[SF]
[LA]
The Coming AI Winter (And How to Survive It)
Most AI companies will die soon. Which ones will survive?
The AI market is heading for a correction. Not everything will die, but most will. This panel examines which companies, business models, and technical approaches actually survive when hype becomes economics.
Speakers:
Malte Ubl (Vercel CTO) - Powers thousands of AI apps, sees which scale vs. burn money
Devinder Sodhi (Sodhirao CEO, runs AI floor at Frontier Tower) - Advising startups through the sustainability crisis
York Westenhaver (AlphaFund CEO, Chief AI Architect) - Building AI for quant trading.
Moderated by Nicole Levin - Building AI infrastructure at seed-stage startup
We'll discuss: Which business models actually work? What technical approaches are sustainable? How do you survive the correction?
90 min | SF Tech Week
Co-hosted by Pebblebed - Technical early-stage VC founded by Pam Vagata (OpenAI co-founder, led AI at Stripe), Keith Adams (founder of Facebook AI Research, former Slack Chief Architect), Luke Byrne (former Tapestry partner), and Tammie Siew (former Sequoia SEA investor).
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek, a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
TBPN x Ramp: Founder & Finance Table
[SF]
[LA]
Budget Battles to Board Buy-In
Every growth leader faces the same challenge: how do you justify sales and marketing spend to a board skeptical of “soft returns”?
This workshop equips founders and revenue leaders with a proven framework to translate strategy into compelling numbers — turning budgets into defendable, data-backed growth investments. Participants will learn how to structure board-level conversations, demonstrate ROI in terms investors care about, and avoid the traps of over-promising without evidence.
Takeaway: CEOs and CROs will leave with a structured method for making budget cases that align with investor expectations and withstand scrutiny.
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
The Closing Party
LA Tech Week's Closing Party.
Join STARTUPSTARTER, CarClub & The Windward on Friday October 17th, as we head to a private venue at the Venice sign to host the LA Tech Week closing party.
Three floors to choose from, open bar, DJs open to close, and LA's top founders & investors converging at an iconic location for a close out event to remember.
- Ground Floor: Lounge
- 2nd Floor: Bar + Lounge
- Rooftop Deck: Open Air DJ
Limited Capacity, RSVP for entrance.
See you there.
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This event is a part of #LATechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com
Embedding VC, BACCA.AI, ELC
[SF]
[LA]
Tech Team 3.0: The Rise of the AI Engineer
Palo Alto
·
Embedding VC, BACCA.AI, ELC
🚀 The way we build companies is changing fast, and AI engineers are leading the shift.
We’re bringing together the people designing the agents 🤖 and tools 🛠️ to offer an inside look at how tomorrow’s companies are getting built today.
Join us for an afternoon of live demos, behind-the-scenes playbooks, and real stories from the builders re-architecting teams for the AI era. (Light food + boba tea will be provided!🧋)
Whether you’re an engineer, founder, or investor focused on how AI is reshaping org charts, hiring, and product velocity, this is the room where the future of engineering takes shape. Come meet the builders, see the stacks, and imagine the team you’ll want to be part of — or lead — in Tech Team 3.0. ✨
Agenda
🕑 2:00–2:20 — Arrivals, refreshments & drinks
🎉 2:20–2:30 — Welcome remarks from the host
🎤 2:30–3:15 — Presentation: "Mentoring the Machine" from Augment Code
🤖 3:15–4:15 — Demo Session: AI Tech Teammates in action
💬 4:15–5:15 — AI Tech Team Panel
🤝 5:15–6:00 — Networking & founder conversations
Demo Companies & Featured Panelists
Shaping the future of AI infra & engineering:
- AugmentCode.com | Presenter: Eric Hou
✅ The Developer AI that deeply understands your codebase and how your team builds software
- Bacca.AI | Co-Founder & CEO: Eric Lu
✅ First AI SRE to own your on-call shift
- Classie.AI | Co-Founder & CEO: Poonacha Kongetira
✅ Supervise your Agent and GenAI fleet in production with AI-native observability and security
- Entelligence.AI | Founder & CEO: Aiswarya Sankar
✅ AI engineering agents to streamline your engineering team overhead
- Hexo.AI | Co-Founder & CEO: Kunal Bhatia
✅ AI-powered data infrastructure built for MLEs to unify, query, and activate company knowledge
- Shiplight.AI | Co-Founder & CEO: Will Zhao
✅ The AI-native platform that makes end-to-end QA testing 10x easier)
…and more
⚡️ RSVP to join. Space is limited!
