Great ideas never take shape by themselves. As every entrepreneur knows, there's often a long road between the aha moment and a polished product.
Networking events, however, can speed up the process by giving like-minded entrepreneurial folks the chance to bounce issues off each other and pitch their ideas to VCs.
Here you’ll find a list of conferences, meetups, and organizations to help you get started on meeting some terrific people.
NY Tech Meetup
Where: New York, NY
When: First Tuesday of each month
At NY Tech Meetup, entrepreneurs, hackers, and investors get together to take a look
at the latest and coolest technology businesses in New York City.
at the latest and coolest technology businesses in New York City.
Presenters get five minutes to explain their company or product to the audience.
The NY Tech Meetup is a great place for up and coming startups to introduce
their latest projects and for industry insiders to get a preview of what's coming next on the web.
The NY Tech Meetup is a great place for up and coming startups to introduce
their latest projects and for industry insiders to get a preview of what's coming next on the web.
140 Characters Conference
Where: Cities including New York, San Francisco, Austin, Tel Aviv, and more
When: Once a year; dates vary by city
Organized by Jeff Pulver, the 140 Characters Conference provides a platform for entrepreneurs
to listen, share, and discuss business-related topics with each other in real-time in 140
characters or less. All the events are fast-paced. You will find individual talks set to 10 minutes;
“featured talks” are 15 minutes and the various panel discussions are set for 15 and 20 minutes.
to listen, share, and discuss business-related topics with each other in real-time in 140
characters or less. All the events are fast-paced. You will find individual talks set to 10 minutes;
“featured talks” are 15 minutes and the various panel discussions are set for 15 and 20 minutes.
Since the first 140 Characters Conference took place in New York City in 2009, people have
been tweeting their ideas in 140 characters or less at conferences in Barcelona, Austin, Detroit,
Tel Aviv, and San Francisco, to name a few.
been tweeting their ideas in 140 characters or less at conferences in Barcelona, Austin, Detroit,
Tel Aviv, and San Francisco, to name a few.
What you'll get out of these conferences, according Pulver's website, is knowledge and insight
into what the next wave of Twitter and the real-time internet will have on business.
into what the next wave of Twitter and the real-time internet will have on business.
Ignite
Image: RandyStewartviaFlickr
Where: Seattle and cities including Baltimore, Boulder, Dublin, Sydney, and more
When: Generally four times a year
If you had five minutes on stage what would you say? What if you only got 20 slides and they
rotated automatically after 15 seconds? Since 2006, geeks have been putting together
Ignite nights to show their answers.
rotated automatically after 15 seconds? Since 2006, geeks have been putting together
Ignite nights to show their answers.
Ignite was started in Seattle by Brady Forrest of O’Reilly Radar and Bre Pettis of Make.
Since then hundreds of five-minute talks have been given across the world. Besides Seattle,
Ignite communities have popped up in Portland, Sydney, Boulder, Baltimore, New York City
and elsewhere.
Since then hundreds of five-minute talks have been given across the world. Besides Seattle,
Ignite communities have popped up in Portland, Sydney, Boulder, Baltimore, New York City
and elsewhere.
CEO to CEO Breakfast Forum Series
Image:
Where: Seattle
When: Monthly
At the CEO to CEO Breakfast Forum, CEOs and business owners meet monthly to network
over breakfast and learn from their peers in a non-selling environment.
over breakfast and learn from their peers in a non-selling environment.
The meeting includes a keynote speaker and table discussions following the presentation.
Lean Startup Circle
Where: Numerous cities such as Chicago, Boston, D.C. Illinois, New York, London,
Los Angeles, and Nashville
Los Angeles, and Nashville
When: Monthly
At Lean Startup Circles, entrepreneurs share ideas on developing products
and markets based on the Lean Startup methodology, a concept developed
by Steve Blank and refined by Eric Ries, who is the author of the blog, Startup Lessons Learned.
and markets based on the Lean Startup methodology, a concept developed
by Steve Blank and refined by Eric Ries, who is the author of the blog, Startup Lessons Learned.
The Lean Startup methodology emphasizes the idea of quickly rolling out prototypes, testing
them on the market, and relying on customer feedback to fine-tune them.
them on the market, and relying on customer feedback to fine-tune them.
Social Media Week
Where: San Francisco, New York, Toronto, Hong Kong, and other cities around the world
When: February and September
Hosted by local social media and digital gurus, Social Media Week features a
series of lectures and networking events that are individually sponsored and
occur all over each city.
series of lectures and networking events that are individually sponsored and
occur all over each city.
It features top notch speakers and offers a wide variety of events dedicated to
emerging media, mobile, and digital culture.
emerging media, mobile, and digital culture.
Entrepreneur Commons
Where: San Francisco and chapters around the world
When: Monthly
Based in San Francisco, Entrepreneur Commons is a
network of entrepreneurs and VCs that provides peer-support.
Entrepreneurs meet to share issues and discuss their current projects with other self-starters.
network of entrepreneurs and VCs that provides peer-support.
Entrepreneurs meet to share issues and discuss their current projects with other self-starters.
Entrepreneur Commons chapters have sprung up in several US cities, as well as
England, Spain, Germany, and India.
England, Spain, Germany, and India.
Under30CEO.com Meetups
Where: 107 communities in the United States, Europe, India, and Thailand
When: monthly
Under30CEO.com's Meetup groups bring together young entrepreneurs of all ages -- usually
at a bar --
where they can hang out, get to know each other and exchange ideas.
at a bar --
where they can hang out, get to know each other and exchange ideas.
The Meetup groups currently have 238 members and meet in cities all over the world.
Entrepreneurs Roundtable
Where: New York, Istanbul, and Tokyo
When: Monthly in NY and bi-monthly in Istanbul and Tokyo
Entrepreneurs Roundtable is a global organization that holds free events for investors and
entrepreneurs. Each event features a VC/investor as the main speaker and presentations from
startups.
entrepreneurs. Each event features a VC/investor as the main speaker and presentations from
startups.
During the Q&A session, the VC/investor gives feedback and advice to the startups that pitch
their companies and ideas.
their companies and ideas.
Startup Weekend:
Where: Based in Seattle, but includes cities around the world
When: Dates vary by city
Startup Weekend is described by its founders as “54-hour events where developers, coders,
designers, marketers, product managers and startup enthusiasts come together to share ideas,
form teams, build products, and create startups."
designers, marketers, product managers and startup enthusiasts come together to share ideas,
form teams, build products, and create startups."
Most events have about 75 attendees, half of which have technical backgrounds and the
other half have business backgrounds, according to the organization. Startup Weekend
events take place all over the world; this year, the organization plans to organize 150 events.
other half have business backgrounds, according to the organization. Startup Weekend
events take place all over the world; this year, the organization plans to organize 150 events.
