GeekWire - GeekWire Awards 2024 revealed

The annual GeekWire Awards on Thursday night brought a sold-out crowd to Showbox SoDo in Seattle, where more than 60 finalists across a dozen categories competed for awards ranging from Startup of the Year to Next Tech Titan to Workplace of the Year, and more. The winners, as chosen by the Pacific Northwest tech community, reflected the impact of AI and the potential of the Seattle region to become an even stronger technology hub. Read more. 

• Check out photos from the night, and follow #GeekWireAwards.

• Tune in Saturday for more highlights on the GeekWire Podcast. Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

A proposal to revamp Seattle’s controversial minimum wage law for delivery drivers was approved by a City Council committee Thursday, and will head to a full council vote later this month. The change would reduce pay standards that sparked major pushback from Uber and DoorDash. Read more. 

Microsoft is taking on Google and Apple with its surprise plan to roll out a mobile gaming store later this year. The news came out during an on-stage interview with Xbox president Sarah Bond at a Bloomberg event. Read more.

Tech Moves: Former Wizards of the Coast leader joins Funko as CEO; Leafly hires a president; Nintex promotes two execs; and more personnel changes.

Seattle startup OneCourt is revolutionizing the sports experience for vision-impaired fans with a tactile device that lets them “feel” live game action. The innovative technology, supported by Microsoft and T-Mobile, translates gameplay data into spatial haptics, syncing with live broadcasts. Read more.

• The classic video game Myst, from Spokane-based Cyan Worlds, claimed its rightful place in the World Video Game Hall of Fame. (X)

• OpenAI is reportedly poised to launch its own search engine next week, right before Google’s I/O, and a week before Microsoft Build. (Reuters)

• Apple apologized for a controversial ad that depicted beloved technology and physical artifacts being crushed to make an iPad, a move that critics called dystopian and tone-deaf. (Ars Technica)