Week ending Aug 14, 2026 – Oregon startup news
Twenty years ago Boeing bought Insitu, the drone company built up in the Columbia Gorge — and this week Boeing basically un-bought it, selling Insitu, along with Wisk and SkyGrid, to Archer, the flying-taxi startup people keep calling "Waymo for air taxis." Then Boeing turned around and invested in Archer anyway — which is either a very tidy circle or proof nobody's actually settled on what to call this stuff yet. "Physical AI" is the phrase everyone's reaching for. I'm not sure it's landed.From there: 38 Portland-metro companies made the Inc. 5000 this year, and if you squint at the top ten — Studson, Zeal Logistics, Daniel House Club, Omorpho, Portland Gear — almost none of them are software, which says something about what this region's actually good at building. Panic shipped Big Walk, a co-op multiplayer adventure landing on Steam, PS5, and Switch 2. Geoff Jensen made the case at Portland Startup Week — RIP — for solopreneuring in the age of AI. Plus a ViddyScribe founder conversation about AI audio descriptions for the blind, a founder-insight piece from Nicole Schmidt of Source (which came through PIE back in the day), and TiE Oregon's TiE Women 2026 finalists. And, as always, secrets.CHAPTERS:00:00 Intro01:29 Quick startup news04:37 Insitu sells to Archer07:47 Inc. 5000: Portland's top 1010:32 Panic ships Big Walk13:51 The solopreneur advantage15:54 SecretsLINKS:Insitu gets acquired… again — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/12/insitu-gets-acquired-again/Archer / Insitu press release — https://www.insitu.com/news/archer-to-shape-physical-ai-future-of-aerospace-and-defense-with-acquisition-of-boeings-wisk-aero-insitu-and-skygrid-subsidiaries-boeing-to-invest-in-archer-and-collaborateInc. features the 10 fastest growing Portland companies — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/inc-features-the-10-fastest-growing-portland-companies/Inc. 5000 — Portland's top 10 — https://www.inc.com/esther-lian/meet-portlands-top-10-inc-5000-honorees/91385716Panic publishes a new game — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/10/panic-publishes-a-new-game-from-the-makers-of-untitled-goose-game/Big Walk — https://bigwalk.game/The solopreneur advantage — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/14/the-solopreneur-advantage/Chatting with ViddyScribe — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/chatting-with-viddyscribe/ViddyScribe — https://viddyscribe.com/Nicole Schmidt of Source — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/12/nicole-schmidt-founder-and-ceo-of-source-shares-advice-for-startup-founders/TiE Oregon reveals TiE Women 2026 finalists — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/tie-oregon-reveals-local-finalists-vying-for-tie-women-2026/TiE Women — https://www.tieoregon.org/programs/tie-womenBusiness Oregon survey — closes Aug 15 — https://siliconflorist.com/2026/08/11/reminder-provide-feedback-to-business-oregon-by-august-15-2026/Oregon Innovation Plan survey — https://teconomypartners.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5A4Wnf2JCrwFrEOFIND RICK TUROCZY ON THE INTERNET AT…- https://patreon.com/turoczy- https://linkedin.com/in/turoczy- https://bsky.app/profile/turoczy.bsky.social- https://siliconflorist.substack.com/- https://pdxslack.comABOUT SILICON FLORIST ----------For nearly two decades, Rick Turoczy has published Silicon Florist, a blog, newsletter, and podcast that covers entrepreneurs, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, tech, news, and events in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a startup or tech enthusiast, or simply intrigued by Portland's startup culture, Silicon Florist is your go-to source for the latest news, events, jobs, and opportunities in Portland Oregon's flourishing tech and startup scene. Join us in exploring the innovative world of startups in Portland, where creativity and collaboration meet.All because of a blog. Weird.https://siliconflorist.com
