Entrepreneurs establishing AI-powered firms may soon have a new resource in Seattle, thanks to a collaboration between city and state leaders. Earlier this year, Washington state lawmakers granted $800,000 in financing for the City of Seattle to lease space to incubate tech firms, namely those focused on AI. During a Seattle AI Week panel discussion led by Boaz Ashkenazy, CEO of Simply Augmented and host of the Shift AI Podcast, State Sen. Joe Nguyen, who spearheaded the financing, discussed the plan.
Nguyen proposed that the University of Washington maintain an office where early-stage firms may rent space while also hosting AI-related classes and other educational opportunities. Providing computing resources, which can be costly, could aid AI businesses in testing and developing their infrastructure.
Seattle’s Chamber of Commerce is working with the city and state on the effort.
Nguyen aims to enhance Seattle’s reputation as an AI hub and attract aspiring businesses.
“We are connecting the dots between the public and private sectors, academia, startups, and investors,” Nguyen told the sources.
The funds will be allocated over a two-year period beginning next month. A new location might complement the UW’s CoMotion program, which already promotes entrepreneurs and technology commercialization. CoMotion runs co-working offices and incubators throughout the UW campus, just north of downtown Seattle.
Over the last few years, Seattle’s startup industry has lost a number of communities that cater to entrepreneurs and manage physical spaces, including the unexpected departure of Techstars Seattle earlier this year. Some argue that these places are crucial for supporting entrepreneurs and fostering the city’s startup culture. Last year, Seattle leaders unveiled AI-generated pictures of potential structures and communities for its downtown, including a makerspace.
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