Motor City Match helps Detroit educator turn gaming into gateway for tech careers with Webdroid
Updated: Aug 26
Webdroid marks Motor City Match’s 208th neighborhood ribbon cutting, bringing a new gaming and technology center to Detroit’s New Center neighborhood
Owner Joshua Ashford used a $55,000 Motor City Match grant toward construction of the new facility at 2898 W. Grand Blvd.
The center features 30 high-performance gaming PCs connected through a local area network, along with recreational coding and design courses, tech seminars, esports tournaments and hackathons
A former Detroit schools coding instructor, Ashford considered leaving Detroit for California’s tech industry before deciding to stay in his hometown and create a space connecting gaming with technology education
August 14, 2026 (DETROIT) – Mayor Mary Sheffield and the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) today celebrated the opening of Webdroid, Motor City Match’s 208th neighborhood ribbon cutting. The gaming and technology center combines recreational gaming with coding, design and technology education, creating a space where young Detroiters can play, learn and build skills for an increasingly technology-driven workforce.
Located at 2898 W. Grand Blvd. in New Center, Webdroid is owned by Detroit native Joshua Ashford and supported by a $55,000 Motor City Match grant. Ashford used the grant entirely toward construction of the facility after acquiring the space in June 2025 and beginning construction in February.
At the center of Webdroid are 30 gaming computers connected to a dedicated server through a local area network (LAN). The setup provides high-speed connectivity that supports gaming, coding, design and other technology-intensive activities.
“Webdroid specializes in recreational gaming and technology education, together,” Ashford said. “LAN centers aren’t very popular in America, but in places like China, Japan and South Korea, they’re everywhere — like gas stations. I was inspired by that model, and I wanted to bring it to Detroit.”
Customers can access the computers through hourly, multi-hour and day passes, with monthly options also available. Webdroid also has plans to host esports tournaments, citywide hackathons and themed events, with the potential to expand from 30 to 40 computer stations optimized for livestreaming.
Building a pipeline through play
Gaming, in Ashford’s view, isn’t separate from Webdroid’s educational mission. It’s what makes that mission work.
Ashford founded Webdroid in 2018, the same year he began teaching coding to Detroit high school students through a nonprofit. His work took him into schools including Mumford, Central and Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School, where he taught semester-long coding programs alongside students’ regular classes.
He quickly noticed the role gaming already played in many of his students’ lives. At the same time, his older brother, who has lived in China for more than a decade, introduced him to the LAN center business model popular throughout parts of Asia. Ashford saw an opportunity to bring the two together.
“We want to get kids coding because we know the potential that tech offers young people,” Ashford said. “If I can mix the tech education component with the gaming aspect, then I think we’ll be able to do something really transformative in Detroit.”
The business offers foundational coding and design courses on-site, with plans to expand into artificial intelligence, digital citizenship, game development, Python, and other emerging technology skills. All courses are designed for beginners, so students can participate with no prior coding or tech experience.
“Joshua took something young people are already passionate about and built a bridge from that interest to skills that can open doors for their future,” said Sheffield. “He could have taken this idea somewhere else, but he chose Detroit. It’s this homegrown entrepreneurship that helps our neighborhoods rise higher and creates new opportunities for the next generation.”
Ashford is also planning to hold a series of free Monday technology seminars this fall for high school and undergraduate college students, thanks to a grant it received through CS for Detroit.
Choosing Detroit
By Ashford’s estimate, only about 20 LAN centers currently operate in the United States, with just a handful in Michigan. He said Webdroid is the only one he knows of that also builds in a technology-education component.
At one point, he considered moving to California and pursuing opportunities in its technology industry. Instead, he chose to remain in his hometown and build the type of place he believed Detroit’s young people needed.
His vision was to create a “third space,” somewhere outside of home, school or church where young people could spend time with friends while gaining exposure to technology in an environment built around their interests.
“Josh’s decision to build Webdroid here says a lot about both his commitment to Detroit and the opportunity he sees in its young people,” said Sean Gray, DEGC senior vice president of Small Business Services, which administers the Motor City Match program. “Motor City Match helped him turn years of experience in technology and education into a physical space where the next generation can explore those interests for themselves.”
The facility currently employs two part-time Detroit residents, both of whom are pursuing technology-related degrees. One is studying computer science at Wayne State University, while the other is studying electrical engineering at Schoolcraft College.
Following its grand opening, Webdroid will be open from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and noon to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Mondays will be reserved primarily for programming, including free educational workshops for high school and college-age participants.
Through 30 rounds of Motor City Match:
• Total cash grants: $21 million (Total leveraged investment: $111 million)
• 84% of awardees are minority-owned
• 72% are women-owned
• 70% are owned by Detroit residents
About Motor City Match
Motor City Match is a small business incubator program powered by a partnership between the City of Detroit, Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) and Economic Development Corporation of the City of Detroit (EDC). The program awards cash grants and provides planning, design and development support to entrepreneurs looking to open or expand a brick-and-mortar business in Detroit. Applications are accepted quarterly. More information is available at www.MotorCityMatch.com.
