This move brings a longstanding debate back to the forefront: are skilled immigrants taking American jobs, or are they a vital engine for innovation and economic growth? Our guest this week has a strong point of view on this topic. Shirish Nadkarni is a serial entrepreneur and Microsoft veteran who founded companies acquired by BlackBerry and Rosetta Stone. An immigrant himself, he just released…
OpenAI's big Seattle deal; Steve Ballmer under NBA scrutiny; the irony in Google's antitrust case
This week on the GeekWire Podcast: Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and his NBA team, the Clippers, face scrutiny over an alleged salary-cap dodge tied to star Kawhi Leonard. We unpack the report and Ballmer’s emphatic denial, while reflecting on his history in tech and sports. Also: OpenAI's surprise $1.1 billion acquisition of Seattle startup Statsig, and what it says about the AI talent wars. Plus, the ironic role of Microsoft’s own antitrust past in the landmark ruling against Google’s search monopoly this week. Seattle journalist, radio host and bar owner Mike Lewis joins GeekWire's Todd Bishop for this episode…
Booms, Busts, and Seattle in the AI Era, with Jeff Shulman of the UW Foster School
What does Seattle gain — and lose — in times of dramatic change? University of Washington Foster School of Business marketing professor Jeff Shulman has spent years studying that question, as host of the Seattle Growth Podcast, director of the Product Management Center, and a civic voice on issues ranging from housing affordability to the campaign to bring back the Sonics. On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, Shulman joins us to talk about Seattle’s place in the global AI boom, why the city has struggled to produce superstar startups, what AI means for marketing and education, and how civic…
Building an AI-first company: What these two business leaders learned from top experts in the field
Our guests this week: Adam Brotman and Andy Sack, co-authors of the book AI First: The Playbook for a Future-Proof Business and Brand. Brotman was Starbucks’ chief digital officer and later co-CEO of J.Crew. Sack is a founder, investor, and longtime advisor to tech leaders. Together, they run Forum3, a company that helps brands rethink loyalty and customer engagement. For their book, they interviewed experts including Bill Gates, Sam Altman, Reid Hoffman and Ethan Mollick, and spent time with companies that have had early success with AI implementation. We talk about their "holy sh*t" moment with Sam Altman, how Moderna…
15 years of the GeekWire Podcast: Amazon, Microsoft, and the transformation of Seattle tech
Fifteen years ago, Steve Jobs and Apple had just introduced the first iPad, Steve Ballmer’s Microsoft had been left for dead, and nerdy online bookseller Jeff Bezos was still getting Amazon settled into its South Lake Union HQ. That’s when we started this podcast. This week, we’re going back to 2010, revisiting clips from the earliest days of the show. We remember what was happening with Amazon, Microsoft, and Seattle’s startup scene, and try to wrap our heads around all the things that have changed since then. With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook. Audio editing by Curt Milton…
week of may 12: Dan Shapiro - Glowforge
We're talking entrepreneurship, production facilities, and acquisitions with the founder and CEO of Glowforge - Dan Shapiro. As we break down the top stories of the week, he also shares how he came up with the idea of a 3D laser printer, how the tariffs are going to impact his business, and what he got wrong about Rover. Top Stories: 1. Glowforge makes production changes Amid tariff turmoil, Glowforge turns to Seattle for new production factory — with help from AI (Geekwire) 2. Tutta Bella expands Kroger deal Tutta Bella ramps up production after landing major Kroger deal (PSBJ) 3…
Innovation in Turbulent Times: Voices from the GeekWire Awards
Recorded live at the 2025 GeekWire Awards in Seattle, this episode features industry leaders navigating a shifting tech and political landscape. Amid celebrations of AI breakthroughs, startup milestones, and community-building, guests discuss deeper concerns: capital flight, regulatory headwinds, and what the region needs to retain its innovation edge. Featured on the show: Ambika Singh, founder and CEO of Armoire (Workplace of the Year winner) Joseph Williams, Washington State Department of Commerce (Public Policy Champion for Innovation) Emer Dooley, Creative Destruction Lab, University of Washington (Geeks Give Back honoree) Laura Ruderman, CEO of the Technology Alliance Aviel Ginzburg, co-founder at Foundations…
Microsoft's quantum breakthrough; WA state targets Uber and Lyft; GeekWire 200; Bezos and Bond
This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we discuss Microsoft's quantum computing breakthrough; a Washington state bill that targets Uber and Lyft surge pricing; the latest update to the GeekWire 200 ranking of Pacific Northwest startups; and Amazon's move to take creative control of the James Bond movie franchise. Related Links Microsoft quantum breakthrough promises to usher in the next era of computing in ‘years, not decades’ GeekWire 200 update: Here are the hot tech startups moving up our list for Q1 2025 Lawmakers take aim at Uber and Lyft with bill targeting surge pricing after big events Amazon MGM Studios…
Stargate, OpenAI and Microsoft; BlueSky in Seattle; and Madrona's big new funds
This week, we delve into the Project Stargate announcement by OpenAI, Oracle and Softbank, in conjunction with President Trump, and assess the implications for OpenAi's relationship with Microsoft. We explain what Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella really meant with his CNBC zinger about the Stargate investment, and consider how Elon Musk's involvement in the new administration could play out in the tech industry. PLUS, we discuss Madrona's big new funds and the potential impact on startup activity in the Pacific NW, and find a revealing piece of Microsoft history on an old CD-ROM. Related stories: Microsoft and OpenAI tweak the terms…
Inside Amazon's strategic planning process; the state of the Seattle startup community
