 Bingo! We're back. Whoa, Thursday. Robbie Melton, CEO of HDDC. We have the honor of her appearance this morning. Hi, Robbie. Welcome to the show. Oh, thank you, Jay. It's such a pleasure to be here again. We always like to catch up with you because you always have so many things going on. Yeah, we certainly do, especially now with the legislative session going. There are a number of bills in play for the tech industry. Yeah, well, that's your middle name. It's our middle name, too. Yeah. I knew we had something in common. So tell us about the bills pending in the legislature. Well, there's quite a few bills that really can help spur innovation in Hawaii. Notably, the SBIR matching grant funds, they're up again for renewal. Every year we have to go in and request funding for that program. Also, the manufacturing grant program is also up for renewal. We're trying to get $1.5 million for that program. Is that federal or state money? It's state. These are all state-funded programs. So the interesting thing about manufacturing was the first year, last year, that we had the program. We had 61 applications. We funded 51. We put in $1.9 million. The company's actually put in $38 million of their own money to match our $1.9 million. Wow, that's a great leverage is what it is. Yeah, it's huge. You really got something that started, yeah? Yeah, and so it's going to really help put our manufacturing industry on the map. We also have a couple of other programs. We also have a pilot project to help companies that are doing energy projects with the office-enabled research. So we have a matching grant similar to SBIR for companies doing projects with ONR. So those are three of our main primary projects. We also have one to change our name. Oh, I want to hear about it. This is Scoop. Yeah, this is a big Scoop. This is a big Scoop. This is a big Scoop, yes. So, you know, we've been known as the High Tech Development Corporation. More to its friends. HTDC rolls off the tone. Yes, HTDC. Well, you know, technology has evolved since we were formed in 1988. And so now things are not high tech, they're tech. And to be more relevant to our constituents and to the broader community, we would like to change our name to the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation because we're a statewide agency and we embrace all technologies, not a narrow niche of software and computers, but a much broader scope. So we're hoping that that passes this year. Yeah, well, I think, you know, it's too bad you have to go to the legislature to do that. You know, think tech wanted to change its name, bingo. Yeah, it's much easier. But when you're a state agency, you know, you're written into law. Yeah, everything. And our name is written into law. There's two other really interesting projects or bills that can really help the state as a whole. One is to support projects. We've done a number of hackathons. We just did the AT&T hackathon. Last November, the governor had its first annual code challenge. Hawaii annual code, HACC. HACC. That was phenomenal. 300 people came out to participate. We were there. We covered it. Oh, yeah, I did see you there. Yeah. Thank you for covering it. And the great thing is there were a number of projects that came out that could really help benefit the state and improve their processes. But once the hackathon is over, there's no way to take that project forward. There's no money to help support these endeavors. So there's a bill in legislature now that would provide small amounts of money to help move that project into proof of concept. And we would be working with the Enterprise Technology Services Division to make sure it meets their needs. And then once that's done, then a company could then bid on that project to take it into the government. So we're very excited. And this is what we, what they, what all these entrepreneurs and participants in the hack challenge were hoping for, that they could actually take their product of the 30-day code challenge and make a business out of it somehow. Yes, yeah. And we believe there was one that I was really impressed with that did big data archiving all this state information that's currently in text and digitized it just phenomenally well. And it's really too bad that there was no way to capture that to move it forward. So that's why this bill is very important. So we're hoping that it's moving forward. It's now into, will be up for hearing with the Ways and Means Committee. And that's kind of the final step to hopefully get it into fruition. So that, this means it's a money bill. Yeah, it's a money bill. How is it a money bill? What's the money involved? So we're looking, so the approach we're taking for this bill is that it would be a matching program so that we would need to get private sector match funds for the projects. So it wouldn't just be the state putting in all the money, but actually other enterprises helping to get these projects from industry or nonprofits. So we've asked for $250,000. So about, some of that money would go for administration and then the other money, the rest of the money would go for projects. So, and then the