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- Upcoming Founder & VC Events Happening This Week
Upcoming Founder & VC Events Happening This Week
Upcoming Events & The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds
Mariane Bekker
July 28, 2024
Table of Contents
Exciting news! We're thrilled to announce that Founders Bay is merging with AI Product Creators to form a new, dynamic community: Founders Creative. 🎉
To keep you up-to-date with all our upcoming events and activities, subscribe to our Luma page: https://lu.ma/founderscreative
Featured Events
Building and Scaling LLM Applications: Get More Users, Enhance Performance, and Optimize Your Cost [I’m Co-hosting] (Link)
Thursday August 1 - 6:00PM - 9:00PM
Businesses everywhere are experimenting with foundational models to find the right balance of value and cost. But how do they find that perfect balance: the right combination of different LLMs, multimodal usage, cost optimization, and more?
Amberflo will show us how real-time LLM cost and usage tracking gives you ultimate insights into GenAI apps' price performance while delivering superior customer experience. The team will also demonstrate how to adjust LLM models and versions dynamically and understand the impacts on cost and user experience.
🗓️ Monday, Jul 29
👉 Tech Startup Founder's Co-Work in SF (9:00 AM - 5:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for our daily co-working exclusively for startup founders! We're excited to offer a productive and collaborative environment where you can work and connect with fellow founders.
👉 AI Investors & Networking (4:00 PM - 6:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 We are Open Future Forum. We are leaders, investors, founders, and engineers based in the Bay Area CA.
👉 ETH Public Sale 10th Anniversary Celebration and Happy Hour at the House of Web3 (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us at the House of Web3 for an unforgettable evening as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Ethereum Public Sale! This milestone marks a decade of innovation, growth, and the transformative power of blockchain technology.
🗓️ Tuesday, Jul 30
👉 Code/Collab/Connect Coworking Day (11:00 AM - 4:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for a day of coding, collaboration, and connection at the Code/Collab/Connect Coworking Day hosted by MindsDB.
👉 Immigrant Founders Networking Conference (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Young Entrepreneurs Hub, OpenSphere, & OWOW are collaborating AGAIN on this high-participation networking event for the immigrant founders community featuring guest speakers, open mic pitching, and high-participation networking and resource partners to succeed in Silicon Valley.
👉 Advanced AI with Toolhouse and Streamlit (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 AI assistants are promising, but we all know how difficult it is to create advanced use cases. Have you tried and struggled to give your LLMs memory? How do you safely run sandboxed code generated by your AI assistant?
👉 AGI Builders Meetup SF (5:30 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Gathering where AI builders, researchers, and enthusiasts share ideas, inspire peers, and transform the future.
👉 Women Tech Meetup w/Fidelity Private Shares 🚀 (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 San Francisco!! Calling all female founders, women in tech, and allies to join our next Women Tech Meetup w/Fidelity Private Shares on July 30th! 💥
👉 Advanced AI with Toolhouse and Streamlit (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 AI assistants are promising, but we all know how difficult it is to create advanced use cases. Have you tried and struggled to give your LLMs memory? How do you safely run sandboxed code generated by your AI assistant?
Streamlit and Toolhouse will showcase a new way to build advanced AI. You'll see how to combine LLMs and tools together to build advanced AI assistants with unprecedented simplicity.
👉 Fireside Chat with Vercel CEO Guillermo Rauch (6:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for a fireside chat with Guillermo Rauch, founder and CEO of Vercel.
🗓️ Wednesday, Jul 31
👉 AI Engineering Workshop SF - Build Your First AI App in a Day (8:00 AM - 6:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 AI is compelling engineering teams to adapt quickly. On the front-end, users expect increased automation. On the back-end, the integration of LLMs is becoming essential, introducing new challenges around performance, cost optimization, and security. Technology never becomes dull, and this statement is truer today than ever before.
👉 AI PitchForce & Conference (10:30 AM - 6:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for an AI-focused PitchForce event and conference! This all-day event includes panel discussions, AI startups pitching to a panel of VC and Angel investors, networking, and food & drinks.
