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Find it, fix it: Seattle startup Emphere raises $2.1M to automate software vulnerability patching

Emphere, a Seattle startup that emerged from the AI2 Incubator, raised $2.1 million in pre-seed funding to automatically fix vulnerabilities found in popular open-source distributions, catering to software companies that sell to regulated industries. Read More

World Cup scoreboard in the sky: Drones will fly over Seattle to put match results in lights

The activation, from Visit Seattle, will take place at the Space Needle to add another visual flair to an event expected to draw huge crowds to the city. Read More

Seattle Torrent Protect Wilgren, Murphy, Carpenter in Expansion Draft

The Torrent have made some interesting choices in the upcoming expansion process by choosing to protect Anna Wilgren, Hannah Murphy, and Alex Carpenter. Not exactly an expansion draft, the PWHL’s Expansion Roster Distribution Process is a six-phase series of very complicated (I would argue unnecessarily complicated) rules to add four new teams to the previously eight-team league, increasing the size by 50%. Because so many of the players are free agents, they couldn’t do a traditional expansion draft process, so we ended up with this. The Torrent signed Alex Carpenter and protected her, which was one of the three protection slots. The players on the roster eligible for protection are Fowards: Jenna Buglioni, Mikyla Grant-Mentis, Hannah Bilka, Alex Carpenter, Lexia Adzija, Danielle Sardachny Defenders: Cayla Barnes, Anna Wilgren Goalies: Corinne Schroeder, Hannah Murphy Everyone else is a free agent, including Hilary Knight. It’s all turmoil these days with expansion. With two more slots to go, the Torrent chose to protect defender Anna Wilgren and goalie Hannah Murphy. “Ha ha, Zaiem,” I can hear you saying now with a tinge of contempt, “you’ve made a mistake. You accidentally typed some other name instead of Hannah Bilka’s! Nice journalism and attention to detail.” If only. Yes that’s right, forward Hannah Bilka was not protected. Now, I don’t know what GM Meghan Turner is thinking here, but one thing that is of concern is that Bilka did not return to the Torrent after sustaining an undisclosed injury en route to winning gold in the Olympics in Milan. Since hockey injuries aren’t required to be disclosed and therefore never ever are, we don’t know what it was (is?). Maybe it’s serious? Maybe they are betting that she won’t get taken by an expansion team because of the injury? Or maybe it’s just an interesting decision. Hannah Murphy is not a surprising pick. She’s 22 years old and she has a lot of upside as a goalie, a position that tends to peak later in age. I also find her impossibly charming, but that was probably not a factor in the decision to keep her (probably). Defender Anna Wilgren was the third protection slot, which was the real surprise. Bilka or Barnes were the ones I was expecting, but Wilgren was a surprise. I have, however, since talked myself into it. Steve O’Rourke, the recently fired Torrent coach, spoke highly of her and I do like her 200 foot game. He talked about how she altered her game to try to make the Olympic team and it messed with her a bit, but as the season went on, she got better and better. Anna Wilgren being protected by the Seattle Torrent is probably the one decision that stands out as a surprise to most.My mind immediately went back to the postgame after her 3-point game vs. Minnesota. O'Rourke is obviously gone, but it shows how the org feels about her. pic.twitter.com/EMlQuiKX2B— Kyle Cushman (@Kyle_Cush) June 3, 2026 And so we march on with this overwrought expansion process. Where were you when we moved from Phase 1 to Phase 2?

Data center operator reveals plans for downtown Seattle facility as city weighs one-year ban

Digital Realty has filed permits to redevelop a downtown Seattle building into a six-story data center, lab and retail project, as the City Council moves toward a one-year moratorium on new data centers. Read More

Google alert! Seattle-area teen wins Doodle contest with artwork celebrating hair and culture

Kameirah Johnson, a senior at Lakeside School, is the winner of the 2026 Doodle for Google contest, and her work is now displayed online for the millions of people who visit the search giant. Read More

Helion hits $15.5B valuation with $465M in new cash as it aims to commercialize fusion this decade

Helion is chasing the highly ambitious goal of becoming the first company to commercialize fusion energy. They already have a high-stakes agreement to supply power to a Microsoft data center by 2028 and have broken ground on a power plant. Read More

With $12M second fund, fintech startup aims to pump more cash into climate entrepreneurs

Enduring Planet, a fintech company with Pacific Northwest roots, on Wednesday announced it has closed its second fund at more… Read More

King County Transportation District nears finalizing new sales tax

Board members agree cities should receive a portion of the $100 million in expected revenue, but are now debating minimum and maximum amounts.

Ag tech startup wins top prize as UW’s Dempsey competition awards $92,500 across finalists

The ag tech startup BioBead won the $25,000 grand prize at the University of Washington's 29th annual Dempsey Startup Competition for its biodegradable soil-health pellets, leading a record-breaking field of student entrepreneurs. Read More

‘Biometrics for things’: Alitheon raises $8M to expand its optical AI tech to ID physical objects

The Bellevue startup's funding will accelerate its FeaturePrint technology, which uses optical AI to create a unique digital "fingerprint" for physical objects — no barcodes, tags, or labels required. Read More

Amazon knocks Walmart from the top spot on Fortune 500 for the first time in 13 years

Amazon surpassed $700 billion in revenue in 2025 with a 12% year-over-year jump. Just over 20 years ago, the company made its debut on the list at No. 492. Read More