Houston · Oct 7 to 9, 2026

Arlo at TEDC 2026

Arlo, our armadillo reporter, is at his first conference. He is filing what he hears in the sessions, the ideas worth stealing for your town, and a comic or two. Updated two or three times a day.

Independent coverage. The BRE Brief is not affiliated with TEDC.

Live dispatchLast update: Wednesday, Oct 7, 6:30 PM7 updates

• Wednesday, Oct 7

• ComicWed · 6:30 PM#

  Arlo, Day 1

  

  Four sessions, one armadillo.

• Day recapWed · 6:00 PM#

  Day 1: four ideas to steal

  Four sessions, one thread: the things that make a community different are the things no one can copy. Your real stories, your existing businesses, your local knowledge and your sense of place.

  1. Run the swap test. Put a neighbor's name into your pitch. If it still works, rewrite it. (Aaron Brossoit, Golden Shovel Agency)

  2. Listen before you announce. And treat your existing businesses as your best ambassadors. (Bob Hess, Newmark, and Christian Koenig, KOENIG Communications)

  3. Let AI do the first draft, not the thinking. The last 20% is local expertise. (Katie Milton Jordan, SimpleEDO.ai)

  4. Name your Barton Springs. A community with a vision has an edge. (Jon Roberts, TIP Strategies)

• SessionWed · 4:30 PM#

  Made by humans is the advantage

  

  Jon Roberts, Managing Partner, TIP Strategies

  Jon Roberts of TIP Strategies opened with two stories. Quartz watches nearly wiped out the Swiss watch industry, and a computer beat the world chess champion. Both industries are bigger than ever, because people still value what humans make and do. Then he walked through what Austin got right: a vision, technology infrastructure, an entrepreneurial ecosystem, culture, and a sense of place he pinned to Barton Springs.

  The community that has a vision that is forward looking has a competitive edge.

  Takeaways

  • The human value of a job is the advantage technology cannot copy.
  • Austin is something to compare against, not a blueprint to copy.
  • Culture and a sense of place are economic development assets.
  Steal it for your town

  Write your one-sentence vision. Then name your Barton Springs, the place that gives your town its feel, and put it on your website's front page.

• SessionWed · 3:30 PM#

  AI is generic. Your town isn't.

  

  Katie Milton Jordan, Founder and CEO, SimpleEDO.ai

  Katie Milton Jordan of SimpleEDO.ai lost two staffers six weeks before her youth pitch competition, Hill Country Venture Fest, and ran it anyway with AI doing the heavy lifting: the website, a student and family hub, the judging rubric, sponsor outreach, invoices, a master tracker, and judging packets rebuilt the night before when four teams dropped out.

  AI can change how your organization gets work done. It can expand what your people can deliver for the communities they serve.

  Takeaways

  • Watch for indifference. On her five stages of AI acceptance (indifference, fear, letting go, confidence, agency), she called it the most dangerous place to be.
  • Run a daily check-in. Mornings: what got done overnight, what needs attention, how to prioritize. Evenings: what got done, what is still pending.
  • The last 20% is local expertise. Knowing which owner is thinking about retiring is something no tool has. Your business visits do.
  Steal it for your town

  Pick the one task that keeps you up at night. Hand AI the first draft this week, and review it before anything goes out.

• SessionWed · 1:00 PM#

  Consent is the new constraint

  

  Bob Hess, Vice Chair, Newmark

  At the data center session, Bob Hess of Newmark and Christian Koenig of KOENIG Communications put it plainly on screen: the constraint on Texas growth is no longer land or power. It is consent. In their survey, 63% of economic developers said their communities oppose new data center development. The old model was announce, defend, manage backlash. What works now: listen early, co-design, formalize commitments.

  Make sure those existing industries are happy. The best ambassadors in the world.

  Takeaways

  • Listen before you announce. The old model was announce, defend, manage backlash. What works now is listen early, co-design, formalize commitments.
  • Compliant isn't comfortable. A site can meet the noise code and still hum all night. People judge what they live with, not the permit.
  • Your existing businesses are your best pitch. Even a site selector said it.
  Steal it for your town

  Visit three of your existing employers this month. Ask what would make them stay and grow.

• SessionWed · 10:30 AM#

  The swap test: stop marketing your community like everyone else

  

  Aaron Brossoit, CEO, Golden Shovel Agency

  Aaron Brossoit of Golden Shovel Agency opened with a quiz: which Texas town calls itself strategic location, skilled workforce, pro-business climate? The room's answer was all of them. Which means none of them.

  If it works as easily for them as it does for you, it's not your unique value proposition.

  Takeaways

  • Run the swap test. Put a neighboring town's name into your pitch. If it still reads true, it isn't yours.
  • Trade adjectives for proof. Name real employers, real places and real drive times that anyone can look up.
  • Let your business owners talk. A local owner explaining why their business works in your town lands harder than the same words from staff.
  Steal it for your town

  This week, ask one local business owner "Why does your business work here?" Put the answer on your website in their words.

• Tuesday, Oct 6

• ComicTue#

  Arlo checks in

  

  Lanyard on, clipboard full of blank pages. Arlo's first conference starts tomorrow in Houston, and he plans to bring home every idea your town can use.

Nothing filed for that day yet. Arlo files two or three times a day.