First, for those in attendance at the second annual Incubate Illinois Conference, held on July 12, thank you. You made the event a tremendous success. We set out to develop a forum where the greatest thought leaders in Chicago’s start-up and technology communities could come together to share information, present ideas and network in order to build a brighter future for all involved, as well as the community at large. 
As introductory keynote speaker Fred Hoch, executive chairman of the Illinois Technology Association and founder and general partner of TechNexus said, Chicago is currently at the top of the second tier of the tech industry globally. Our goal is to push us up to the top of the first tier, and we believe events like Incubate Illinois, and the generous exchange of knowledge that it facilitates, will help get us there.
Of course, you technologists, entrepreneurs and investors are busy people, so it’s reasonable to say that taking time out of your schedules to attend these kinds of events is not always possible. The good thing is that we live in a perpetually connected society, so accessing information and resources on the go is easier than ever. That is why we are pleased to announce that we intend to regularly update this site, Incubate Illinois, with posts covering tech news and best practices related to the Chicago, Illinois and greater Midwest technology communities. We plan to enhance much of this content with video from this year’s Incubate Illinois Conference because we think there is incredible value in hearing information directly from a variety of innovators and disruptors in the technology field.
Finally, there were some very impressive and motivating speakers at this year’s conference who shared with us a number of great resources technologists and entrepreneurs can consider at varying stages of their start-up journeys. The following are a few of the resources mentioned at the conference.