Michael Girdley as one of the architects of downtown’s burgeoning tech district, along with Rackspace co-founder Graham Weston, Geekdom Media CEO Lorenzo Gomez, and Geekdom co-founder Nick Longo. As CEO of Alamo Fireworks -- with more than 170 locations throughout Texas and New Mexico, Girdley became an entrepreneur at the age of 20 when he bought an internet domain in college and started a web programming consultancy that won him a book deal. Girdley co-founded Dura Software in 2017. The tech firm holding company acquires smaller software outfits and relocates them to San Antonio. Another Girdley project, RealCo, is a long-term accelerator for early-stage tech startups that has helped such companies as FunnelAI, which trawls social media for sales leads, expand in San Antonio.