TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 will bring founders, investors, operators, builders, and technology leaders to San Francisco from October 13 to 15, but the surrounding activity will stretch well beyond the conference floor. Across Disrupt Week, startups and organizations from the global tech ecosystem will host networking events, happy hours, showcases, demos, and dinners. The side programming is scheduled around San Francisco from Saturday, October 10 through Friday, October 16.
The Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH) and the Upper Silesian Fund will host an evening aboard the Historic Klamath, connecting Poland’s innovation ecosystem with Silicon Valley during the conference. Attendees will meet Polish founders, investors, technology leaders, and ecosystem partners for a discussion followed by informal networking on the San Francisco waterfront. Innovation Norway and the Royal Norwegian Consulate General in San Francisco will host an evening centered on fintech and global growth, celebrating Aparta’s selection for TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 200.
Pak-US Tech Connect will bring together Pakistani technology companies, U.S. businesses, industry leaders, investors, partners, and ecosystem stakeholders. The event is intended to explore opportunities for business collaboration, technology partnerships, outsourcing, investment, and market expansion. Other sessions will cover first-principles thinking for uncovering overlooked customer needs, differentiating a product, strengthening product-market fit, and identifying growth opportunities through a real-world case study. One happy hour will feature AI Barmen, a robotic bartender that creates personalized cocktails and mocktails.
Ten early-stage startups will pitch their products and competitive moats to a hand-selected group of venture investors, followed by an open networking after-party. An international startup community will gather for an evening of food, drinks, and networking designed to build better business relationships. The Partnership Exchange will turn one evening into a live deal floor for founders who see partnerships as a growth driver, with the onSpark team running Hit List Live on the spot to map partners who can move revenue that year and match founders in the room with each other. Every attendee will be featured in One Golden Nugget, the co-published spotlight series from Disrupt Week.
SaaS founders, developers, and technical leaders can compare notes on embedded payments, monetization, and scaling beyond basic payment infrastructure over Ping-Pong, food, and drinks. Another event will explore work tech, robotics, and agentic AI through startup pitches, hands-on demos, and networking with founders, operators, and investors shaping the future of work. Founders, engineers, and operators building robotics, chips, rockets, and other frontier hardware will connect over drinks and light bites in a casual setting. A live game show will turn the job hunt into networking, with participants competing using their real résumés, pitching themselves onstage, and letting the audience decide who advances.
Enterprise Ireland will return to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 and welcome old friends and new faces to The Irish Shark Tank at Ireland House for happy hour, with limited availability. Founders and HR leaders will meet over drinks while connecting with SafetyWing and discussing the challenges of navigating health benefits for startups and their teams. An invite-only gathering for AI founders and accredited investors will feature drinks, direct introductions, and informal conversations with no pitches or panels. Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences will host an informal networking reception for Harvard Griffin GSAS alumni living and working in the Bay Area, with guests welcome. South Asian founders, investors, operators, creators, and technology leaders will connect through curated introductions and informal networking.
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