projects have to be geared towards solving state and local government. Such as the projects that were underway in the 30-day hackathon, you know? Right, yeah, or reboot the commute. So like traffic problems and things like that. Or visiting the prisons. I thought that was a very useful project. Oh yeah, that was very, that was a great project. That was really good. The other bill that's in play right now was one to create STEM projects. Private companies going into the schools. A number of larger companies already go, spend a lot of time in projects with the schools, getting them interested in STEM careers. So this funding would help support their efforts and to recover some of their costs. So we know like Oceanette does a lot of design thinking with the schools, not only the students, but with the teachers. And so they spend a lot of time and a lot of money making those things happen so they could come in and request some kind of reimbursement for those costs. Yeah, I think that's really an interesting interlinear point there. And that is just as the students come through, you know, and they go in through the pipeline and go far away, sort of the teachers. They're not there forever. And some of the teachers have no real, what do you want to call it, experience in STEM, that you have to teach them. You have to show them not only what it is and how it works, but how to teach it. And you have to have both to make this program work. So I like, I really like a program that hits it at both ends that way. Yeah, we do too. I think it's so important. And, you know, we started our tech hire initiative last year to help get the kids trained here so they don't even go to the mainland and can actually work in the jobs that we have here. So this really fits into our tech hire initiative. Yeah. Well, it sounds like you're being pretty active this session. I like to see that. On the one hand, I like to see it. On the other hand, I wish you didn't have to even go there. You know, because you could probably spend your time better at home actually doing stuff. But the whole state government goes there. So we all have to go there. Yeah, yeah. And the great thing is that the legislature is very supportive of our 8080 initiative. Oh, yeah, let's talk about that. Would you remind everybody what that is? So the 8080 initiative is to create 80,000 new tech and innovation jobs earning more than $80,000 a year by 2030. And so we're very proactive in creating not only funding sources, but business processes that allows these new jobs to be created. So we're really excited about that. The legislature supports that because they want their cakey to stay here. They don't want them to go to the mainland because that's the only place for opportunities. We want interesting opportunities here. Yeah, absolutely. And the legislature and, well, shall I call you HTC yet? Now HTDC is still what we would be called. But I want to get into the mood though. Oh, okay. I think it'll be called TDC. TDC. Yes. TDC, development. Corporation. Corporation. I really like that. Yeah. So the point is though that it's on your shoulders. You are the most significant tech organization in the state. You're the umbrella watching the whole enchilada grow. And it's what falls on you to nurture these projects and programs and think of them as the years go by and make sure that you're socialized appropriately in the square building. I mean, this is not easy actually. So you also had the sandbox. And the sandbox, you know, referred to affectionately as the sandbox is a place where entrepreneurs could make their business in Kakaako. It's a building more than just a sandbox. So yeah, it's a giant sandbox for innovation. So sandbox is where you go to play and you create things and make things. And basically that's what the sandbox is for everyone. So it's actually for young people as well as Kapuna can come and learn how to take their ideas and turn them into actual products. So we'll have a maker space there with lots of different types of equipment, machinery. We'll also have a digital media studio that will train people how to do video production, how to do gaming, how to do animation. We'll have a small production studio there. And we'll also have a lot of collaboration space because that's how things happen. You're sitting next door, like if you're at Starbucks, you're sitting next door to your neighbor drinking coffee and you're like, oh, what are you doing? That looks interesting. Oh, what are you doing? This reminds me of David Lassner's Innovation Center at the UH Minoa campus. Very similar, but very much more open to the public. So we're in the process of finalizing the design work and we hope to get a construction early next year. I want to just digress for a moment, if I may, Robbie. Sure. Now, there was a piece in one of the European newsletters, tech newsletters last week, which we covered and we capitalized on it because we got a bunch of people to talk about it. And it was about a company that 3D-printed homes using a huge, I shouldn't say huge, maybe 20-foot boom and it had a special kind of concrete material, you know, material