👉 Should You Drop Out? | University Day @ Founders, Inc. (4:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 For the past six weeks, Founders, Inc. has opened our Lab in Fort Mason to 16 of SF's top university builders as part of The University Residency.
👉 Ava Protocol/Celo Bay Area EigenLayer Ecosystem Meetup (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join Ava Protocol and Celo at the Bay Area EigenLayer Ecosystem Meetup. We’re bringing together innovative members of the EigenLayer community to foster connections and collaboration. This event is a unique opportunity to meet with other teams building on EigenLayer, share ideas, and scale partnerships.
👉 Berkeley LLM Meetup (5:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 The Berkeley LLM Meetup aims to connect PhD students, faculty, and alumni with people working in or interested in LLMs (in particular systems supporting LLMs) in industry.
👉 Innovative Applications of Computer Vision for Power Utility Infrastructure Inspection (5:30 PM - 7:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 In this presentation, we will delve into an innovative application of computer vision for power utility infrastructure inspection. Finally, we will share some of the key learnings and insights we’ve gained from applying computer vision in the power industry.
👉 North Bay Prosperity Group Meetup #1 (5:30 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 Santa Rosa
💬 We are thrilled to officially announce the launch of the North Bay Prosperity Group (NBPG), an exclusive event series for entrepreneurs and technologists from Marin, Sonoma, and Napa counties. NBPG welcomes individuals who are passionate about entrepreneurship, business ownership, and financial growth.
👉 Ai & Automation The Future of Business (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 Oakland
💬 Are you a small or medium business owner looking to streamline operations and drive growth in a cost-effective manner? Or a startup developing cutting-edge AI solutions and seeking to understand customer needs and find customers? Join us for AI & Business: AI Integration and Growth, an exclusive event designed to bridge the gap between traditional businesses and AI-driven innovation.
👉 Startups & Investors Networking (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Meet and network with Founders and SF Investors. Pitch to the audience with your Startup and seize your chance to dive into the world of business, technology, and venture capital.
👉 BCV AI Fellowship Dinner with Andy Konwinski (6:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 We're looking forward to welcoming you to the second BCV AI Fellowship dinner!
👉 AI & Business: AI Integration for Growth (6:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 Oakland
💬 Are you a small or medium business owner looking to streamline operations and drive growth in a cost-effective manner? Or a startup developing cutting-edge AI solutions and seeking to understand customer needs and find customers? Join us for AI & Business: AI Integration and Growth, an exclusive event designed to bridge the gap between traditional businesses and AI-driven innovation.
👉 Silicon Valley Founders and Entrepreneurs Business Networking Mixer! (7:00 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 Redwood City
💬 Join us to network, socialize and connect with other startup founders and entrepreneurs!
🗓️ Thursday, Aug 1
👉 Breakfast with Inferless - For Developers! (9:00 AM - 10:30 AM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for another Thursday Breakfasts with Developers. This series is designed exclusively for developers and AI founders who are navigating the complex landscape of deploying AI in production.
👉 INNOVIT Green Transition Demo Day (3:30 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us on Thursday, August 1st from 3:30pm for INNOVIT’s Green Transition Demo Day.
👉 Techstars Startup Weekend SF AI: Community Reunion at Convex (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for an inspiration, connection, and storytelling evening as we reunite the Startup Weekend SF AI community. This isn't just another networking event - it's a celebration of your journeys and a chance to reignite the spark that brought us together.
👉 Building and Scaling LLM Applications: Get More Users, Enhance Performance, and Optimize Your Cost (5:00 PM - 9:00 PM) [HOSTED BY ME]
📍 Palo Alto
💬 Amberflo will show us how real-time LLM cost and usage tracking gives you ultimate insights into GenAI apps' price performance while delivering superior customer experience. The team will also demonstrate how to adjust LLM models and versions dynamically and understand the impacts on cost and user experience.
