It's hump day, Baltimore, and almost the start of March! You have anything fun planned for the first Friday? Maybe strolling some galleries, or catching "Dune 2" at The Charles? Or hey, you doing anything to celebrate the Leap Year tomorrow? 

Whatever you have planned, don't end this month without reading an excellent piece we just published. Many of you probably remember Stephen Babock, the Technical.ly reporter and editor (and my predecessor) who's now head of media for Squadra Ventures. He kindly dug through his treasure trove of knowledge and experiences in Baltimore tech to write a comprehensive, touching and (for at least some of you) nostalgia-inducing guest post as part of Technical.ly's 15th anniversary celebration. 

Scroll down to find it, read it in full, and take its lessons to heart. If you find its community focus moving, you'll also want to check out our other featured piece: An explanation of our upcoming Builders Conference. Check it all out, and if you have any thoughts, hit reply and share.  

— Sameer, Technical.ly editor

This week's newsletter is brought to you by the Technical.ly Builders Conference on May 9 in Philadelphia. It's a day packed with professional development opportunities, trending industry insights, and networking to catalyze your business and career growth — get your ticket today.

Ex-Technical.ly reporter and editor Stephen Babcock spent the better part of a decade immersing himself within Baltimore's tech ecosystem and came away (at least from that job — he's still a central member of this world) with some important lessons. He breaks down these takeaways, from the importance of grassroots community-building to the events where that happened to the scene's punk rock parallels, in this moving new guest post. 

As a taste, here's what he writes about how newcomers must engage with Baltimore tech: 

"They too frequently show up by declaring themselves the center of Baltimore tech. They ask how they can bring people to their initiative, rather than what they can give the city. The scene welcomes newcomers, but you have to give before you get."

➡️ Find out more about Stephen's journey and lessons in his guest post here.

Tech meetups are coming back. Entrepreneurs are back to having dinner together. And here come the conferences. On Thursday, May 9, we host our next Technical.ly Builders Conference, and we want you to join us in Philadelphia at the posh Fitler Club.

With the lineup we're putting together, attending is definitely an investment in your business and career goals. Early-bird pricing ends April 1, so now's the time to convince someone to invest in your ticket — even if that person is you.

➡️ Get all the details here (plus a sample email to send the person with keys to professional dev $$!)

• Learn about the National Institute of Standards and Technology's new consortium to guide responsible AI use and development, with perspectives from some of the companies in our markets (including 2023 RealLIST Startup Backpack Healthcare) joining Big Tech titans and premiere universities on the initiative. [Technical.ly]

• In an echo of the multi-org and -agency push for digital equity in Baltimore, a Pittsburgh nonprofit uses internet access to fight hunger. [Technical.ly]

• b.well Connected Health, a Sharp-Leadenhall-based company whose platform aims to make health data access easier for patients, closed a $40 million Series C. [Baltimore Biz Journal]

• UpSurge Baltimore, Loam and Code City Strategies teamed up on a new pilot program, called Scaling Deep, which aims to support female, non-binary and gender-expansive members of Baltimore's tech world. Born out of grief walks that ecosystem members took after Pava LaPere's death, the seven-month program seeks to help 15 leaders from those groups holistically grow through exposure to nature. Registration closes on March 22. [UpSurge Baltimore]

• The US Small Business Administration has designated Allegany, Somerset and Worcester counties new HUBZones, which opens doors to concerted opportunities and support for local small businesses. [Maryland Department of Commerce]

• Fearless (which is, in full transparency, a Technical.ly client) is celebrating the launch of its namesake club at the redeveloped downtown arena once known as the Royal Farms Arena. [CFG Bank Arena]