Host
Embedding.VC: Pre-seed/seed fund backing the builders embedding AI into everything
Sponsors
Bacca.AI: First AI SRE to own your on-call shift
Entelligence.AI: AI engineering agents to streamline your engineering team overhead
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
Happy Hour: BYO Sales Agents
AI sales agents aren’t the future: they’re here, and they look different than you think. Join us for a hands-on happy hour where founders, revops leaders, and GTM-ers can explore how to design, build, and deploy their own AI-powered sales agents.
Walk away with a free beer and a fully functioning sales agent to bring to your GTM team.
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
Consumer Social Dinner @ Chance House
Hey Tech Weekers!! 🚀 Chance App is bringing together some of the top consumer social founders—the minds behind apps with millions of users and #1 chart spots—for an intimate sit down dinner during LA Tech Week.
We’re on a mission to spark real relationships and leave people feeling more connected (and way more fulfilled).
Come for the yummy bites and drinks, stay for the electric convos and new faces. This one’s all about good energy, great people, and what’s next in social.
Come hungry. Leave inspired. ✨
Next guest list approvals released on October 8th.
This event is a part of #LATechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
Riot Ventures, Space VC, Stifel Bank
[SF]
[LA]
Caffeine and Critical Industries
Venice
·
Riot Ventures, Space VC, Stifel Bank
[SF]
[LA]
GFR Fund Office Hour
To apply, submit the application form here:
https://airtable.com/appyXBgB4KdR5gkrf/shr58MHvOxK3Tdw14
* Only those who've completed the application form will be approved. Detailed address will be sent to accepted applicants via email.
We are excited to host our Office Hour in Los Angeles, during LA Tech Week!
This event is open to early-stage startups in entertainment, consumer tech, gaming, generative AI, the creator economy, media & brands, and fintech. We invite founders seeking expert advice, constructive feedback, and support in their development journey to join us.
During the Office Hour, our team members, Brian Takemasa and Val Siau, will hold 20-minute one-on-one sessions. They will offer mentorship, discuss potential fundraising opportunities, and provide personalized insights to help startups refine their strategies and accelerate their growth.
If you are a founder eager to leverage the expertise of industry leaders and gain valuable feedback to propel your venture forward, we encourage you to apply. Don’t miss this chance to connect with GFR Fund and join us in shaping the future of digital innovation.
We look forward to connecting with visionary entrepreneurs who value the power of community and AI-driven innovation!
*We’ll be accepting applications until October 8. Limited spots are available, and our team will carefully select startups based on capacity*
This event is a part of #LATechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
Business of Wellness, Building Brands for Longevity
Please join the J.P. Morgan Disruptive Commerce & Internet team for an immersive experience on brand and founder longevity in an AI-driven economy.
This event will feature breakout sessions, keynote address and a founder Q&A panel about the business of scaling wellness companies -- for longevity and sustainability.
Panelists and Keynote Speakers will include founders from:
- Pause Wellness
- Humanaut Health
- Needed Supplements
- Monarch Athletic Club
- Wellness Growth Ventures
Pause will be providing complimentary vitamin shots (NAD+ for purchase) onsite and Talo Organic will be providing seed oil free bites for this event.
Location will be released 24 hours prior. Parking is available for $20; we highly recommend arriving via Uber or Lyft due to LA Tech Week traffic.
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This event is a part of #LATechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
Venture Fight Club
Tired of boring speakers, mundane panels and inane chit-chat?
