Knoxville Technology Council

06/11/2026

Knoxville’s first-ever Technology State of the Union is here!

This report evaluates Knoxville’s potential as a leader in technology innovation, assessing three areas:
🧑🏻‍💻 Tech Workforce and Talent Systems
🏢 Technological Landscape
🚀 Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Download the full report: https://www.knoxtech.org/state-of-the-union/

From the start, KTech has worked to advance Knoxville as a nationally recognized tech hub. This report is another step forward, promoting our region‘s tech industry and aligning the efforts of policymakers, workforce leaders, and the technology community.

Read the report: https://www.knoxtech.org/state-of-the-union/

06/01/2026

As we wrap up Small Business Month, we’re highlighting the momentum happening across Knoxville’s entrepreneurial community.

In a new guest blog post, Mike Thibodeaux, VP of Business Services for Comcast Business’ Big South Region, reflects on Knoxville’s growth and what’s needed to support the next generation of small businesses in East Tennessee.

Read it at https://www.knoxtech.org/event/small-business-month-2026/

05/31/2026

It was a rainy day, but that didn't put a damper on the crowd at BSides Knoxville!

We met infosec professionals from across the country who came to town for this 12th annual information security conference.

The day was filled with talks on cybersecurity, hacking, and access control, along with a keynote from Wendy Nather on "What AI Means for the Security Poverty Line." Plus donuts, coffee, and drinks! 🍩🍻

Were you at BSides this year? Share your favorite part of the day in the comments👇

05/12/2026

Some of the best opportunities happen when the right people end up in the same room.

Here’s a couple events well worth your time before we cruise into summer:

May 13 @ 12:00pm
🏟️ Innovation Night at Covenant Health Park
Join Knoxville founders, innovators, and investors for startup pitches, demos, and an innovation showcase
https://www.innovationnight.com/

May 22 @ 8:00am
🧑🏻‍💻 BSides Knoxville
12th annual information security conference featuring sessions on cybersecurity, hacking, and more
https://www.10-sec.org/bsides-knoxville

Check out our Community Calendar for more local events related to tech, economic growth, and workforce development: https://www.knoxtech.org/events/

05/11/2026

Come as you are ➡️ Leave even better!
Because sometimes when you've been head down on the latest sprint or just barely making it through a week packed with meetings, you need an evening to relax & recharge with a group of women who get it!

📆 Our next Knoxville Women in Technology Happy Hour is this Tuesday, May 12th
Join us at Bravo! Cucina Italiana from 4:30-6:30pm for drinks, appetizers, and good company — all made possible by our sponsor Patriot Talent Solutions!

Free registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1988647581449

Join Knoxville’s tech-savvy women for networking and drinks at Bravo in West Knoxville!

05/05/2026

If agentic AI is on your roadmap, does your org have the data architecture to support it?

At this East TN Tech Architecture meetup, we’ll dig into the role of data lakes, data fabrics, and medallion architecture in building AI-ready foundations.

📆 May 6 @ 5pm
From Raw to Ready: Building the Fabric for the Agentic AI Era
Shishir Desai, Head of Data Analytics, Engineering, and Governance at Clayton, will share lessons learned from building and scaling data platforms across multiple industries, including how bronze, silver, and gold data layers relate to agentic AI.

We’ll wrap up with Q&A, open discussion, and plenty of time to connect over drinks and pizza. Thanks to our sponsors, Cisco and Presidio for supporting this event!

Register for free and share with someone who should be part of it:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1987848274701

04/28/2026

We’re proud to celebrate this year’s KTech CodeStock Scholarship recipients! 👏

South Doyle High School
• Teacher: Rhett Lyle
• Student: AJ Godfrey

L&N STEM Academy
• Teacher: Reid Jackson
• Student: Dominick Pelaia

Through our partnerships with CodeStock and 865 Academies, these students and educators got to attend CodeStock 2026 — two full days of learning alongside tech innovators in software development and related fields.

A big thank you to the leaders who helped make this opportunity possible:
• Don Den Uyl (CodeStock)
• Amanda O’Dell (Knoxville Chamber)
• Corum (865 Academies)

This is what strong community collaboration looks like! Experiences like this encourage innovative thinking and help build pathways into tech careers and lifelong learning.

Drop a 👏 in the comments to help us celebrate these students & STEM educators!

Knox County Schools 865 Academies

04/24/2026

How do we build a stronger workforce in East Tennessee? Apprenticeships are a big part of the answer.

Join the Knoxville Chamber during National Apprenticeship Week for a discussion on how registered apprenticeship programs are helping employers meet talent needs, create career pathways, and drive economic growth.

Scaling Apprenticeships to Meet Regional Workforce Needs
📅 Wednesday, April 29
⏰ 8:30–10:00 AM
📍 Knoxville Chamber (Downtown at Market Square)

Hear from leaders and local experts at companies that are already leveraging apprenticeships: CGI, Messer Construction Co., TVA, UT Medical, and Pellissippi State Community College.

Learn what's working, the impact you can expect, and how to get started.

👉 Register Now: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1986241955156

04/23/2026

Earlier this year we added a new member to the KTech Board of Directors!

Dr. Shaun Gleason is Director of Partnerships at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and a longtime leader in East Tennessee’s innovation ecosystem.

His experience connecting research, industry, and emerging technologies will be a huge asset to the KTech community.

Add a 👍 on this post to help us give Shaun a warm welcome!

04/10/2026

Day 1️⃣ is done, and what a start! 👏

We’ve connected with developers, founders, and tech leaders from Knoxville & all over the country at CodeStock 2026.

The energy was buzzing from the moment the doors opened, and it was standing room only for the keynote address by Adhithi Ravichandran, Founder of Surya Consulting, Inc.

One of our favorite moments of the day was meeting the KTech CodeStock Scholarship recipients — we’ll share more about them soon!

Here’s what to look for at CodeStock Day 2️⃣

👉 Stop by the KTech table
Grab some swag, discover local user groups, and get plugged into our tech community

👉 Visit our member companies
Take time to connect with these teams that consistently show up and support Knoxville’s tech industry:
CGI
Clayton
Knoxville Utilities Board
The Pilot Company
Segra
Zelvin Security

👉 Don’t miss these breakout sessions from local leaders:
• AI Tennessee: Creating Economic Prosperity Through AI Partnerships
Caleb Knight, Director of AI TechX at University of Tennessee, Knoxville
• From POC to Prod: Building & Deploying AI Agents with AgentCore
Cody Lambert, Chief Architect at SOVRA & Co-founder of KnoxDevs
• Advanced Weight-Level AI/ML Ops for Explainability and Intervention for Open-Weight Models
John Derrick, CEO at Authentrics.ai
• Code for Good: How the Tech Community Can Power Social Impact
Brandon Bruce, Co-founder of KTech, 121 Tech Hub & Market Square Ventures
Ellie Kittrell, Executive Director of the East Tennessee Community Design Center

If the first day was any indication, today will be even better — let’s go! 🚀