science material. And it went around in a circle and it laid this concrete in an exact form and in a 24-hour period pressed out a home with insulation, if you like, and in any event concrete. And the cost of this home in American money was $10,000 for the home. And that was with double wall and the insulation. If you had lesser of a double wall and no insulation, it would be, you know, less, obviously. And I'm going to give you one guess where they're doing this. Ready? Go. Hawaii. Love to see that. It could be in Hawaii. The fact of fact is it's in Russia. Oh, in Russia. How do you like that? Those guys, they're trying to be, you know, high tech. They're trying to be world-class and this is something they got out with and they're trying to sell this stuff in Europe. It struck me, though, that Hawaii could have this and we need the homes and $10,000 for a home is pretty cheap, you know, if it measures up the way they say. And I just feel there's high tech in housing that we have not yet explored. And maybe it could happen under your auspices. Yeah, there is some tiny houses going on, different types of production. With Hawaii, though, we have rising energy costs and so that's the other thing. So that $10,000 house built in Russia might cost, you know, $15,000 to do here because of the cost of energy here. So that would be one of the differences. But there are many people, I've met many innovators that are working on the housing issue and actually there's a company in Maui already doing some very interesting smaller houses that are affordable. Yeah, it's a natural for you, though, I think. So when we come back from this break, I'd like to offer you the opportunity to make a state of the tech statement, okay? How are we doing in tech? And then I'd like to talk to some of the programs that you have on your website, which I looked on your website. You have so many programs and I would like to cover some of them so people are aware of what you do at the Tech Development Corporation, now known as HDDC. All right, great. We'll be right back. Ah, I'm Stan Energyman and I want you to be here every Friday. Noon. ThinkTechHawaii.com. Watch the show. Be there. I'm hitting the full weight. Thanks for watching Think Tech Hawaii and look forward to seeing you at Education Matters on Tuesdays with me, Carol Mon Lee. Hi, I'm your host of Hawaii State of Clean Energy and I would like to introduce my co-host, Les Tanayama and Jason Forester. Les, if you could say a few words. Yes, this coming Friday, we're having an all-day seminar with Ash Ray. Ash Ray is the American Society for Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers and it's an annual conference that we have that will produce a lot of talks on technology and energy efficiency. Jason will be there, he'll be talking about controls and building automation and the impact of disruptive things in society. Bingo, we're back with Robbie Melton. She's the CEO of the High Tech Development Corporation soon to be known as the Tech Development Corporation. Hawaii, what? Hawaii Technology Development. I love it. So let's take a minute and can you just sort of give us a report on the state of tech in the state of tech? So the state of tech in Hawaii is growing. It's flourishing, a lot of innovation, a lot of great things happening. So we just got the report from D-Bed that our tech jobs increased 4,000 new tech jobs last year and we hope with some of the new bills in place that that number will exponentially grow the following year. There's a lot of different kinds of tech here. We just had startup entrepreneur day at the capital. We brought in 16 companies with a wide variety of technology from healthcare to app for farmers to movie production to engineering sensors. There's a guy that's actually in our incubator now that has developed a super cooling unit for a new way to store meats and produce without refrigeration so it's much healthier than through refrigeration. Is this a desiccation technique where they dry it out? No, not at all. Not at all. It's just this whole new technology. So there's so many new technologies and they're developed right here in Hawaii. So that was our point of being at the legislature is to say, hey, there's a lot of stuff happening in Hawaii and thank you for your funding because this is what helps make it happen. Yeah. I think the same fantastic prospect exists now as before. We have very creative kids here. Oops, people. And we have a lot going on at the university because we sit in shows three, four times a week with people from the university about what they're doing and the technology they're discovering and the collaborations they're having with other scientific organizations far, far away. This is a center here. It's well known in the scientific realm. And so I think we have a huge number of people who could participate, might participate, will participate in the growth of technology and Hawaii as a technology center. You must see that from where you are. Oh yeah, definitely. There's just so many opportunities. So we're also working on some technology parks, helping other agencies. We're working with Creative