Mountain State Cyber Summit: The State Line Is Not an Innovation Line

Pittsburgh and Morgantown are only about 75 miles apart. For Melissa McKenna of Trilogy Innovations and Bill Walker of West Virginia University, that distance should feel even smaller when it comes to technology, talent and opportunity.

That idea is driving the Mountain State Cyber Summit and Tech Yeah conference, coming to Morgantown on October 28. For the first time, the two events are joining forces to create a larger gathering focused on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, national security, autonomy, aerospace, advanced manufacturing, health innovation and more.

Last year’s Mountain State Cyber Summit drew such strong interest that attendance was capped at 640 people. This year, organizers are aiming even higher while expanding the event’s scope.

The conference will center on four major pillars: secure and intelligent systems, national security and mission innovation, autonomy and advanced manufacturing, and health and cyber biosecurity.

That last topic may be unfamiliar to many attendees, but it is becoming increasingly important. Cyber biosecurity focuses on protecting biological data, research, infrastructure and connected systems from digital threats. That can include everything from healthcare devices and genomic information to agriculture, water systems and biomanufacturing.

The event also highlights something bigger than its individual sessions: the opportunity to connect Pittsburgh and West Virginia as one technology corridor.

Walker points to Pittsburgh’s strengths in AI, robotics, autonomy, energy, manufacturing, cybersecurity and venture capital, while West Virginia brings its own research capabilities, energy expertise and deep relationships with federal and national security organizations.

“The state line’s a political boundary. It’s not an innovation boundary,” Walker said.

Rather than viewing the two regions as competitors, organizers see the opportunity to connect companies, universities, students, investors and government partners.

And that connection is meant to produce real outcomes.

Walker said success should ultimately be measured by companies started, companies grown, outside investment attracted, contracts created and jobs generated, not simply by how many people attend.

The October 28 summit is designed to help start those connections.

For Pittsburgh technology companies looking south and West Virginia organizations looking north, the message is simple: the region may already be more connected than we think.