Come join us for a No-Gi Jiu Jitsu Open mat 1pm to 3pm on Wednesday, October 8th for TechWeek's weirdest event. Nothing builds connection like trying to strangle your fellow VCs, founders or investors.
Open to anyone with previous grappling experience. You don't have to be good. You just can't be day 1 new. We don't want anyone getting hurt.
Attire is no-gi (rashguard or tight t-shirt, shorts with no pockets/zippers and/or tights.
Sponsored by venturefightclub.com
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
Sigma Computing, Prodege, Snowflake
[SF]
[LA]
Women in Data
El Segundo
·
Sigma Computing, Prodege, Snowflake
[SF]
[LA]
Off the Record: Quiet Opportunities in AI
A private gathering for those building what others haven’t noticed yet
We’re bringing together 50 founders, researchers, and investors for a private event in Napa Valley.
No stages. No press. Just real conversations about where the next wave of AI value is hiding and how to build for it before the noise sets in.
This isn’t about echoing what’s trending. It’s about surfacing the underexplored, the overlooked, and the underbuilt.
What to expect
• A curated group of 50 builders, alignment researchers, AI infra founders, and select investors
• Fireside panel with researchers from leading frontier AI labs
• Relaxed setting with great wine, great food, and high-signal conversations
• Optional 7-minute lightning talks on what others might be sleeping on
We are hosting a GP and LP networking social to connect emerging managers and capital allocators in SF.
We will be hosting a panel on “Unlocking Liquidity in the US Private Market” with plenty of time set aside for networking
Join us during #SFTechWeek to connect with GPs and fellow investors in SF over drinks 🍹🍷⚡
About Host - Vencapital
Vencapital is a VC accelerator for aspiring minority and female investors, so far we have supported 200+ alums through the program and have 100+ active VC fund managers and experienced investors that instruct and hire through our program.
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
[SF]
[LA]
Scaling Hardtech: Panel & Mixer
Join Colare, Shastra VC and NFX for an evening with hardtech founders and talent leaders, as we explore how to scale from prototype to production, navigate the hiring bottlenecks unique to hardtech, and build teams that make the impossible possible. Panel discussion followed by curated networking with the Bay Area’s leading hardtech CEOs, operators, and investors.
Join us to here from:
Patrick Beatty – Managing Director (US), Beyond Earth Ventures. Investor across space, energy, bioengineering, and quantum, with decades of experience scaling deeptech globally.
Raghav Gupta – Co-founder, Posha. Building fully autonomous cooking robots that put fresh meals on autopilot, backed by Accel and Flipkart’s Binny Bansal.
Jivesh Madan – VP Investments at Shastra VC. Shastra VC backs companies building in Deep Tech, Climate Tech and AI. First Investors of companies including Simplismart, Alt Carbon, SISIR Radar, Klaar, et al.
Josh Kelly – CEO, Pave Robotics (YCW25). Former Zipline engineer and Head of Engineering for Mark Rober, now leading robotics that repair infrastructure autonomously.
Schedule
📍 5:30 PM – Arrival & networking
🎙️ 6:00 PM – Panel discussion: Scaling Hardtech
🤝 6:45 PM – Curated networking with founders, investors, and operators
7:30 PM – Close
This event is a part of #SFTechWeek—a week of events hosted by VCs and startups to bring together the tech ecosystem. Learn more at www.tech-week.com.
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Colare is the first hiring infrastructure built for hardtech companies. From seed-stage founders to enterprise leaders, we help robotics, aerospace, EV, and manufacturing teams hire with confidence. Our platform streamlines sourcing, evaluation, and scheduling through real-world engineering simulations—so companies scale faster, avoid costly mis-hires, and keep building.
Chat with us here: https://calendly.com/colareai/30min
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Shastra VC is an early-stage venture capital firm based that backs visionary founders building in deep tech, climate tech and AI.
With a hands-on approach, Shastra VC partners closely with entrepreneurs from seed to scale, helping them refine technology roadmaps, unlock global partnerships, and access patient capital. Its mission is to make India a global hub for deep tech, climate tech and AI innovation, enabling transformative ventures that solve hard problems for both industry and planet.
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