Putting a Bow on TEC 2.0

As we wrote earlier in the week, last Friday marked the end of our second year of TEC, our summer internship program that placed rising college juniors and seniors in companies we work with across the country. Just as we see our entrepreneurs iterate, so too have we done the same in taking this program from a small-scale beta in 2009 to something bigger and better for 2010. We welcomed 15 students from a competitive applicant pool into TEC this year, and it’s hard to believe that it’s August already and our time with them has come to a close.

Over the course of the summer, we really enjoyed the opportunity we had to get to know these students and continued to marvel at the contributions they made to their companies. For many college students, summer internships can sometimes mean menial labor and slow days of uninteresting work. But, nothing could be farther from the truth for this group, as many of the TECsters wasted no time getting involved and were empowered by their supervisors to take on real responsibility for meaningful projects of significant importance and value. Some independently wrote iPhone and Android apps that have already gone live. Others played an important role in the development of social games, created a company’s entire product video offering, or conducted a competitive industry analysis for use by senior management. These and other projects added up to a summer of continuous learning and exploration as they became important contributors to the development of exciting young companies attacking some of the most interesting problems in tech today.

But, their good work wasn’t limited to what they did with their companies. Over the course of the eight Thursday afternoons they spent with us, they also participated in conversations and workshops with 19 speakers from the extended True family, read six books, directed and produced five commercials for the TEC program, wrote three written reports outlining their visions of the post-PC era, and ate more garlic fries at AT&T Park than anyone cares to remember. Needless to say, it was a pretty intense experience, but they attacked everything that was thrown at them with equal amounts of enthusiasm and thoughtfulness. It was a pleasure to spend time with them and to witness many of their first exposures to entrepreneurial companies and the excitement that goes into working at a startup.

As an ongoing testament to the value they were able to create during the summer, five of our interns will keep working for their companies during the school year. But, we hope and expect that the entire group will use what they learned this summer as a springboard to catalyze further involvement in entrepreneurial ventures during their careers. Thanks to the mentors, supervisors, and speakers who shared their time and experiences with us and helped make this a fantastic eight weeks. And, to the TEC class of 2010, thank you all for a great summer. We’re proud to now call you part of the True family and look forward to watching and contributing to the great things you’ll do in the years ahead.