Industries Division and their West Oahu Film Office or Studio. We're also working on potentially developing a cyber security and first responder tech park up in central Oahu. We're also looking at possibly doing something in Hilo to support the astronomy and the technology industry over there. So there's lots of different things, you know, happening throughout the state. And the role you're playing, I mean, to me it's important because some of these are not necessarily related to each other. The people involved in cyber security may not, you know, know exactly about agriculture, for example, and somebody has to bring them together and be the overarching collaboration person. Yeah, so we're the facilitator. So we don't do the actual work, but we help facilitate. And that's what we're here for, is to help other agencies and other organizations and to help companies become successful. Now you mentioned before that you were seeking, as you have been, SBIR grants for manufacturing. And I always thought that was really important for Hawaii because manufacturing tech products doesn't take that much and the labor is well paid. It's not, you know, it's not low level labor. It's called a high level, it's tech labor. And I wonder, you know, how that's doing and where the areas of greatest interest are for manufacturing technology goods. So actually there's two separate things. There's an SBIR grant program for companies doing R&D and developing their product. Then there's a manufacturing assistance program for all kinds of manufacturing, not necessarily tech. So I think when you said that there's not much effort into tech manufacturing, I would beg to differ. Well go ahead. Because I think some of those companies who are developing this really state of the art technologies, although small, are so intricate. Like what things? I can't tell you because I'm not the engineer. They're electronic. They're either electronics, they're sensors, other types of technologies. Some involve like algae, you know, different substances or substrates. So while small, they're very intensive. You know, some can be made by machines, some have to be done individually by hand. So our bills are very important. So it gets you out of R&D from the SBIR grants into manufacturing where then the manufacturing grant allows you to purchase equipment or train your employees on equipment or become more energy efficient. Yeah, that's great. And I feel that once you learn how to manufacture one kind of electronics or, you know, tech item, tech product if you will, you can go to something else because now you know how to be a manufacturer. This is a teaching grant as well as a production grant, I think. Yeah, I think so too, but you have to, I guess a lot of it depends on your vertical and what your products are that follow that. So some people might do something similar or they might realize, oh, we could be doing something else that would be going in a different trajectory. So we're, you know, if we could measure how things were going, say, five years ago when you arrived on these shores or should I say returned on these shores because you weren't here before. And now, how would you say things have changed for HDDC and for those young bright-eyed people who can do innovative things? So, well, it seems five years, three years ago when I arrived. You look great, by the way. You know, I met Robbie very shortly after she got here and she looks younger today than she looked then. Whatever you're doing, let's agree with you. Well, I'm having a lot of fun with my job. Let's just say that. Yeah, I mean, it's been amazing seeing the growth of the accelerators. Our incubator at Manoa is 100% fully occupied. So there are so many things. There's lots of networking events. We have our WetWare Wednesday coming up next week at Medici's where IBM is sponsoring and bringing their Watson. Oh, really? Yeah, so you can come and play with Watson. Everybody wants to see Watson? Yeah, so that's always a fun time. So talk about WetWare Wednesday. What is that? So WetWare Wednesday is a monthly networking event for software developers and coders that come in and just meet each other. It's really, we have just a short program when the sponsor talks about what they're doing or something interesting happening in the community, but it's really to meet and agree, also it's for people who are looking for a job or people seeking a job. And so we've actually had people make connections that way through our networking event. Well, it reminds me of the Newford Simmons in Denver and the guy who developed it, who was the director of the EDA at the time, by the way, Gail Fujita's boss at the time. Robert Olson was his name. Decided that the way to bring people together for tech collaborations was to feed them. Right. And if you feed them and let them talk to each other, they love to talk to each other. I mean, off the record, no problem about competition. Then you will have an industry and it worked for him. It worked in the Newford Simmons. And it works here. You're doing the same thing here, yeah. It works here, definitely. Yeah, so, you know, we have our WetWare