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Upcoming Founder & VC Events Happening This Week + The Ultimate Fundraising Checklist

Upcoming Events & The Ultimate Fundraising Checklist

Author

Mariane Bekker
December 01, 2024

Table of Contents

Hi!

Hope you had a great thanksgiving week!

We are hosting multiple workshops/events this week so would love to see you at any of them: lu.ma/foundersbay.

Due to the popularity of our Black Friday Sale, I’m extending it until end of day TODAY. Upgrade your membership and get access to ALL workshops for free for 50% off ($6.99) today only!

If you haven’t done so, please connect with me on LinkedIn and Instagram for exclusive insights and content about startups, investments, and diversity!

We partnered with TheAgentic to provide you with expertise to build your entire AI-powered application from scratch to production. ThAgentic dev team has built an LLM. This has resulted in them building a deep expertise and low-level understanding of how AI Agents and LLMs truly work. Now, they’re leveraging that knowledge to help you build your AI product from scratch for less than $10k. Book a call today: https://scheduler.zoom.us/theagentic-ai/demo

Want us to feature your event on the list? Add it here

Black Friday Special: Today Only! 🎉 

Get a full month of Full Access for just $6.99 (50% off)—unlock FREE access to all of our startup workshops and take your entrepreneurial journey to the next level!"

SF GenAI Tech Pitch Comedy @ Amador [I’m judging]

Monday Dec 2 - 6pm

See the hottest new tech pitch and comedy show in SF, also now a bicoastal show! We’ve been featured in the Washington Post and in Forbes!

Wednesday Dec 4 - 3pm to 5pm

​In this hands-on workshop, we'll walk through the process of building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for an AI startup from the grounds up. As a founder, you'll gain the clarity and tools needed to define your AI product's core features, validate your idea, and decide on the right tech stack.

Online Workshop: Tax Strategies For Founders

Thursday Dec 5 - 3pm to 4pm

​Join Anh Quynh Nguyen, Managing Director and CFO + Tax Strategist at First Tax Service, Inc., for a powerful online workshop designed specifically for early-stage founders looking to scale their businesses. With over 12 years of experience helping eCommerce businesses grow, Anh Quynh will guide you through practical strategies to improve your profitability and tax efficiency.

Thursday Dec 5 - 6pm - 9pm

25+ investors already registered from: ​Race Capital, ​Google Ventures, ​Plug and Play Ventures, ​Boost VC, Acorn Pacific Ventures, ​TheFounder VC, Founder Institute, Propel VC, ​Techne Infiniti Ventures, ​Crossbeam VC, AltaIR Capital, Cerity Partners Ventures, ​The Li Family Office, AIx2, ​AIX Ventures, OM Impact Fund

We’re hosting an exclusive dinner for funded AI founders at a beautiful Cow-hollow mansion, co-hosted by Mariane Bekker from Founders Bay, and TheAgentic. This is a fantastic opportunity to meet fellow AI founders and investors and learn about the cutting-edge technologies being developed in the AI space.

Friday Dec 6 - 6pm - 9pm

​Join us for an intimate dinner party and inspiring panel with four amazing women founders and leaders in tech. It's a rare opportunity to hear their personal stories and how they shape the future of tech through their careers and startup building experiences.

Join our Founders Community

🚀 Elevate Your Access with A Membership Tiers!

Price: $15/month 6.9$/month

Unlock a range of benefits to supercharge your networking and event participation:

  • Free Weekly Workshops: Gain actionable insights and strategies from experts to grow your startup.

  • Private Community: Join an exclusive WhatsApp group of founders and VCs for networking and support.

  • Early Event Access: Stay ahead with access to upcoming Bay Area startup events 2 weeks in advance.

  • Premium Resources: Unlock templates, tools, and exclusive newsletter content tailored for founders and VCs.

  • Discounted & Free Tickets: Enjoy significant savings or free access to top conferences and startup events.

Price: $15/month 45$/month

For those seeking the ultimate in networking and support, our VIP Access tier offers unparalleled benefits:

  • Everything in All Access +

  • Free In-Person Events: Attend exclusive dinners, panels, and pitch nights hosted by Founders Bay.

  • 1-on-1 Mentorship: Receive a personalized monthly fundraising consultation with Mariane Bekker.

  • Complimentary Conference Tickets: Enjoy free entry to top startup conferences and events.

  • Visibility Opportunity: Showcase your startup with a free demo table at one Founders Bay Pitch Night.

Don’t miss out on these exciting new offerings! Upgrade your membership today and take your involvement to the next level.

  • Connect with me on LinkedIn and Instagram for exclusive insights and content about startups, investments, and diversity. Let’s grow together!

  • Want to add your event to the list? Submit it here.

