Pittsburgh is famous for a lot of things, but there’s way more to the city than the Steelers and suspension bridges. An underrated gem in the center of the Rust Belt, Pittsburgh has joined the ranks of many East and West Coast cities as one of the most exciting metros for emerging technologies. The city founded on steel manufacturing has grown into a central location for some of the most enterprising companies in tech, carving out their niche in every industry from e-learning to autonomous vehicles. Tech is one of the biggest industries in the area — in fact, Pittsburgh ranks second in the U.S. for IT degrees, with Carnegie Mellon University turning out thousands of specialized tech graduates each year. Knowing all of this, it comes as no surprise that companies like Zoom and Uber have made moves to open locations in the Strip District and beyond. The prolific tech market alone would make Pittsburgh a bucket list city to visit, but the city’s vibrant arts scene and high standard of living tend to draw in people for the long term. Check out these 21 tech companies that prove Pittsburgh will never lose its industrial spirit.
Tech Companies in Pittsburgh to Know
- JazzHR
- Duolingo
- Argo AI
- Seegrid
- Niche.com
- Gecko Robotics
- Petuum
- RoadBotics
Founded: 2011
What they do: Duolingo is a mobile language learning application that offers users the opportunity to learn new languages at no cost. Recognized for several awards from Apple and Android, Duolingo holds the record of being the most downloaded education app in the App Store. The app offers both a free version and a premium subscription, and gives users options such as flashcard creation, progress testing, and social leaderboards.
Founded: 2016
What they do: Idelic's specialty is in the logistics industry, and their team focuses on developing software solutions to make the sector smarter, more efficient, and more lucrative. Their comprehensive, one-stop platform provides shipping companies with full visibility into their drivers, their cargo and their fleets, providing management options such as safety assurance, risk assessment, onboarding, and potential savings.
Founded: 2016
What they do: Argo AI's team is working to build the next generation of technology integrated vehicles, combining their expertise to create safe and efficient self-driving systems for automotive applications. Their team hails from a variety of backgrounds including robotics, AI, and software, and together in partnership with Ford and Volkswagen they develop autonomous cars that can respond to real time environmental changes independently of their passengers.
Founded: 2009
What they do: JazzHR delivers a software platform with which recruiters can discover talented candidates for their posted positions without having to deal with repetitive extraneous organizing tasks and overly complicated technologies. Their platform provides companies with the ability to track job applicants and manage job offerings all from one central location.
Founded: 2003
What they do: Seegrid builds autonomous robotics for use in the logistics, warehousing and manufacturing industries, built with vision guidance and flexible responsiveness to perform complex tasks and help factories and other businesses become more intelligent. Seegrid's work in the robotics space has earned them national and international recognition, with coverage coming from publications like Bloomberg, VentureBeat, Global Trade Magazine and Design World.
Founded: 2002
What they do: Niche.com is a web-based social networking tool that helps users learn about their neighborhood's school systems, walkability, employment prospects and other rankings. Their data science team organizes customer reviews of certain neighborhood assets into legible rankings and profiles to help other users better understand their area.
Founded: 2013
What they do: Gecko Robotics delivers automated technologies to customers in the energy, gas and manufacturing sectors, building robots that can perform tasks such as degradation inspection, strength testing, and data capture. Beginning as a college startup, Gecko Robotics has grown into a team of over 100 employees, and with funding of over $7 million has been able to open additional offices beyond Pittsburgh in Richmond and Austin.
Founded: 2016
What they do: Petuum assists companies of all sizes in adopting artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies by offering development and coding services to tailor technologies to each clients' needs. Petuum standardizes AI products for their customers so they can manage all their applications from a single source, making it easier to make adjustments, heighten productivity and deliver results at a quicker pace.
Founded: 2016
What they do: RoadBotics is paving the way for technologies to monitor road safety and communicate route changes to communities and governments, making it easier and more intuitive to maintain and improve infrastructures. RoadBotics has fostered relationships with over 30 partners across 250 communities to help companies and government organizations perform road appraisals, develop parking lot ratings, and assess potential weak points.
