On Wednesday, June 3, your Chamber’s Cyber Council / CyberSecurity San Antonio program gathered for its monthly meeting via video conference. The Cyber Council is chaired by Rich Valdez, Chief Technology Officer of IPSecure, a cybersecurity company headquartered right here in San Antonio, Texas. With more than 70 people in attendance, the group was energized by presentations from a trio of powerhouse leaders, including Geekdom CEO Charles Woodin, Scaleworks Principal Lew Moorman, and Tech Bloc CEO Dave Heard.
First, Geekdom CEO Charles Woodin shared how Geekdom became the heart of the downtown tech district. Branded as a gym membership for geeks, Geekdom is a membership-based co-working space that offers programming and support for all entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes. Years ago, a founder sent an email to Graham Weston stating the many reasons why they would NOT move to San Antonio. Today, we see a thriving urban core with increasing walkability, startups creating jobs, and more collaboration built on meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships.
Next, Scaleworks Principal Lew Moorman provided an overview of the Scaleworks Group. Scaleworks acquires B2B SaaS products that have the potential to be great but need support in their efforts to scale from around $3-10M in size to $20M and beyond. The Scaleworks Group includes the Scaleworks Equity Fund, element (a SaaS finance debt fund), and soilworks (focused on expanding the regenerative agriculture economy). In the same way that Geekdom creates jobs through entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses, Scaleworks creates jobs by relocating businesses to San Antonio, and helping them grow. They are also next-door neighbors to Geekdom, which is in the Rand Building.
Last but not least, Tech Bloc CEO Dave Heard explained how their organization began with advocating for rideshare companies to be allowed to operate in San Antonio. Today, Tech Bloc continues to rally the tech community, and serve as the trade association for local tech workers through events and advocacy. Tech Bloc helped to create CAST Tech High school, an in-district charter focused on careers in cyber, data science and other STEM fields. They also recently organized a virtual fundraiser for the SAISD Foundation, where tech members donated funds to bridge the digital divide.
The meeting wrapped with an exciting announcement: Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) was named by the Department of Defense as one of seven U.S. military installations as the latest sites where it will conduct fifth-generation (5G) communications technology experimentation and testing. In addition to the work of the local Electromagnetic Defense Task Force, this announcement further demonstrates San Antonio’s commitment to protecting its residents and businesses against current and evolving threats.
San Antonio remains the only community in the United States hardening its infrastructure against an EMP threat.
Now, more than ever, the regional ecosystem continues to collaborate and collectively reimagine what the future workforce and economy of San Antonio looks like. Housed in the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, CyberSecurity San Antonio is the lead convener and brand manager for the region’s cybersecurity ecosystem. Join the conversation, become a member, and stay engaged in this work. Learn more at www.sachamber.org/cyber.
