Story, Capital, and a Plush AI Toy Walk into Venture Café

This Thursday Gathering hums back to life this week, and whether you are three weeks into an idea or three years into a company that is finally clicking, there is a seat for you here.

The evening opens with Connection Collider, the beating heart of Thursday Gathering, where founders, investors, students, and curious wanderers strike up conversations that sometimes turn into cofounders or lifelong friends.

New to it all? From 4:40 PM to 5:00 PM in the Havana Room, swing by How to Venture Café, a friendly walkthrough of what we do and how to make the most of the night, from striking up a good conversation to finding your footing in the ecosystem. It is the perfect first stop for anyone still finding their way in.

Beginning at 5:00 PM, Chuck Goldstone holds Office Hours built around story, sharing his simple but powerful point that startups rarely stumble because the technology is weak; they stumble because the story around it never lands. Make sure you register on the event page and schedule your slot.

At 5:00 PM, join us for a special two-hour session on Mapping Innovation, a live workshop with MIT’s Jordi Albo-Canals that helps you map your own strengths and gaps as an innovator. Having conducted this workshop for Fortune 500 companies around the world, this session is not to be missed!

Also at 5:00 PM, meet Ivan Kanevsky in the Founder Spotlight in the Santo Domingo Room. He asked what happens when AI grows up alongside a child rather than replacing the people who love them, a question that led him to build SamSam, a plush companion designed to earn a child’s trust and tell a good bedtime story.

At 6:00 PM, Beth McKeon’s Capital Fluency Series continues with Getting The First Meeting, a session on building real relationships with investors long before you actually need them.