This week on the GeekWire Podcast: An inside look at Amazon's classic process for strategic thinking and decision-making, with a former Amazon product and technology director who has written new book about the documents used by the company to determine its direction. What can others learn from its approach? Plus, we break down this pivotal moment in Amazon's history, as employees return to the office five days a week; and we check in on the state of the Seattle startup world. Our guest is Marcelo Calbucci, a serial entrepreneur and longtime Seattle startup community leader who has worked for both…
AI, tech talent, and regional innovation: A swan song from retiring WTIA CEO Michael Schutzler
Michael Schutzler, the newly retired CEO of the Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA), joins us on this episode of the GeekWire Podcast to reflect on his 11 years running the not-for-profit trade association, assess the state of the tech industry in Seattle and Washington state, and discuss what's next for him. Schutzler, who has been succeeded as WTIA's CEO by Kelly Fukai, previously its COO, wrote about the extraordinary history of the state's tech industry in a recent post marking the WTIA's 40th anniversary and his retirement. See more highlights from the episode in this GeekWire post. Related coverage: WTIA…
Insights from Uncommon Thinkers: How these innovators found novel approaches in their fields
This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we sit down with some of the Seattle region’s “Uncommon Thinkers” — inventors, scientists, technologists and entrepreneurs transforming industries and driving positive change in the world. We recorded the episode on location, backstage at the GeekWire Gala, where we recognized five Uncommon Thinkers through this annual awards program, presented in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners. Speaking on the episode are: Uri Shumlak, co-founder and chief scientist at Zap Energy, a physicist leading a team in pursuit of fusion energy, taking a different approach from others in the field. Read the profile. Ingrid Swanson Pultz…
Elon Musk’s problem with Microsoft; What the GeekWire 200 says about the startup scene
This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we discuss Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, which now includes Microsoft, and assess the complexities of the OpenAI-Microsoft partnership, as illustrated by early email exchanges revealed in the lawsuit. We also consider the latest update to the GeekWire 200, our ranked index of Pacific Northwest technology startups, including the rise of Highspot to the top spot, and other trends in the Seattle region's startup ecosystem. And we share highlights from tech events around the region this week, including the WTIA's 40th Anniversary, where Mayor Bruce Harrell addressed AI and the incoming presidential administration; and…
Microsoft’s startup story: A new look, with insights for today
This special edition of the GeekWire Podcast is the first in a four-episode series that we’ll be publishing in the months ahead as part of our year-long Microsoft @ 50 project, recognizing the company’s 50th anniversary in April 2025. On this episode, we’ll take a fresh look at Microsoft’s startup story with tech historian and author Margaret O’Mara of the University of Washington, author of The Code: Silicon Valley and the Remaking of America; plus highlights from a recent conversation with David Marquardt, Microsoft’s first outside investor and a longtime board member. Register here for our Microsoft @ 50 event…
Uber + Expedia? Ballmer on 60 Minutes; 1980s Silicon Valley revisited; What's next for AI
This week, we imagine the possibility of Uber buying Expedia Group, based on a report by the Financial Times this week that the ride-hailing company has considered a bid for the online travel giant. It would be notable in part because Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was Expedia Group’s CEO from 2005 to 2017 and remains on the company’s board. In the second segment, we enjoy highlights from the "60 Minutes" profile of former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, and a separate appearance by University of Washington historian and author Margaret O'Mara on an episode of the podcast "60 Minutes: A Second…
Amazon puts AI in delivery vans; Ex-AMZN exec Dave Clark's new startup; AI vs. cancer
Artificial intelligence and automation are transforming the way companies get stuff to stores and doorsteps, changing the world of logistics, transportation and the supply chain, as demonstrated by a few Amazon-related stories we covered this week: Amazon's unveiling of a new "Vision-Assisted Package Retrieval (VAPR) system for the cargo hold of its electric Rivian vans; The announcement of Amazon’s next-generation fulfillment center, with updated and expanded versions of its robotics systems in Shreveport, La. Former Amazon executive Dave Clark's launch of a new supply chain technology startup, based in the Seattle area, with $100 million in funding out of the…
Amazon's quest to become a startup again; Driverless cars, 6 years later
Amazon's decision to bring its employees back to the office five days a week is a window into the challenges facing the e-commerce and technology giant, and CEO Andy Jassy's larger plan to get the company to operate like "the world's largest startup" again. Plus, GeekWire's John Cook gets into the back seat of a driverless car for the first time since 2018, and has a very different experience. Coverage of Amazon's announcement: Amazon ‘will return to being in the office the way we were’ before the pandemic, CEO tells employees ‘The way we were’: Amazon tries to rekindle its…
Microsoft, Amazon, AI, the economy, and another bad tech ad
This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we take a closer look at the earnings reports from Microsoft and Amazon this week, as a litmus test for artificial intelligence demand and the state of the economy. We also consider the implications of Boeing's new CEO being based in the Seattle region, discuss a new AI tool that aims to streamline marketing tasks, and weigh in on the backlash to Google's Olympics ad for its Gemini AI chatbot Microsoft capital spending soars to $19B, betting big on AI, as Azure growth underwhelms Wall Street Amazon sales come up short, profits nearly double…
People
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John Cook Founder, Co-founder and Publisher, GeekWire
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Jonathan Sposato Founder, Chairman & co-founder
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Todd Bishop Founder, Co-Founder
