Building A Tech Ecosystem – Paul Zelizer and Vicki Apodaca

So, Paul, I know you have a lot of business background, and I know there's a lot of pieces to New Mexico Tech Week and TechFest.

What have you learned, kind of putting the past events together and then planning for this year that helps you then in the rest of your business?

Great question, Steve.

Like Vicky, I also have event experience that my experience was in the Bay Area through a large conference called Wisdom 2.0. We did six events a year between 600 and 1800 people in an event.

So that was super helpful.

So I had something, it wasn't starting from a blank page, but like Vicky was just saying, what's happening in New Mexico is unique and also our ecosystem is unique, right? There's only 2.1 million people in the entire state.

And historically, we haven't exactly been the most significant tech hub in the universe.

Right.

Yet there is something really, really interesting happening right now in 2026 with the variety factors happening.

I just had breakfast with VC, long-term VC, 20 years, been in incredible exits.

And he's looking at New Mexico saying, three years ago, I wouldn't have been interested in this conversation, right? At breakfast on Monday morning, he said, I will see you in October because this is compelling.

That's not my opinion.

That's a very established VC.

And I actually agree with him.

And many of us who work in this ecosystem are feeling that.

So what I'm learning, Steve, is just how much is happening here and also the unique flavors of what's happening here, both for those of us who are in the ecosystem.

All three of us live and work here in Albuquerque.

but also what it's like for somebody to be on the outside trying to make sense of what's happening in New Mexico, because it's not an Austin, it's not a San Francisco, it's not a New York.

It's a very unique ecosystem that historically has had some very interesting components.

Let's say the national labs and the highest PhDs per capita in the United States, super interesting things happening, but we just have not seen a lot of real world startups getting real world success.

For instance, and often quoted, Stat here in New Mexico, B, we've only had one unicorn in the entire history.

If you're listening to this show and you don't know what a unicorn is, $1 billion valuation or above company in the entire history of New Mexico for Ray Technologies.

And it took 28 years to get there.

So that's not very compelling to most VCs, right? But there are things happening on the ground right now that are unprecedented.

Things like New Mexico Sovereign Wealth Fund, $75 billion with a B.