—  Kaela, Technical.ly lead reporter in Baltimore and DC

Summer McKinny, a kid founder of a dog walking and treats business in Columbia, is American Girl’s doll of the year in 2025. Each doll the company creates comes with a book detailing its life.

For this, Janear Garrus, a local educator and creator of children’s business fairs in the Baltimore region, reviewed manuscripts and gave feedback about Summer’s story.

It’s rare for a doll to have an entrepreneurial background, Garrus said, and she’s seen kids eager to read Summer’s story. 

“For students that entrepreneurship is their thing, they found the book very validating,” Garrus told me. “They were really excited about someone that represented their interest.” Continue reading ... 

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There will always be a need for journalists to post factual information online. But consumption of journalism is changing. 

Social media is becoming a central way people get their news. So, we're partnering with creators instead of fighting the algorithm.

Are you a creator or influencer in Baltimore? Want to work with us? Let me know! Continue reading ... 

• Conscious Venture Lab hosted a demo day for its 13th cohort this week. Get to know the founders by joining our community Slack and checking out the #baltimore channel. [Technical.ly]

• New York internet company Greenlight Networks is investing $100 million to expand fiber optic internet in Baltimore. The firm expects to give services to as many as 50,000 households in its first year of operation. [Baltimore Biz Journal]

• AI is changing the software developer workforce, and observers are split on whether there will be more or fewer jobs in the field a year from now. [Technical.ly]

• Chris Haug, founder of StartUp Grind in Maryland, died at the end of May. He was also an adjunct faculty member at UMBC and an entrepreneur in residence at bwtech@UMBC. People who knew him remember his enthusiasm and care. [bwtech@UMBC/LinkedIn]

• Maryland is joining more lawsuits against the Trump administration, including filing a friend-of-the-court brief against a plan to cut the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program. This program exists to ensure nondiscrimination in awarding government contracts. [Maryland Matters]

• Baltimore City Recreation & Parks and the Enoch Pratt Free Library opened a digital learning lab at the Rita Church Community Center. [BCRP]

• Maryland had rules in place to ban combustion engines from new car dealership lots in the next decade, but Trump blocked it. The future for EVs in the state remains unclear. [Baltimore Banner]

• Gov. Wes Moore is instating a hiring freeze and cutting vacant positions, citing a "historic fiscal challenge" to the state. [CBS]

• Richie Huffman, founder of the early childhood education firm Celebree, is an EY Mid-Atlantic entrepreneur of the year. [EY]