Founded: 2014
What they do: RoadRunner Recycling aims to make recycling more accessible and lucrative for companies of all sizes across the country. The company offers technologies that help companies minimize their environmental impact while maximizing their savings and reducing spend. RoadRunner Recycling provides trucking services to pick up their clients' recycling and take it to centers, and their data science teams create algorithms that optimize their trucking routes so they can conserve as much energy as possible even in transit.
Founded: 2005
What they do: 4moms has a vision for robotics use in prenatal and early childhood care, and their team aims to make that vision a reality by building automated swings, bassinets, filtration baths and other products. 4moms places a strong emphasis on supporting parents of all backgrounds, and as such their charity programs have partnered with over 300 hospitals across the country to donate over $1.5 million childcare products to parents in need.
Founded: 2016
What they do: Gridwise serves the ride hailing industry by providing a mobile platform with which drivers can manage their payments, track their mileage, calculate tax deductions and compare their performance to others in their industry. Their platform offers additional features such as crowd volume and queue length, so that they can get a better sense of where the highest number of passengers will be and how many people are waiting for rides.
Founded: 2017
What they do: Locomation aims to integrate machine learning technology with trucking to improve the overall performance and efficiency of the logistics industry. By combining AI with driver augmentation technology, Locomation leverages both human skill and technological power to make their logistics clients perform better and more effectively maintain the safety of their cargos.
Founded: 2007
What they do: Astrobotic develops navigational and operational technologies for use in the aerospace industry, powering space travel and exploration with their suite of products that includes rovers, landers and other planetary mobility robotics. Astrobotic's team has in the past worked with NASA, AIA, and other space travel organizations across the United States, and their technologies are capable of navigating unfamiliar planetary terrain, detecting threats and gathering materials for study.
Founded: 2004
What they do: Integra Web Services is a software and web design company, working with businesses of all sizes to build impactful websites, applications, and digital marketing initiatives with which clients can maximize their profits and growth. Their suite of services covers everything from logo design to content marketing campaign development, and is entirely tailored to meet each clients needs and play up their individual strengths.
Founded: 2010
What they do: Voci Technologies focuses on the role of call centers in achieving business success, and as such offers audio analysis services to Fortune 500 companies aiming to improve their communications operations. Their technologies make it possible for call center employees to create speech-to-text documents, archive information in the cloud, and route future strategies based on collected data.
Founded: 2011
What they do: Accion Labs is a product engineering organization, and they serve companies in a broad span of industries by guiding them in adopting emerging technologies like cloud integration, mobile app development, social media marketing, and others. Working with companies like Google, Amtrak, Visa and Microsoft, Accion Labs has been able to craft tech products to boost growth for over 300 companies.
Founded: 1983
What they do: Tobii Dynavox's team is committed to helping make the world more navigable for people with special needs. To do this, the company builds eye-tracking and touch-based communication technologies that can be used by individuals with ALS, autism, cerebral palsy and other conditions. Tobii Dynavox is based out of Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood, but the company maintains a global footprint with additional offices in the U.K., Europe, China and Australia.
Founded: 2004
What they do: Aethon helps hospitals and healthcare institutions adopt technology infrastructures for transporting materials and deliveries across their care units on demand. Their mobile robotics are built at different payload capacities and sizes so that they can be used to transport a variety of different materials, providing doctors and nurses with hands free transportation for medications, tools and other essential healthcare products.
Founded: 1982
What they do: Smith Micro Software leverages the power of technology to help companies improve their customer relationships. Recognizing that digital experiences and interaction are becoming more integral methods of consumer engagement, Smith Micro Services provides companies with options to improve upon their mobile interfaces and attract new customers. Some of their solutions include a visual device management platform, smart home technologies, and voice messaging products.