🗓️ Monday, Dec 2

👉 Building AI Agents Holiday Meetup - Southbay (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Sunnyvale
💬 ​Dive into the world of AI with fun discussions and networking at Laughing Monk Brewing.

👉 SF Tech: CEO Mixer (6:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Premier gathering for ambitious CEOs, founders, and entrepreneurs in SF's SoMa.

👉 SF GenAI Tech Pitch Comedy @ Amador- Wingtip (6:00 PM - 9:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Tech pitches get roasted by stand-up comedians, VCs, and advisors.

🗓️ Tuesday, Dec 3

👉 Emerging Technology and Geopolitics (5:00 PM - 6:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Discuss how emerging technology impacts global geopolitics.

👉 All Things Web at Convex (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 A combined React & React Native meetup with insightful talks and networking.

👉 SF Ruby presents: Ruby & AI, December 🎅 Edition @ Sentry (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 A meetup for Ruby enthusiasts exploring AI integration in applications.

👉 AI Agent Builders & Founders with SambaNova (5:00 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Learn from AI agent experts and VCs on leveraging agents for business.

👉 Globalization, Localization, and Energy Storage Chaos (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 A panel on globalization and localization in energy storage.

👉 Unstructured Data Meetup SF (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Discuss unstructured data challenges and solutions.

👉 AI Agents for Business Palo Alto (5:30 PM - 7:30 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Explore AI agents in business use cases and operational workflows.

👉 Instant Impact: How do Family Offices Operate? (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Remote
💬 Learn about family offices' structure, investment strategies, and more.

👉 YPOSF Book Club Q&A: Dare to Lead by Brené Brown (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Dive into Brené Brown’s leadership practices in this Q&A session.

👉 SF Data + AI Happy Hour (6:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Meet data and AI professionals from across Silicon Valley.

👉 AI, Compassion & Profitability: A New Era of Human Flourishing (6:30 PM - 10:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 A salon evening exploring AI's potential for human flourishing.

🗓️ Wednesday, Dec 4

👉 Mastering Early-Stage Fundraising (1:00 PM - 2:00 PM)
📍 Remote
💬 A workshop on fundraising strategies for early-stage founders.

👉 AI Keynotes at Microsoft (1:30 PM - 4:30 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Connect with leading industry figures, founders, and investors.

👉 Online Workshop: Defining & Building Your MVP (3:00 PM - 5:00 PM)
📍 Remote
💬 Build an MVP for an AI startup from scratch in this workshop. Want to attend for free? Upgrade to any premium membership

👉 Developer Bootcamp: Mastering Multi-Agent Frameworks (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Hands-on workshops and networking with multi-agent system experts.

👉 SF Demo Night 🚀 (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Watch groundbreaking tech demos and network with SF's tech community.

👉 AI Leaders Holiday Dinner (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Exclusive dinner and networking for AI founders and builders.

🗓️ Thursday, Dec 5

👉 SF Tech Breakfast Club (9:00 AM - 10:30 AM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 ​​Join Morgan Barrett and Jack McClelland (Afore) for a hearty breakfast.

👉 Online Workshop: Tax Strategies for Founders (3:00 PM - 4:00 PM) [I’m hosting]
📍 Location: Remote
💬 Join Anh Quynh Nguyen, Managing Director and CFO + Tax Strategist at First Tax Service, Inc., to learn practical strategies to improve profitability and tax efficiency for startups. Want to attend for free? Upgrade to any premium membership

👉 Beyond Borders: Japan Market Success for Global Companies (4:00 PM - 6:00 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 Explore the challenges and opportunities of entering the Japanese market with insights from industry leaders.

👉 Pints & Paws with Wiley’s Wish (4:00 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 Location: Oakland
💬 ​Bring your friends and pets to a special happy hour supporting Wiley's Wish, a nonprofit helping dogs in high-kill shelters.

👉 AI After Hours by Hyperbolic + Sahara AI (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 Relaxed networking for AI founders, developers, and enthusiasts, hosted by Hyperbolic and Sahara AI.

👉 Founder x Coaching (5:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 ​Interactive coaching and networking designed for early-stage founders.

👉 Immigrant Founders Networking @ Microsoft Reactor (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 Connect with immigrant founders, investors, and operators at this networking event.

👉 12th Peninsula Climate Coffee and Happy Hour (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 Location: Redwood City
💬 Discuss climate innovation with like-minded individuals at this casual networking event.

👉 Transformational Businesses - Taking Crazy Risk (5:30 PM - 7:30 PM)
📍 Location: Palo Alto
💬 Hear from Vanessa Larco, Partner at NEA, about bold strategies for transformative businesses.

👉 AI Open Source Meetups (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Location: San Jose
💬 Explore challenges and solutions in implementing AI across diverse environments with AI practitioners and researchers.

