Business leaders got insight into eight proposals that voters will consider on the November ballot at the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Meeting this afternoon.
“You can imagine that these decisions of what to support and what not to support aren’t easy,” Chamber President and CEO Kelly Brough stressed to the more than 800 members in attendance about the process the Chamber’s board of directors takes when deciding to weigh in on ballot measures. “Not only do they represent you, our members, who represent a spectrum of political affiliation, but they also know that right policy for Colorado is not exclusive to one party or one platform.”
The Chamber shared its support for Amendments Y and Z, Proposition 110 and Denver Initiative 300. The Chamber is opposing Amendments 73 and 74, Initiative 109 and Proposition 112.
The Chamber board made these decisions based on what is best in the long-run for the economic success of the state – their reasoning for each position is important, so we’ve put together all the Chamber’s positions in one location:
Read the Chamber’s Ballot Guide.
Chamber recognizes new, longtime leaders
Chamber Board of Directors Chair Denise Burgess passed the gavel to Linda Childears, president and CEO of the Daniels Fund.
“Linda’s brand of leadership will be direct and decisive,” said outgoing chair Burgess, who serves as president and CEO of construction management firm Burgess Services.
Childears is the first from the philanthropic community to chair the Chamber. She has been active in the Chamber’s councils, committees and in policy discussions.
“I am eager to take on this challenge. We have lots to do and we will continue working on our mission to make Colorado the best place in the world to do business,” Childears said. “I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work.”
The Chamber also awarded its Del Hick Lifetime Achievement Award to Jerome Davis, Regional Vice President of Xcel Energy – Colorado. This award was named in honor of the former CEO of Public Service Company, the precursor to Xcel Energy.
This is bittersweet for Davis: “His name is still revered in our hallways.”
The award is a surprise to the honoree – one that caught Davis off guard.
“I’m really stunned at this whole thing, but I’m very honored,” he said.
And, the Chamber recognized its four Champions – members who have gone above and beyond over the last year: Ivan Anaya, Naomi Binkley, Gloria Schoch and George Sparks.
Tech Innovator Shares Vision for Future
Chamber members heard from special keynote Dag Kittlaus, CEO and co-founder of AI assistants Siri and Viv Labs.
As an innovator in artificial intelligence, he knows a thing or two about leading trends. Buckle up, Kittlaus warns, because the tech advancements seen by generations before us – from seeing the first flight to seeing a man on the moon – will be dwarfed by what is coming: “That is nothing compared to what we are going to see in our lifetime.”
Here are some of the technologies he predicts we’ll see sooner than later:
AI will come to health care – and computers will begin to detect and diagnose cancer, eventually better than doctors. “That to me is astounding,” Kittlaus said. “It’s never the intention to replace your doctor, but to become a tool that doctors can use.”
Nanotechnology will deliver medication, so you don’t have to. And 3D printing will revolutionize organ donation, limiting organ rejection because it will be printed from your own DNA.
There will be a lane for human drivers, and the rest will be for autonomous vehicles – just to keep us away from those more efficient drivers. With that, traffic should decrease. Oh, and that means parking lots will go the way of the dodo. (Still not a believer? See what our other experts think about driverless technology.) And when you’re not catching up on work in your driverless car, you may be taking an elevator to space.
Feeling anxious thinking about all these changes? Kittlaus says Denver is well-positioned to handle all the coming future: “You have to be embracing of and creating an infrastructure for innovation, and I think Denver, Boulder, Colorado in general, this is a really, really hot area … Embracing innovation as a culture and as part of a civic plan is required, and I think Denver’s done a really good job with that.”