With a background in economic development and a startup itch, Lauren McCullough co-founded Tromml, helping the automotive industry understand sales dates. We sat down with her to discuss her company, the role of open source in AI, navigating intellectual property rights, and more.
Tariffs invite retaliation that will harm startups
Founded in 2022, Flamel.ai helps multi-location and franchise brands stay true to their brand guide while delivering content at scale. With a background in venture capital, co-founder Paul Ehlinger is a seasoned expert on issues facing startups today. We sat with Paul to discuss AI, open source, and more.
Navigating the fine print of commerce as a consumer is, at best, tedious and obscure. Kamal Nahas, co-founder and CEO of pap!, is using AI to cut through the tangled web of laws and policies and get consumers money back on their purchases. We sat down with him to discuss his company, the privacy policy landscape, and the American visa process.
Engine released the 2025 Startup Policy Agenda showcasing how smart, thoughtful policy facilitates and encourages startup activity, leading to more innovation and more economic and job growth. The Agenda gives those working on policy an overview of the issues that are currently impacting—and the debates that stand to impact—startups.
The Big Story: As Congress pushes ahead on infrastructure, startups stand to gain. Congress has the chance to move the ball forward on an infrastructure package that if passed, would provide billions of dollars for several categories of infrastructure, including roads and bridges, electric vehicles, cybersecurity, and broadband—a major win for startups.
Avocademy is a Miami-based education and mentoring program that prepares students to start a career in user experience and user interface (UX/UI) design. We spoke with founder, Maca Baigorria, to learn more about the organization’s work, the importance of workforce diversity, and what role accessibility plays in designing technology.
Hacking the Workforce is a mentoring and support organization dedicated to helping Black, LGBTQ+ individuals develop successful careers in the field of cybersecurity. We spoke with Safi Mojidi—Founder of Hacking the Workforce—to learn about his work, the importance of diversity to cybersecurity, and how policymakers can develop better technology policy through partnership with diverse practitioners and academia in the cyber industry.
Lawmakers and borrowers are pushing for further student loan relief, as the October 1 date approaches for the resumption of loan payments. Borrowers continue to assert that they are not yet in a place to make payments, which were paused interest free throughout the pandemic. And while the Biden administration has repeatedly argued for student debt forgiveness and fixes to the system, little progress has been made since he took office.
The Big Story: Global leaders land on tax deal that would create certainty for tech. Negotiations on a global tax regime came to a close on Thursday, with 130 countries and jurisdictions—including India, China, and Switzerland—agreeing to a deal supported by U.S. policymakers and technology companies that targets the world’s largest companies.
Rishi Ranjan is a co-founder and the CEO of GridRaster, a startup providing the underlying infrastructure needed to support immersive augmented, virtual, and mixed-reality experiences on mobile devices and in the enterprise market. We spoke with Rishi to learn about his path to launching this cloud-based XR platform, his experience navigating the patent and immigration systems, and his goals for GridRaster going forward.
The Big Story: After marathon markup, House panel advances tech bills. Following a multi-day, contentious markup, the House Judiciary Committee advanced several bills aimed at large tech companies despite concerns from companies, industry groups, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle that the bills will have unintended consequences—including making it harder for startups to get acquired.
Sam Caucci is the founder and CEO of 1Huddle, a Newark-based software company creating mobile games for workforce development, corporate employee training, and upskilling. We sat down with him to discuss how he developed his business, the challenges of navigating complex privacy frameworks, and the need to rethink how technology will impact the future of work.
The following statement can be attributed to Engine’s Executive Director, Kate Tummarello: “Engine applauds Rep. Phillips for reintroducing the IGNITE American Innovation Act, which will help to provide startups with the liquidity they need to continue to see the nation through pandemic recovery and accelerate R&D efforts for America's high-tech startups and innovators.”
The Big Story: Recognizing the contributions of immigrant entrepreneurs. Throughout the month of June, we celebrate Immigrant Heritage Month and recognize the impact of the immigrant community in the U. S., including on the country’s startup ecosystem. As the nation reflects on the significant contributions of this community as a whole, it is important to acknowledge and uplift the stories of immigrant entrepreneurs and recognize the challenges these founders face.
Competition issues are in the spotlight in D.C. and state capitals across the country. At Engine, we’re encouraged when lawmakers think about ways to boost competition and innovation, as startups stand to benefit if sound policy makes it easier for small and new companies to launch and grow. But much of the current policy conversation is centered around a few companies and fails to consider the impacts policy decisions will have on the rest of the technology ecosystem, which is inherently interconnected.
The Big Story: G7 tax deal reached, but faces uncertainty in U.S. Congress. This week, the finance leaders of the G7 countries came to an agreement on a global minimum corporate tax rate of at least 15 percent, which could hinge on the withdrawal of unilateral digital services taxes that disproportionately impact U.S. tech firms. The deal, which comes after years of negotiations in an effort to revamp international taxation, represents a first step in redrafting the rules in how multinational corporations are taxed.
Dr. Leonardo Bonanni—Founder and CEO of Sourcemap—was conducting product research at MIT when he came across the challenges companies were facing in developing a concrete understanding of their entire supply chain. This led him to develop Sourcemap—a platform that enables companies to network with their suppliers and understand vulnerabilities. We sat down with Bonanni to discuss how Sourcemap works, the impact of COVID-19 on their business and supply chains, and how the government can better partner with startups that are innovating supply chain technologies.
The Big Story: Transatlantic data deal a priority ahead of U.S.-EU summit. Ahead of the U.S.-European Union summit later this month, President Joe Biden is renewing the administration’s focus on negotiating a new deal to let U.S. companies, especially startups, that operate in Europe store and process EU users’ data in the U.S. The two governments must address policy-related obstacles to transatlantic digital trade, including the invalidation of the last data flow deal as well as likely impacts from other EU proposals around digital taxes, artificial intelligence, and online platforms and marketplaces.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Markup LLC is reinventing the way lawmakers draft, record, and analyze public policy. We spoke with the Co-Founder of Markup LLC, Andrew Baluch, to learn about his startup’s work in the public policy space, how the pandemic has shifted Congress’s processes, and some of the ways that lawmakers can be more efficient through the use of technology.
The Big Story: Lawmakers consider SHOP SAFE Act despite outsized impact on e-commerce startups. This week, lawmakers examined the recently reintroduced SHOP SAFE Act, which would place high compliance burdens on e-commerce startups with the goal of deterring trademark infringement. The bill was the subject of yesterday’s hearing held by the House Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.
OPT Industries is an additive manufacturing and 3D printing company that is working to take innovative technologies to scale for mass production of an array of products. We spoke with Jifei Ou—Founder and CEO of OPT Industries—to learn about the technology OPT has developed, his experiences navigating the immigration system as a startup founder, and how the U.S. can better incentivize entrepreneurship in the manufacturing industry.
The Big Story: As broadband subsidy program ramps up, lawmakers eye next steps. The need for universal broadband was back in the spotlight this week as lawmakers discussed the impacts of the digital divide, especially during the pandemic. At a hearing Tuesday, the House Appropriations subcommittee on financial services and general government examined the impact a lack of affordable, reliable broadband has, especially on rural communities and communities of color.
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