11.27.18

Hoeven Announces Agenda for 2018 State of Technology Conference

Senator Hosting SBA Administrator Linda McMahon, U.S. Patent & Trade Office Director Andrei Iancu

FARGO, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today announced the agenda for his 2018 State of Technology Conference, which will be held at the Delta Hotel in Fargo on Friday, November 30. The senator holds his annual conference with the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce to highlight breakthrough technologies and the local innovators creating them. The conference has served as a catalyst for new innovation and investment in the state and is part of the senator’s work to position North Dakota as a hub of technology entrepreneurship, the third wave in the state’s economic growth.

“We’ve got a great lineup of speakers for this year’s State of Technology Conference, including keynotes from SBA Administrator Linda McMahon and USPTO Director Andrei Iancu,” Hoeven said. “These two federal agencies provide vital services and support for small businesses across our state, which is especially important as we continue to see growth in our tech sector. We look forward to their insights and to hearing the latest from local startups and established companies on exciting developments in their industries.”

This year’s conference will feature a keynote address from Linda McMahon, head of the Small Business Administration (SBA). McMahon is joining Hoeven in North Dakota so she can learn firsthand about the broad range of innovative technology developments occurring in the state, which have impacts across industry sectors and around the globe. Further, McMahon’s visit will serve as an opportunity for local businesses to benefit from learning directly about the work SBA is undertaking to assist and promote small business growth across the country.

Hoeven is also hosting Andrei Iancu, Director of the U.S. Patent and Trade Office (USPTO), at the conference to highlight the importance of securing intellectual property and outline opportunities to bring new technologies to market through partnerships between universities and the private sector. The event will be emceed by Eric Piela, the Brand and Buzz Manager at CoSchedule, and will spotlight innovations in medicine, unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and energy. A media availability will be held with Hoeven, McMahon, Iancu and the conference speakers at the conclusion of the event.

For more information on the 2018 State of Technology Conference, please visit the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber website or call (218) 233-1100.

The full schedule is as follows:

7:30 a.m. Registration

8:00 a.m. Welcome
                Craig Whitney, CEO, The Chamber
                Eric Piela, Brand & Buzz Manager, CoSchedule
                Event Emcee
                Seth Arndorfer, CEO, Dakota Carrier Network
                Presenting Sponsor

8:15 a.m.  Yossi Saadon, Project and Implementation Lead, Tytocare
                Dr. Jennifer Raum, Medical Director for Clinic Services & Service Chair for Internal Medicine, Sanford Health
                Core Faculty, UND Internal Medicine Residency Program

8:40 a.m.  Andrei Iancu
                Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property
                Director, USPTO

9:30 a.m.  Anthony Molzahn
                CEO & Co-Founder, Project Phoenix

9:40 a.m.   Zoe Bundy
                 Young Entrepreneurs Academy Winner
                 Founder, Brainy Ladies

9:50 a.m.   Chris Clark
                 President, Xcel Energy – MN, SD, ND

10:00 a.m.  Governor Doug Burgum

10:45 a.m.  TECHND Award Presentation

11:00 a.m.   U.S. Senator John Hoeven

11:20 a.m.   SBA Administrator Linda McMahon

11: 40 a.m.  Media Availability

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