Seattle, and Washington State more broadly, is home to some of the most well-known and innovative technology companies in the world. The “tech boom” in our region has been developing since the early ’90s, and now, in 2022, Washington state is one of the top 3 best places for entrepreneurs to start a tech company, according to recent articles in the Wall Street Journal and Puget Sound Business Journal. Washington State even beat out California and Silicon Valley!
For the past 27 years, Deloitte has celebrated innovation through the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 program, our annual recognition of the most disruptive and fastest-growing technology companies in the country. On November 16, we announced the 500 companies that made the 2021 North America Technology Fast 500 winners’ list.
26 Washington-State companies were represented in 2021 (see list below), up from 25 in 2020 and 19 in the year prior. These pioneering companies – and the many others that make up Washington’s dynamic startup community – shape our region and help make it the global innovation hub that it is.
To make this esteemed ranking, winners must have a proprietary technology and are selected based on percentage fiscal-year revenue growth over a three-year period (2017-2020). For 2021, recognized companies achieved revenue growth ranging from 212% to 87,037%. These companies, including technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences, and energy tech companies, are disrupting the technology industry and transforming how we do business through a combination of customer-centric innovation and strong leadership.
We celebrated the 26 Washington State-based companies at a virtual event on November 16, which included a CEO panel with three CEO’s and co-founders from featured winning Washington tech startups: Neil Bergquist, Co-founder and CEO of Coinme, Matt Oppenheimer, Co-founder and CEO of Remitly, and Kieran Snyder, Co-founder and CEO of Textio. A BIG thanks to RGP, AHT Insurance and WTIA for sponsoring the event.
All three companies are part of our region’s rich history of customer-centric innovation. Coinme was founded to be the world’s trusted gateway to digital currencies and a better financial future. Remitly got its start wanting to help immigrants send money internationally with less difficulty. Textio, an augmented writing startup, seeks to help people better communicate where they do their work, whether it’s in Gmail, Outlook or elsewhere.
To view the CEO panel and entire 2021 Pacific Northwest celebration event, click here. When you get to the home page, sign up and scroll down to the Pacific Northwest session.
The panel highlighted three aspects of these authentic, resilient, and innovative CEOs. First, we explored who they are as people – what gets them up in the morning, keeps them up at night, and how they unplug.
The second phase of the conversation focused on them as startup leaders, diving deeper into the origin story of their companies, and what they are most proud of.
We concluded the panel with an examination of the leaders’ thoughts on culture and community – we discussed the culture they have shaped at their startups, how they are leading through the Great Resignation, and the future of the Seattle startup ecosystem.
Congratulations again to our 26 Washington State-based Fast 500 winners and a special thank you to our sponsors: RGP, AHT Insurance and the Washington Technology Industry Association. Their dedication and passion for innovation is inspiring, and especially needed in these challenging times. I encourage all aspiring entrepreneurs and Washington residents to view the video of the CEO panel – the insights they shared are applicable to both the business world and to private life, as well.
For additional details on the Technology Fast 500, including the complete list and qualifying criteria, visit www.fast500.com. The next application period will be open April 4 through June 24, 2022. To stay updated on Fast 500, sign up for our mailing list here.
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