2025 Austin Tech Hall of Fame
Release Date: 03/21/2025
Bob Fabbio - Betting Big on Disruption
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Thom Singer sits down with Austin Tech Hall of Fame inductee Bob Fabbio, a founder and leader whose career is woven into the story of our region’s tech ecosystem. Bob shares how a reluctant interview trip from Massachusetts to IBM Austin in 1987 turned into a one way ticket to a city he quickly fell in love with. After realizing he was “a fish out of water” in big corporate environments, he left IBM to launch Tivoli Systems, pursuing a then radical idea to manage heterogeneous computer networks as if they were a single machine. People told him he...
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Property Tech / Real Estate Tech with Greg Cooper
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Austin Technology Council CEO, Thom Singer, sits down with Greg Cooper, president at Offerd, to explore how PropTech is reshaping commercial real estate and why Austin is a compelling place to build it. Greg’s Austin story spans three decades and a rare path. He grew up in Jamaica, spent time in England, went to high school in Houston, then earned a UT law degree focused on real estate. While in law school he co-founded Austin Java and ended up running a fast growing restaurant company with hundreds of employees, an experience that sharpened his...
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Tax Policy Matters To Austin Tech Companies
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
Patrick Smith, Tax Principal with CLA... and new comer to the Austin tech ecosystem joins the conversation on the Austin Tech Connect podcast to talk about recent changes in the tax laws and how it impacts Austin companies. The Austin Tech Connect podcast is the official podcast of the Austin Technology Council and one of the premier podcasts in the Austin tech scene.
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Tyson Tuttle on Leadership, Innovation, and Austin’s Tech Evolution
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Thom Singer sits down with Tyson Tuttle, the former CEO of Silicon Labs and one of the most influential figures in Austin’s technology landscape. Tyson shares an inside look at his remarkable journey from a hands-on engineer to a purpose-driven CEO who helped shape one of Austin’s most respected semiconductor companies. The conversation explores how curiosity, courage, and collaboration guided his leadership approach and how his experiences continue to inform his perspective on innovation and community today. Tyson reflects on the early days of...
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How AI Practically Impacts Business with John Hartigan
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
John Hartigan, CEO of Lumineo, returns to Austin Tech Connect to share what has changed since his 2023 visit and how his team fully pivoted into AI for corporate learning. Host Thom Singer, talks to John about practical wins over hype, from improving content creation and microlearning workflows to blending live action with AI avatars, and what is coming next with interactive AI tutors. John explains where AI saves time, where humans add the creative spark, and why, in his words, “mediocrity is now free.” We dig into leadership, retraining teams, prompt skills, and ethical transparency...
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The Future of Work with Tom Alexander
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Thom Singer sits down with Tom Alexander, co-founder and CEO of Holistic, for a candid conversation about the future of work and what a great employee experience really looks like. Tom shares lessons from working in Chicago's tech scene at "1871" and the mayor’s office, and explains why many executives say people are their most important asset yet lack the language and systems to manage the people experience with the same rigor as revenue. They dig into the pendulum swings in today’s workplace, the role of DEI as an integrated part of culture rather...
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Like Clockwork with Sam Goodner
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
Austin Tech Connect is sponsored by Calavista Software: Software Development without the Drama. In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Thom Singers sits down with long-time friend and Austin tech leader, Sam Goodner. Sam arrived in Austin in 1992 after growing up in Europe and serving in the Swiss Army Special Forces. He cut his teeth at Dell, then co-founded what became Catapult Systems. Along the way he helped launch product companies like Inquisite, guided Catapult to be Microsoft’s top global partner, and sold the firm in 2013. After a family year of world travel, he returned to scale a...
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Barriers to Bridges, Building an Inclusive Austin Tech Ecosystem with Michael Ward Jr.
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, the official podcast of the Austin Technology Council, Thom sits down with returning guest Michael Ward Jr., the social entrepreneur behind Universal Tech Movement. Formerly known as Austin Urban Tech Movement, UTM is an EdTech nonprofit on a mission to connect communities to the tech industry through workforce readiness, innovation, and economic advancement. Michael shares how his own journey into tech began with a simple nudge from a recruiter, and how that spark fuels his commitment to help more people discover meaningful careers in technology. The...
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The Age of Abundance for All with Brett Hurt
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, host Thom Singer welcomes back Brett Hurt, one of Austin’s most recognized serial entrepreneurs. Brett first appeared on the show in December 2022, and now returns following the recent sale of his company, Data.World, to ServiceNow. Known for his lifelong dedication to technology and community, Brett shares candid insights into the journey that brought him here and the bold vision that is now guiding his next chapter. Brett reflects on the timing of the acquisition, ServiceNow’s ambitions in enterprise AI, and why Data.World’s knowledge graph and...
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The Power of the Pivot: Product Management Across Industries with Carlisha Robinson
Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!
In this episode of Austin Tech Connect, Thom Singer sits down with Carlisha Robinson, a seasoned product leader, consultant, and longtime Austinite whose career journey mirrors the rise of Austin’s technology ecosystem. Carlisha describes herself as a “serial product manager,” but her story reveals so much more... she is a connector, a problem solver, and a mentor who has played a pivotal role in shaping companies through decades of change. Carlisha’s path began at Grambling State University in Louisiana, where she earned her degree in computer science before joining IBM in the early...
info_outlineIn this special episode of Austin Tech Connect, host Thom Singer takes listeners behind the scenes of the Austin Tech Hall of Fame ... a community-driven initiative launched by the Austin Technology Council to celebrate the individuals who have shaped Austin into a world-class tech hub.
With the second annual celebration on the horizon, Thom shares the "why" behind this important program, how it was inspired by a brief start in 2013, and why the current version is being thoughtfully rolled out as an 8-year launch. Each year, eight foundational figures from Austin’s tech history will be inducted, honoring the more than 60 leaders who helped build the ecosystem we enjoy today.
Thom explains the nomination process, the addition of an annual current-year inductee, and the special First-Time Founder Award... which highlights up-and-coming entrepreneurs making waves in the local scene. He also emphasizes the grassroots nature of this program and encourages everyone in the community to get involved, from nominating candidates to attending the event in May.
If you care about the past, present, and future of Austin’s innovation economy, this episode is your roadmap to how the Hall of Fame is helping weave a stronger, more connected tech community.