Startup Events in Chicago

Data in a Dive is a casual meetup for Chicago’s data community, co-hosted by DataHub and MotherDuck. Engineers, developers, analysts, and anyone else who spends an unreasonable amount of time thinking about data are welcome. No talks. No panels. No forced networking. Just drinks, good people, and a chance to get out of the office for a couple hours. We’ll be hanging out at Monk’s Pub. Come by after work, grab a drink on us, and stay as long as you like.

⭐️ This month's meetup is sponsored by Tray.ai, the enterprise orchestration platform for data and AI. \-\-\- 📌 Automation, MCP, and vibe coding: what gets built vs. what gets shipped with Stephen Stouffer As a Solutions Engineer at an AI company, I build alongside teams every week. I've seen what works, what actually gets adopted, and what dies after the pilot. In this session I'll share how AI adoption has really played out from the front lines. Where it started, where it stands today, and where it's headed. We'll walk through real use cases, real agents, and a couple of apps that show how teams are using AI in ways you probably haven't seen yet. It won't be all slides! I'm bringing an agent or two along with me, and we'll put them to work live! \-\-\- If you're interested in speaking at an upcoming meetup, please email Bennett at bhansen@bitovi.com.

RSVP HERE \- only RSVPS via Luma will be allowed in: https://luma.com/p6nyjn29 Chicago Code & Coffee is teaming up with the AI Collective and Superoptimal for a hands-on workshop with engineers from AWS, Relativity, and Qdrant on building AI agents you can trust. We'll cover real failure modes in high-stakes AI, including missing or outdated sources, weak retrieval, and conflicting evidence. Bring your laptop and prepare for an incredible evening! Food, drinks, and networking included! Space is limited, so register early at !👉 RSVP HERE: https://luma.com/p6nyjn29

Join a Claude Community Event, organized by local enthusiasts for everyone who loves building with Claude! Fable 5.1 Build Day, Chicago. Anthropic shipped Fable 5.1 at the start of September. Bring a laptop and build on it while the rest of the world is still reading about it. The night opens with a short look at what's new in the model and two live demos, and then you build for about ninety minutes, on your own or in a team of two to four. There are three tracks and you pick yours on the night. Delight, something surprising or beautiful or fun that you couldn't have made this good this fast before Breakthrough, a problem the last model couldn't handle, brought back to see how far this one gets Everyday, something that solves a real problem in the work you already do At 8:00 PM everyone who built something shows it, two minutes each, and a panel of local judges scores the demos. Bring a laptop, a charger, and an account at console.anthropic.com. Everyone with a confirmed spot gets $100 in Anthropic API credits for the session. Credits attach to a Console organization, and a personal Claude.ai login won't take them, so create the organization before you arrive and you'll save yourself time at the door.

Attention location: Ferris & Co. 1 W Monroe St, Chicago, IL 60603, USA · Chicago, IL 5th Floor Above Capital One Cafe! Welcome all and join us for our Sunday September 20th 2026 Chicago Code and Coffee event at building on corner of Monroe and State also found at 100 S State St. Chicago IL , 5th Floor door entrance at Ferris & Co.(1 W Monroe St) Above Capital One Cafe!! Join our Discord! https://www.codeandcoffee.chat/ Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal networking and co-working session. People of all skill levels attend, and we love it that way. Many people (optionally) bring projects to work on, and many other people (optionally) socialize the entire time. It's completely up to you! Instructions for getting to the venue RSVP here and join us at Ferris & Co. 1 W Monroe St, Chicago, IL 60603, USA · Chicago, IL Code & Coffee - Intro Circle \~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ Near the beginning of the event(2:15 pm or possibly later), we do a standup: Organizer announcements, updates, and logistics Round 1 - (7 secs max): Your name What you're working on What you can help others with Round 2: Job opportunities you're hiring for OR announce that you are looking for one. If none, that's cool. Round 3: Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. After the introduction circle, everything is self-organized! \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Join LongJump, and Chicago:Blend for a gathering of angel investors and the "angel curious" — people exploring their first investment, looking for a community to learn and invest alongside, and interested in what it means to be a first-check believer in a founder. This event will be un-programmed and an opportunity to network within the investor community. Come as you are and look forward to connecting. ❗️A note for founders: While we often host events for both founders and investors, this one is just for investors and any founders who RSVP will be declined. We'll have more founder-focused events coming down the road and you can subscribe to LongJump's Luma calendar to be the first to hear about them. Thank you to our sponsors: This event is made possible by The Coleman Foundation. The Coleman Foundation invests in the efforts of community-based organizations and local institutions to preserve and strengthen the physical health and the economic and emotional well-being of people living in the greater Chicago region.