👉 Heavybit Summer Sessions Week 1 (5:00 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 ☀️ We're bringing a version of Summer Friday to Cerebral Valley! 🌴
🗓️ Every Thursday in August, we're opening up our office to founders, engineers, product and GTM teams in the dev-first software community
👉 Startup World Cup 2024 Silicon Valley Regional (5:00 PM - 8:00 PM)
📍 Mountain View
💬 Startup World Cup is a global series of conferences and competitions that bring together the top startups, investors, entrepreneurs and tech CEOs around the world. Starting with regional competitions in nearly 100+ countries across six continents, hundreds of selected top technology startups compete for the chance to move onto the Grand Finale event in San Francisco to win a $1 million investment grand prize.
👉 Techstars Startup Weekend SF AI: Community Reunion at Convex (5:30 PM - 9:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for an inspiration, connection, and storytelling evening as we reunite the Startup Weekend SF AI community. This isn't just another networking event - it's a celebration of your journeys and a chance to reignite the spark that brought us together.
👉 HUMAN X AI Mixer (5:30 PM - 7:00 PM)
📍 Palo Alto
💬 We are Open Future Forum. We are leaders, investors, founders and engineers based in the Bay Area CA.
👉 Columbia in Tech SF Summer Reunion (6:30 PM - 8:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join new and old friends for one of the biggest events of the year, our San Francisco Summer Reunion! It'll be a fun evening of mingling, light bites, and catching up - we can't wait to see you there.
🗓️ Friday, Aug 2
👉 Pitch & Run SF 8a Friday Runs! (8:00 AM - 9:00 AM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Founders, in tech: operators, investors, angels, runners: join Pitch and Run SF Friday AM's!
👉 Wordware (YC S24) Hack Night at Workshop (4:30 PM - 10:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for the official launch of Wordware! 🚀A web-hosted IDE where non-technical domain experts work with AI Engineers to build task-specific AI agents.
🗓️ Saturday, Aug 3
👉 Frame Launch Hackathon 😎 (9:00 AM - 6:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Join us for a full-day event hosted and sponsored by our friends at Niantic! The event will take place at Niantic’s Pier 1 event space in San Francisco, on August 3rd. The Brilliant team will be there to answer questions and support you as you hack and build your boldest ideas. We’ll also have a few special guests... more details to come.
👉 AWW, Wholesome Day for Solopreneurs + Friends (10:00 AM - 1:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 _Join us for a wholesome Saturday at the Embarcadero! Thanks to Arden Cove, we’re hosting a get together for solopreneurs and friends to start the day right. We’ll do some pilates followed by meditation, and then hanging out over good company and small bites._
👉 Startup Founders Lunch at Mission Dolores Manor (11:00 AM - 12:30 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 We’re excited to announce the return of our Founders' Brunch, featuring an incredible breakfast prepared by Chef Renee.
👉 ACCELR8 | Kick Off Party (6:00 PM - 10:00 PM)
📍 San Francisco
💬 Get ready to rev your engines and kick off ACCELR8 in style!
Join us on August 3 at the ACCELR8 House for a night of non-stop fun (in bed by 10pm sharp), excitement, and high-energy vibes (chillhop lofi will be playing).
Listen to my podcastwith Brian Sparkes where we interview 3 women investors with $500M AUB . Listen Now >
Listen in to my latest podcast as I make a BIG announcement, and 3 amazing woman investors open up on how to make an impact in the startup ecosystem.
Aury Cifuentes is an early-stage investor at How Women Invest. Prior to joining How Women Invest Aury was an investor at Plug & Play. She leverages her knowledge as a former fintech operator and manager to evaluate startups impacting people, tech, and large enterprises. Before joining the venture capital industry, she was a manager at Bloomberg in New York City. Aury has always been active across several groups supporting young women in their careers, such as her school's Women in Business chapter, Women in VC, and the San Francisco Girls' School. Today, she is actively investing in women-led companies from Seed to Series B across the areas of healthcare, sustainability, and the future of work.
