Convenience Big Store: GeekWire Gala recap: See the photos from our big holiday bash

SPONSOR MESSAGE: It's renewal season for health benefits — ask for a quote from ALLtech: Blast off with better benefits.

TODAY'S TOP STORIES

The halls have officially been tech’d. More than 750 members of the Seattle tech community partied and rubbed shoulders with robots at the GeekWire Gala on Thursday night. Our annual holiday extravaganza at Showbox SoDo featured food, drinks, dancing, karaoke, games and much more. Read the recap and check out the photos.

Ridwell, the Seattle recycling startup, has grown to 130,000 customers across the U.S. as the company expands beyond home pickup bins with a new mail-in service that has taken off in recent months. Ridwell is fueling its growth with new funding. Read more.

A heat-dome blackout in 2021 helped spark Hyviva, a Seattle-area startup taking on Tesla with its modular energy-storage units that essentially generate electricity from hydrogen that’s split from water. Read more.

Hot Links:

Washington and several other states are suing the Trump administration over the new $100,000 fee for H-1B visas. (San Francisco Standard)
President Trump signed an executive order to create a single federal framework for AI regulation and preempt state-level laws. (CNBC)
From health to research, seven AI-related trends to watch. (Microsoft)

Thanks for subscribing to the GeekWire newsletter and have a great weekend. — GeekWire editor Taylor Soper, taylor@geekwire.com; and reporter Kurt Schlosser, kurt@geekwire.com.

SPONSOR MESSAGE

ALLtech Benefits Built for Startups – Don't Miss 2026 Open Enrollment

It's crunch time for renewals—and ALLtech is here to back growing startups with health plans tailored for the tech community. Whether you're scaling from 2 employees or managing a team of 100+, ALLtech gives you access to medical, Dental, Vision, and more—with pricing designed to fit the startup budget.

Pair your benefits with exclusive GeekWire membership perks, and keep your team covered while staying competitive in the race for talent.

Get a quote today.