Inside the 2026 GeekWire Awards: Innovators reshaping how we work, build, and learn

This week on the GeekWire Podcast: Conversations with finalists and special guests at the annual GeekWire Awards about AI, innovation, startups, and the forces reshaping their industries. Guests on this episode include:

• Luis Poggi, CEO of HouseWhisper AI, winner of CEO of the Year
• Tracy Drinkwater, founder of the Seattle Universal Math Museum, one of our STEM Educator of the Year honorees (along with Project LEDO founder Fidel Ferrer).
• Ryan James, CEO of Dopl Technologies, finalist for Startup of the Year
• Laura Ruderman, CEO of the Technology Alliance
• Ross Finman, CEO of Augmodo, finalist for Hardware/Robotics/Physical AI of the Year
• Mohammad Rastegari, CEO of ElastixAI, finalist for Startup of the Year

Plus, a special trivia challenge marking GeekWire’s 15th year hosting the event, featuring a serendipitous and fun connection to Andrew Putnam of Microsoft, a pioneer in FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays) and a winner of the 2017 GeekWire Award for Innovation of the Year (pictured above).

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With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook

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