Also in the studio is Fannie Wang, an early-stage Investor at UpHonest Capital, a silicon valley based venture capital with 350 portfolios under management. The earliest backer of Hims & Hers (NYSE: HIMS), Vicarious Surgical (NYSE: RBOT), Knightscope (NASDAQ:KSCP), Instacart, Grubmarket, Lime, and Checkr.
Finally, we have Shoba Viswanath, an active angel investor who has invested through numerous syndicates She has a life science, and technology agnostic background Shoba has worked in a range of SAAS for healthcare and biopharma products, to technology for transportation and fin-tech. Through affiliations with leading accelerators like Plug & Play, Alchemist, Viswanath Consulting, LLC, and Appleton & Greene, she provides advisory services on raising money and growing companies. She immersed herself in everything from product development, operations, and dev to strategy and raising venture capital to scale these companies.
Follow us on Spotify and listen to all our episodes at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/05Pzjl68TKjfrtuRcxUbNh
Looking to throw a networking event to promote your startup?
We can plan out your events from start to finish in the Bay Area!
Email me at [email protected] or book time with me to learn more.
Demystifying Pre-Money and Post-Money Valuations: A Founder's Guide
By Mariane Bekker
If you're a founder looking to raise funding, you've likely come across terms like "pre-money valuation" and "post-money valuation." While they may seem like financial jargon, understanding these concepts is crucial for making informed decisions about your startup's growth and securing investments. In this guide, we'll demystify pre-money and post-money valuations, explaining what they mean and why they are vital for founders like you.
What Is Pre-Money Valuation?
Pre-money valuation is the estimated worth of your startup before any external funding or investments are added to the company. Think of it as the baseline value of your business at a specific point in time, typically before a funding round. Pre-money valuation plays a significant role in several aspects of your startup journey.
Why Is Pre-Money Valuation Important?
Equity Allocation: Pre-money valuation determines the ownership stake that investors receive in exchange for their investment. A higher pre-money valuation means you're giving away a smaller percentage of your company for the same amount of investment.
Investor Attraction: It can signal to investors how you perceive the value of your startup. A higher pre-money valuation may attract investors looking for companies with strong growth potential, while a lower valuation can be an opportunity for investors seeking more significant returns.
Negotiating Power: Understanding pre-money valuation gives you negotiating power during funding rounds. It allows you to set clear terms and maintain control over the equity you and your team have worked hard to earn.
What Factors Influence Pre-Money Valuation?
Several factors impact your startup's pre-money valuation:
Market Opportunity: The size and growth potential of your target market can significantly affect your valuation.
Product or Service: The uniqueness and competitive advantage of your product or service play a role.
Traction: Demonstrating market demand, user growth, or revenue can justify a higher valuation.
Team: The experience and expertise of your team can influence investor confidence.
What Is Post-Money Valuation?
Post-money valuation, on the other hand, is the estimated value of your startup after external funding or investments have been added to your company. It reflects the total value of the business at the end of a funding round, combining the pre-money valuation with the new capital infusion.
Why Is Post-Money Valuation Important?
Ownership Distribution: Post-money valuation determines the distribution of equity among founders, early employees, and investors. It helps you understand how much of the company remains in your control after securing funding.
Funding Round Classification: The post-money valuation often dictates the stage of your funding round. This classification affects the expectations, terms, and investor interest in your startup.
Dilution Awareness: Founders need to be aware of the dilution effect that funding rounds have on their ownership stake. Post-money valuation provides a clear picture of the impact of new investments.
How to Calculate Post-Money Valuation?
Post-money valuation is calculated by adding the amount of new capital raised during the funding round to the pre-money valuation:
Post-Money Valuation = Pre-Money Valuation + Investment Amount
Pre-money and post-money valuations are essential tools for founders navigating the funding landscape. They help you determine how much equity to offer investors, attract the right partners, negotiate favorable terms, and understand the impact of funding rounds on your ownership. Armed with this knowledge, you'll be better prepared to make informed decisions and drive your startup toward success.
The Week 10 Biggest Funding Rounds
Another big week for startups raising large rounds. All 10 rounds hit $100 million or more, this time with space tech and biotech leading the way. Once again, money was spread around to various sectors — even agtech, which has not seen many megadeals this year.