👉 AI Lab Live - Holiday Cheers: Bartending for a Cause (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 Support K9s for Warriors while enjoying a special holiday event with SignalFire’s team bartending for charity.

👉 Exclusive AI Founders & VC Dinner @ Cow Hollow Mansion (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM) [I’m hosting]
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 A private dinner for AI founders and VCs at a stunning mansion. Want to attend for free? Upgrade to any premium membership

👉 Co-Creator Spotlight (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Location: San Francisco
💬 A dynamic event showcasing the achievements of innovators in the tech community.

👉 Design Happy Hour (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Location: Oakland
💬 Meet other designers, marketers, engineers, and product managers for a casual design-focused networking event.

👉 Go-To-Market Tech Dinner (6:30 PM - 9:30 PM)
📍 Location: Palo Alto
💬 Join sales leaders and investors for an evening discussing Go-To-Market strategies.

👉 Startups: Develop Innovative Product with Minimum Viable Thinking (7:00 PM - 10:00 PM)
📍 Location: San Mateo
💬 Learn the practicalities of deploying a viable product to early adopters in this mini-class.

🗓️ Friday, Dec 6

👉 Start-Up Marketing 101 (2:00 AM - 3:00 AM)
📍 Remote
💬 Learn practical and easy-to-follow marketing strategies for startups, with tools and frameworks for content creation and campaign management.

👉 Business Funding Event (7:30 AM - 9:00 AM)
📍 Remote
💬 Gain insights into SBA loans, revenue-based financing, and more to fuel business growth.

👉 Deep Tech Connections Breakfast (8:30 AM - 10:30 AM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Network with entrepreneurs, investors, and researchers in the deep tech community over breakfast.

👉 Just Go Grind: SF Startup Community Coffee Meetup (9:00 AM - 11:00 AM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Casual coffee meetup for founders, operators, and investors in SF’s startup ecosystem.

👉 Private Xmas VC / Startup Champagne Party (4:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Exclusive networking event for AI startups and investors, featuring wine and hors d’oeuvres.

👉 Invite-only CTO/VC Mixer: Security Trust and Identity Frameworks for AI Agents and Robots (5:00 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 A focused discussion on cybersecurity, AI agents, and robotics with leading professionals.

👉 Video Agents Hackathon @ Daily.co ft. Simli (5:00 PM - 12:00 AM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Build interactive video agents with real-time AI-powered capabilities.

👉 Founder x Coaching (5:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Interactive coaching and networking for early-stage founders to set impactful goals.

👉 🍸 Founder x Investor Mixer: 2024 AI Startup Trends and 2025 Outlook (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Networking event to discuss trends shaping 2025 with founders, builders, and investors.

👉 SWE Holiday Party (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Celebrate with holiday cheer, games, and a toy donation drive.

👉 Her Power Series: Compass of Courage (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM) [I’m hosting]
📍 Stanford
💬 Inspiring panel and dinner on navigating career transitions with women leaders in tech. Want to attend for free? Upgrade to any premium membership

🗓️ Saturday, Dec 7

👉 Founders Running Club (9:30 AM - 12:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join founders and tech enthusiasts for a run and networking.

👉 Voice & Video AI Agents Hackathon (10:00 AM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Build AI-powered video agents in this hands-on hackathon.

👉 B.E.L.L.E & GEG - AI Agents Panel (3:00 PM - 6:00 PM) [I’m Speaking]
📍 Mountain View
💬 Insights into the challenges and opportunities of AI-driven systems.

🗓️ Sunday, Dec 8

👉 Alternative Investing Summit 2024 (9:00 AM - Dec 10) [I’m Speaking]
📍 Los Angeles
💬 Explore investment strategies and trends at this summit.

👉 SF AI-Driven Robotics Club (10:00 AM - 11:00 AM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join a talk on wearable robotics by Kyle Kaveny of Roam Robotics.

On this week’s Silicon Valley Impact, I’m co-hosting an exciting show, with Brian Sparkes, discussing  Go-To-Market insights. We’re joined by Tiffany Hicks, a startup growth consultant and sales expert, and Hans Sandhu, CBO at TheAgentic, who’s revolutionizing AI for startups. Learn from their incredible journeys and expertise in scaling businesses. Listen and follow on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Spotify: 

Apple Podcast:

Your Ultimate Fundraising Checklist

By Mariane Bekker

While December may not be the ideal month to actively fundraise—thanks to holiday schedules and year-end distractions—it’s the perfect time to set your foundation for a successful fundraising effort in the new year. Use this period to focus on building and organizing your data room. A well-prepared data room not only speeds up the fundraising process but also positions you as a professional and organized founder.

Instead of viewing December as a lost month, see it as a chance to refine, plan, and prepare. Below is a comprehensive checklist of items to prepare pre-fundraising:

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