Episode 95: #Hack4Detroit, City of Detroit Data, Automation Alley, Detroit Beer Press, Batch Brewing and More

Episode 95…and on our fifth episode from the new studio, we had a pretty packed room with guests covering all sorts of topics.  Open data in the city of Detroit and an upcoming hackathon to find better ways to use it.  Updates from our friends at Detroit Beer Press about their latest issue.  A check in nearly two years later with Batch Brewing Company on how things are going downtown.  A look at the state of the Detroit tech scene from the eyes of someone still in school and breaking into the industry.

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And so, so much more…

960227_710404635736891_3126203892173567257_nAfter our 1995 themed intro came to a close, our opening segment kicked off with a recap of our last event and information about our upcoming events, the depressing information that both The Goonies and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off are now both thirty years old, the hilarious (to us) story about a member of ISIS posting a selfie that led to an airstrike less than 24 hours later, a very concerning tale about how the Red Cross spent over $500 million in Haiti after the terrible earthquakes there…and yet somehow managed to only build six houses, Gamestop’s purchase of ThinkGeek’s parent company, our lovely new kegerator stocked with the Scurvy Dan Blood Orange IPA from Falling Down Beer Company and more.

10300770_572750306200813_6159287973151144084_nIn our second segment, we dove in with our guests David Lingholm, the Director of Digital Media and Community Engagement for the City of Detroit, and Erin Sommerville, Media Relations Specialist for Automation Alley.  There’s a hackathon coming up this weekend, #Hack4Detroit, that’s looking to find some better uses for the massive amounts of data that the city has accumulated over the years, and there’s some decent prize money for those who can help.  Designers, coders, and even just folks with ideas are welcome…but the signup cutoff is Wednesday, so hurry: http://www.automationalley.com/Events/Calendar/Event-Detail.aspx?uniqueid=16840

11264860_572750409534136_4118789726007690661_nIn segment three, we checked in with our friends Courtney Ochab, Ian Burk and Tony Barchok from Detroit Beer Press and Stephen Roginson of Batch Brewing Company.  Batch Brewing was on waaaaaaaaay back in episode 10 of our show when they were a finalist (and eventual winner!) of the Hatch Detroit competition in 2013, and they’ve come a long way since then.  Not only are they open, but they’re in full swing with production of a number of great beers, have a solid kitchen, and have a monthly “feel good tap” where a portion of the proceeds go to a local organization.  Can’t beat that.

1470174_572750332867477_3607763534758626953_nDetroit Beer Press isn’t doing to shabby either, with their latest issue in breweries, distilleries and locations throughout the area…which hypothetically might include another IT in the D style rant.  Updates about their Howler Club Membership program and more await your ears.

20150608_224929_001In our fourth and final segment (no, still no infamous fifth segments in the new studio as of yet), we talked with Kevin Hill, a local guy still in college at RIT, and working his way into the Detroit tech scene.  We met Kevin at our Hopcat event back in May, and absolutely had to have him join us in-studio to continue that conversation on air.  He’s got some great perspectives on how things look from his point of view – what he sees going well, going wrong, what works, what doesn’t, and just a great take on things in general.

And that brought us to a close.  Tune in next week as we’re joined by Right Brain Networks to talk about DevOps among other topics, Make Moore Media to talk film and production, and Yum Village to talk about their group’s organization and event.

Don’t forget you can get 10% off Squarespace‘s offerings by using discount code IT during the checkout process: http://www.squarespace.com/, and you can try QuickBooks for self-employed tryselfemployed.com/it

Again, our guests can be found at:

The City of Detroit: http://www.detroitmi.gov/

Automation Alley: http://www.automationalley.com/

The #Hack4Detroit event: http://www.automationalley.com/Events/Calendar/Event-Detail.aspx?uniqueid=16840

Batch Brewing Company: http://www.batchbrewingcompany.com/

Detroit Beer Press: http://www.detroitbeerpress.com/

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