In 1992 I was preparing to graduate high school, getting ready to start college, and anxiously awaiting the moment I would become an aunt. I was also plotting how to get to Lollapalooza, trying to convince my parents that my ’77 Ford Thunderbird needed to be replaced, figuring out last minute summer plans with friends, and of course memorizing every Pearl Jam and Soundgarden song.
ATC CEO Amber Gunst (left) poses with her grandma Cora after celebrating high school graduation in 1992.
In the burgeoning tech town of Austin, Texas a group of local technology pioneers were launching a new business council out of the Austin Technology Incubator. Austin Software Council came into being with the goal to grow software companies in Austin to meet the growth of hardware companies already here. They not only saw the future, they created it.
Our council has weathered every storm, from the tech bust in the early 2000’s where we reimagined ourselves into the Austin Technology Council to encompass all technologies, to the past two years when a global pandemic encouraged ATC to truly define what it means to be a community. We have seen and survived it all.
This year we will celebrate what it means to be a 30-year-old organization that is solely focused on supporting and promoting the growth of tech in Austin.
Battle for Austin Tech will serve as our 30th Anniversary Party, but as ATC has proven to break the mold over these past 30 years, this will not be a black-tie party. Instead, we’re bringing back a member favorite, Battle of the Tech Bands, but with a little twist. Your team members will still battle it out for who has the best band, but your companies will also battle it out over who is building the best tech.
So, consider this your official Save the Date for September 22 and we will see you at The Moody Theater where we’ll party like it’s 1992.
Break out that flannel that is fashionable again and join us in celebrating our community!