Gary Stiehr
Mention “big data technology” or “supercomputers,” and the first place that comes to mind is probably the nation’s undisputed high-tech mecca—Silicon Valley.
But St. Louis?
According to Gary Stiehr, a Missouri native and IT manager for the Genome Institute at Washington University, St. Louis is an unsung hub of sophisticated technology.
“We want to show the country the core of what’s in St. Louis,” says Stiehr. “St. Louis is a leader at not only running these computing technologies, but at being productive with them.”
Stiehr is behind StampedeCon, an upcoming conference on big data technology. On August 1, over 150 established, budding, and aspiring entrepreneurs will convene at the Eric P. Newman Education Center on the campus of the Washington University Medical Center for a full day of presentations. Among the nine speakers will be representatives from Monsanto, Nokia, Kraft Foods, and Facebook.
“Big data is a concept that has a lot of interest right now,” says Stiehr. “Companies are seeing a lot of value in being able to analyze all the data that they have. They’re asking, what are the new technologies that are now making it feasible to analyze data and get some value out of it?”
When Stiehr talks about “big data,” he is referring to the huge amounts of information being swapped among computers and other devices millions of times a day, from posting pictures on Facebook to Tweeting articles to collecting consumer preferences to mapping the human genome.
“Big data is a term that’s kind of vague and different companies will spin it different ways,” says Stiehr. “We hope to clear it up. That’s the whole purpose: to find insights that will help people.”
Over the past year, Stiehr has helped organize five smaller conferences. With at least 150-200 people expected to attend, Wednesday’s event will be by far the largest.
Stiehr believes that a St. Louis conference offers unique opportunities and advantages compared to the typical technology conference locations of New York or California.
“By bringing a conference to St. Louis, it’s good for the whole country because it’s a central location, minimizing costs wherever you’re coming from,” he says. “There’s also a strong community here. Yes, you do get a lot of information from the speakers, but another big part is the networking and connections.”
Another perk is the reduced cost. Stiehr estimates that registration fees for major East or West Coast conferences can exceed $900; admission to StampedeCon’s St. Louis event is only $250.
The conference comes at an exciting time for local business. According to the Kauffman Foundation’s annual index of entrepreneurial activity, which ranks business creation in the United States, Missouri has seen a huge jump in recent years. The Show-Me State was ranked a dismal 49th out of the 50 states in entrepreneurial activity for 2009. Just two years later, Missouri was ranked sixth.
“It’s a massive change,” says Stiehr. “Everyone is trying to change things up. Being a St. Louis native, I’m interested in helping build up St. Louis in whatever way that I can.”
Perhaps one of the most exciting examples of big data technology in action can be found here in town, with The Genome Institute’s groundbreaking cancer research.
“A lot of times, the press releases don’t say anything about the computing side,” Stiehr says. “There’s really sophisticated software and thousands of processors and all kinds of technologies behind it. Obviously, the most important thing is that the patients are helped.”
Wednesday’s conference, named for the “stampede” of data coming to consumers and businesses, will be aimed at both established and start-up companies looking to expand their reach and efficiency through the use of big data. Ultimately, Stiehr hopes to see St. Louis on the cutting edge of highly advanced technology.
“The fact is, there is so much information out there,” says Stiehr. “You know what, there’s no reason these things can’t be happening in St. Louis, so let’s get started on it.”
For more information, visit stampedecon.com.