Wednesdays. The accelerators have their demo days so that's a way to bring the community together just to see what's new and exciting out there. So we have so many different opportunities now than when I first got here. Yeah. So where is it and how can I sign up for it? So you can go to our website, HTDC.org, and you can sign up for attending the WetWare Wednesday. It's free. There's always, you just have to pay for your drinks. But the food at Medici is fabulous. And IBM sponsored an event before and that was a lot of fun that people could come out and play with it. So here's the website. I hope I get that, yeah. And there's a lot of things on here. We have time for a couple of them. I noticed that I was impressed with, you have a program on legal assistant, legal guidance. Yes. Which I gather is a special kind of thing. Free legal guidance. Ah, it's a pro bono. You get 15 or 30 minutes. It comes every Wednesday. And provides free legal advice. You know, if you need more further depth, that's a little bit something. But you know, sometimes it might be, should I patent my invention now? Or should I wait? Sure. An important question. Or how do I start my company? Should I be an S Corp or LLC or a C Corp? What's the difference? Or you might have a legal problem with maybe one of your vendors. And you can go in and talk to them about it. It's a great service to the companies. Well, that's great. And I see you have quite a few incidents day after day. Yes. Where you're going to have that available for people. And I think that's a continuing need for any, because if I'm a techie, excuse the expression, I'm using this side. If I'm a lawyer, you know, putting businesses together, I'm using this side. And I have to make the two sides come together. They don't necessarily come together. Well, you're both, I think. Yeah, that's why I'm so strange. So, now you also have space over there. And you have incubator space. You can put people together physically, give them space to work in. You can help them establish a physical business and a physical space. This is, sometimes makes all the difference in the world to somebody working in his garage or, you know, in his bedroom. And somebody who actually can come out and organize a company in space that you could talk about it, will you? Yeah, so we actually, also besides having office space, we have what we call our virtual program. And we call it VIP. And you can, excuse me, actually be in a collaboration space where you have, you can come whenever you want and have a desk. We have high speed internet access, which is really good for our companies. And then you also get access to our mentoring and you have access to our conference rooms. So it's a great way to start. Many of our companies start in the virtual program and then they advance and graduate into our tenant program. Yeah, the idea is that something's always happening at HTDC. Right. The innovation center is crawling with ideas and people talking to, I like that. Yeah, and so also in Maui we have our MRTC, which we have the Kohana space, which is a much more vibrant community. Again, it's a co-working space. But from that people have then signed on for dedicated desks or for some of our smaller office space. But there it's really interesting because there's not much of a community in Maui because it's so spread out. So the Kohana space actually brings people together with like minds and they've been able to do some really fabulous things. Yeah, I'm a beautiful building too. It is, you can actually watch the whales in this matter of time. Beautiful location, Kihei there, yeah. So we're almost out of time but I want to offer you the opportunity to talk to camera one over there and tell the people how they can participate in HTDC in general, how they can come around and learn more about it and how they can participate in the new emergence of the tech industry in Hawaii to save the state. I think one of the best ways to really start out with the with the WetWare Wednesday and that's a good way to see how people are getting together. You can meet the community and have a really great time learning about what's going on in the industry. We actually have new people come all the time that are thinking about starting a company and I say well come to WetWare Wednesday and you can meet all the other techies and that kind of inspires them. If you want to get involved in our programs you can come to the MIC meet with our staff, take a tour and then you can also join the virtual program which brings you a lot of mentoring and other resources to help the companies. Yeah, come around to HTDC it's a very vital organization especially under Robbie's Tootledge and it has so many programs going on in ways that can help you and I'd say one thing that I find consistently true is that it's very friendly. The people at HTDC are very friendly and the people you meet at WetWare Wednesday are very friendly. It's as much a tech social experience as it is pure tech. Thank you so much Robbie for coming on our show. Well thank you so much for inviting me. It's always a pleasure. We'll do it again soon, right? Okay, great.