GeekWire Radio: Seattle and Vancouver tech leaders unite, a report from TechCrunch Disrupt, and more

This week on the GeekWire radio show and podcast: Can Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., team up to create a “Cascadia Innovation Corridor” that strengthens the larger region as a technology center?

That’s the aim of a conference next week in Vancouver, with big names from both sides of the border, including tech innovators Bill Gates and Satya Nadella. We discuss the potential for this idea, as well as some challenges, on this week’s news roundup. We also examine a new app battling homelessness in Seattle.

Plus, GeekWire reporter Taylor Soper calls in to talk about his week at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, including insights on Facebook Messenger’s chatbots and a visit to the high-tech Levi’s Stadium.

In the world of audio content, we revisit our text-to-speech debate from a previous podcast in light of Google’s new WaveNet audio generator, a program that learns to mimic human voices — and other sounds — by listening to recordings. And we discuss Audible Channels, the newest perk for Amazon Prime users.

We also learn about this week’s App of the Week, Habitica: a productivity app that turns day-to-day tasks into a Role Playing Game, where users gain resources by practicing good habits and go on to battle monsters with friends.

Listen to the show above, or download the MP3 here.