Astranis
Sector: Space
Funding: $200M
Details: Space startup Astranis raised $200 million to build out its Omega satellite program. The round was co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and Bam Elevate. Astranis plans to have over 100 first-generation satellites in orbit by 2030. The company was valued at $1.6 billion in April 2023. Founded in 2015, Astranis has raised more than $750 million.
Third Arc Bio
Sector: Biotech
Funding: $165M
Details: Boston-based Third Arc Bio closed a $165 million Series A co-led by Cormorant Asset Management, Hillhouse Investment, and Vida Ventures. The company is developing therapeutics for solid tumors and inflammatory and immunology diseases. Founded in 2022, this is the company's first disclosed funding amount.
(tied) Imperative Care
Sector: Medical Device
Funding: Up to $150M
Details: Campbell, California-based Imperative Care announced the initial close of a Series E led by Ally Bridge Group, with a potential total of up to $150 million. The company develops medical devices for stroke and ischemic diseases. Founded in 2015, Imperative Care has raised $559 million.
(tied) Vanta
Sector: Cybersecurity
Funding: $150M
Details: Compliance startup Vanta raised $150 million led by Sequoia Capital, valuing the company at $2.45 billion. Founded in 2017, Vanta has raised more than $350 million. It reached $100 million in annual recurring revenue in January.
(tied) Chainguard
Sector: Cybersecurity
Funding: $140M
Details: Kirkland, Washington-based Chainguard raised $140 million in a Series C led by IVP, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Redpoint. The company focuses on software supply chain security and securing AI workloads. Founded in 2021, Chainguard has raised $256 million.
(tied) IntelePeer
Sector: Customer Relations
Funding: $140M
Details: Dania Beach, Florida-based IntelePeer raised $140 million in a mixed round of debt and equity. The equity portion was co-led by Savant Growth and VantagePoint Capital Partners. Founded in 2003, the company offers an AI-powered contact center and has raised $392 million.
Monarch Tractor
Sector: Agtech
Funding: $133M
Details: Monarch Tractor, known for its fully electric, driver-optional smart tractor, raised $133 million in a Series C co-led by Astanor Ventures and HH-CTBC Partnership. The company also offers the WingspanAI platform. Founded in 2017, Monarch has raised more than $220 million.
(tied) Autobahn Therapeutics
Sector: Biotech
Funding: $100M
Details: San Diego-based Autobahn Therapeutics closed a $100 million Series C led by Newpath Partners. The company develops treatments for neuropsychiatric and neuroimmunologic disorders. Founded in 2017, Autobahn has raised nearly $209 million.
(tied) Harvey
Sector: Legal
Funding: $100M
Details: San Francisco-based AI startup Harvey raised $100 million in a Series C led by GV, with participation from OpenAI, Kleiner Perkins, and Sequoia Capital, valuing the company at $1.5 billion. Founded in 2022, Harvey has raised $206 million.
(tied) Headway
Sector: Mental Health
Funding: $100M
Details: New York-based Headway raised $100 million in a Series D led by Spark Capital, valuing the company at $2.3 billion. The platform connects patients with therapists covered under insurance and announced expansions to Medicare Advantage and Medicaid. Founded in 2018, Headway has raised more than $325 million.
(tied) Skild AI
Sector: Robotics
Funding: $300M
Details: Pittsburgh-based Skild AI raised $300 million in a Series A led by Coatue, Lightspeed Venture Partners, SoftBank Group, and Jeff Bezos's Bezos Expeditions. The company specializes in building robot brains for diverse applications and achieved a valuation of $1.5 billion.
Source: Crunchbase
CEO, Founders Bay
Hi! I'm Mariane Bekker, a tech executive with over a decade of experience building high-performing engineering teams at leading startups such as New Relic and Mindbody. I've led engineering through 5 acquisitions and 1 IPO.
I’m the founder of Women Founders Bay, a community of tech female founders on a mission to increase funding going to women. Donate today →