The Daily Blagica

Before you dive into reading this,  let's set some ground rules.

This isn't going to be a 'Rah-rah-this-is-the-best-city-ever' post.
This isn't going to be a 'We don't get any cool attention' post.
This isn't going to be a 'What about us?' post.

No, this is simply a refreshing look at what's transpired in the innovation/tech/data world of Chicago in just under a year.  Aside from the continued success and investment around the startups you know so well, there has been some true elbow grease put into making information and utility easier for people to utilize.  A quick recap:

 

TechWeek

One week in Chicago with some of the most well known Fortune 100 professionals out there. Craig's List's Craig Newmark will be in attendance as will the CTO of the U.S. Keynotes given by Jason Fried and J.B. Prtizker. Definitely an amazing line up is in store.

 

 

The City and the County Get Open

Yes. Open. Not just open from the perspective of walking into City Hall and saying 'Howareya', but a bonafide effort to hire individuals who come from niche sectors of information technology. Our CTO is John Tolva, a former IBMer. The CDO (yes, we have a Chief Data Officer) is Brett Goldstein, once part of the Chicago Police Dept. Brett used predicting modeling to assist the CPD in getting better versed into the world of crime behavior. John and Brett are  on a mission - giving anyone who has an interest to look at public information. From who's lobbying the city to who's getting paid what, I've never seen this city so open to spreading information to its citizens.  Anyone with an Internet connection can look up reports on parking tickets or see which journalists filed FOA (Freedom of Information Act) requests. The City also appointed a new Social Media Director.

Cook County is sharing its love of open as well. New Board President, Toni Preckwinkle, is in full support of  the Apps for Metro Chicago contest (disclosure: Motorola Mobility Foundation is a sponsor). 175 data sets open to anyone with coding skills and the motivation to make a difference. Cook County Commissioner John Fritchey is an avid open data supporter and is the man behind the Open Cook County Plan. I met Commissioner Fritchey at an open government meetup and was happy to see his passion for the effort.

Excelerate Labs

Another batch of companies are spending their summer getting immersed in the world of building, raising capital and learning the ropes from seasoned businesses. I'm delighted to know a few of them personally and I couldn't be more excited for what's in store for their ideas.

The Data Liberation Front

Google' is a global powerhouse, but you may not know that the first engineer in the Chicago office, Brian Fitzpatrick, is the person behind Google's  Data Liberation Front. Brian recently teamed up with Chicago's CTO and CDO to host an Open Data Hackathon in Google's offices. I missed the event, but am having a field day with some of the projects developed. Take a gander at ChicagoLobbyists.

Built in Chicago

Founded by Viewpoints founder, Matt Moog, Built in Chicago has grown to thousands of members.  A recent investment from some of Chicago's best known entrepreneurs is another testament to the commitment the business community is making in providing support, resources and events for startups in Chicagoland.

SocialDevCamp

It's back. The summer camp for the social web.  A weekend of conversation, coding, hacking and building. The price for this event is really low and the talks are stellar. You may want to make room for it. If it wasn't for a trip to see family that weekend, I'd be there.

Social Media Week Chicago

I am excited to be on the Advisory Board for Social Media Week.  Chicago and LA are the only two U.S. cities that will participate in this yearly event. I join folks from ConAgra, the Tribune, Zocalo, the City of Chicago, Unilever, Northwestern and Facebook to put together a week long series of informative events, highlighting the social media industry. It's going to be awesome.

Obama for America

Yep. The headquarters for President Barack Obama's re-election campaign is in Chicago, a stone's throw away from Millennium Park. The marketing and technology talent coming into this organization continues to rise, including a solid hire in their CTO, Harper Reed.

Indeed, quite a bit going on. I'm sure I left out some events and hard working people that are making a difference - please feel free to remind me in the comments.