Come hang with Chicago's finest community of UX researchers, designers, and enthusiasts for our 2nd to last meet up of 2026! Whether you're gearing up to take your first steps into the UX industry or are well marinated with years of experience, you'll find a welcoming environment here 😌 Think of us as a floating a third space where people passionate about good experiences are reminded we are human beings— not human doings. It’s come as you are, no thinking cap required, no strings attached.

Chicago | Claude for Finance An evening for Chicago finance practitioners on what they are actually doing with AI, and what broke when they tried. Hosted at Ferris & Co in the Loop. No pitching. Real workflows, honest failure modes, and live demos of what works today. What to expect Diligence, research, and memo drafting in practice Risk, compliance, and model governance from people who own it Portfolio monitoring and LP reporting workflows The unglamorous FP&A and treasury work where this pays for itself What people quietly abandoned, and why Who it's for Practitioners across venture capital, private equity, private credit, public markets, corporate finance, fintech, and risk. We define finance loosely. If you work on this with finance teams rather than inside one, you belong here. What matters is that you have built or shipped something, not your title. Agenda 6:00 Doors, food, networking 6:30 Welcome 6:40 Two 8-minute practitioner demos 7:05 Panel 7:50 Audience Q&A 8:15 Networking 9:00 Close Details Wednesday, September 23, 6:00 to 9:00 PM. Ferris & Co, 1 W Monroe St. Free, food and drinks provided. No confidential or client data on screen. Space is limited. Hosted by Sean Nguyen, volunteer Claude Community Ambassador for Finance. Thanks to Ferris & Co for the space.

Your next business bestie might be in the room. Let’s find her! Join Beyond Her Vision + Meet More Doers for a women founders & creatives happy hour - designed to make meeting your people feel a little more natural, intentional, and fun. Instead of the usual awkward networking and exchanging business cards... 🎲 We’re putting a twist on the traditional happy hour with a fun AI-powered founder matching game! You’ll get matched with women in the room based on shared interests, goals, and the kinds of connections you’re looking to make - whether that’s a future collaborator, accountability partner, business bestie, or simply someone you’d genuinely click with. Just show up and mingle! Your ticket includes: One drink An evening of good conversation Opportunity to make new connections Chance to meet someone who might become your support system Who's in the room? Women founders Entrepreneurs Creatives Community builders Doers who are building something of their own! Come solo or bring a friend. But, let's leave with a few new ones! ✨ About Beyond Her Vision Beyond Her Vision is a Chicago-based community for early-stage women founders, connecting 800+ women entrepreneurs through meaningful events, resources, and opportunities to build alongside one another. We create spaces where ambitious women can connect, collaborate, and grow IRL. About Meet More Doers Meet More Doers is a community of entrepreneurs, anyone who takes action, whose mission is to provide resources and connections to the Doers changing the world. We've hosted +2000 Doers in the first year through our expert sessions, online networking events, and monthly global in-person. Sponsored by Stripe Community

The Collaboratorium unites business students and scientists from leading Midwestern universities to form entrepreneurial teams and turn breakthrough ideas into real-world impact. Founded at the University of Chicago's Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, the event now convenes UChicago, Northwestern University, Purdue University, and the University of Wisconsin–Madison, showcasing cross-institutional strengths and supporting the regional innovation ecosystem. Join us to hear pitches from faculty, researchers, and technologists; explore cutting-edge technologies; and get involved with an entrepreneurial team from the very beginning. University Partners:

Important: Register on the Event Website is required for admission. RSVP on meetup is turned off. Description: Join Neo4j and Microsoft for an hands-on workshop where you’ll learn how to build AI agents powered by knowledge graphs. Limited to 50 qualified builders. In this session, we will build a functional GraphRAG pipeline within a live Azure environment. Moving beyond high-level theory, you will deploy Neo4j Aura and integrate it with Microsoft Foundry to implement a complete, end-to-end architecture for reasoning over connected data. What You Will Learn: We’ll use SEC EDGAR filings—specifically the quarterly holdings of asset managers with $100M+ in assets under management (AUM)—as our primary dataset. This data is ideal for demonstrating how to map complex ownership structures and many-to-many relationships. ✅ Build AI agents that leverage knowledge graphs ✅ Automate Ingestion: Use AI to parse and load data from Azure Blob Storage into Neo4j. ✅ Model Relationships: Use Cypher and the Neo4j Browser to map connections between thousands of portfolios and their institutional holdings. ✅ Orchestrate Agents: Layer a Microsoft Foundry AI agent over the graph to enable natural language reasoning across the connected financial data. Who should attend: Developers, Builders, Data engineers, Data scientists, and Tech leaders. Speakers: Ben Lackey, Solution Architect, Neo4j Kevin Gates, Principal Partner Solution Architect, Microsoft Mike Shelton, Principal Partner Solution Architect, Microsoft Lauren Hartman, Partner Solution Architect, Microsoft Agenda 1:30PM Check-In 2:00PM: AI Hands-On Workshop with Neo4j and Google Gemini 3:00PM: Break 3:30PM: Presentation: Moving Data 4:30PM: Presentation: Gemini Enterprise, Neo4j, and AI 5:00PM: Networking & Refreshments

Tech Pulse 2030 is more than just an event. It’s a movement dedicated to showcasing the brightest minds and fostering deep engagement among leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers. Together, we’ll explore the real-world impact of emerging technologies and chart a course for a future where responsible innovation drives progress for both businesses and society. ​What began in Chicago has now expanded across multiple U.S. cities and international hubs, delivering 50+ high-impact events, engaging over 50,000 professionals and academic partners, featuring 300+ world-class speakers, and advancing responsible AI conversations across 10+ industries. Tech Pulse 2030 is your platform to learn, connect, and lead—driving real progress for businesses, society, and the world we are building together. Reserve your spot today! We look forward to welcoming you to Tech Pulse 2030 and sharing this exciting journey with you. ## Become an AI 2030 Member: ​https://ai2030.org/apply-to-be-a-member/ Hosted by ​​AI 2030 www.ai2030.org AI 2030 is a global initiative committed to mainstreaming Responsible AI by 2030. Through cross-sector collaboration, capacity building, and inclusive programming, AI 2030 empowers leaders, organizations, and communities to harness AI for the benefit of humanity. Chicago AI Council www.chicagoaicouncil.org The Chicago AI Council is committed to a future where AI benefits everyone—from Chicago to the world. Its mission is driven by three core priorities: (1) making Chicago the global capital of responsible AI by convening international leaders through forums, awards, and innovation showcases; (2) fueling AI innovation by uniting research, entrepreneurship, and industry to build and scale trustworthy, real-world solutions; and (3) turning AI education into real job opportunities by preparing students and workers for emerging, high-growth roles across the AI economy. In partnership with: Discovery Partners Institute (DPI): https://dpi.illinois.edu/ The Discov

Tech Pulse 2030 is more than just an event. It’s a movement dedicated to showcasing the brightest minds and fostering deep engagement among leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers. Together, we’ll explore the real-world impact of emerging technologies and chart a course for a future where responsible innovation drives progress for both businesses and society. ​What began in Chicago has now expanded across multiple U.S. cities and international hubs, delivering 50+ high-impact events, engaging over 50,000 professionals and academic partners, featuring 300+ world-class speakers, and advancing responsible AI conversations across 10+ industries. Tech Pulse 2030 is your platform to learn, connect, and lead—driving real progress for businesses, society, and the world we are building together. Reserve your spot today! We look forward to welcoming you to Tech Pulse 2030 and sharing this exciting journey with you. ## Become an AI 2030 Member: ​https://ai2030.org/apply-to-be-a-member/ Hosted by ​​AI 2030 www.ai2030.org AI 2030 is a global initiative committed to mainstreaming Responsible AI by 2030. Through cross-sector collaboration, capacity building, and inclusive programming, AI 2030 empowers leaders, organizations, and communities to harness AI for the benefit of humanity. Chicago AI Council www.chicagoaicouncil.org The Chicago AI Council is committed to a future where AI benefits everyone—from Chicago to the world. Its mission is driven by three core priorities: (1) making Chicago the global capital of responsible AI by convening international leaders through forums, awards, and innovation showcases; (2) fueling AI innovation by uniting research, entrepreneurship, and industry to build and scale trustworthy, real-world solutions; and (3) turning AI education into real job opportunities by preparing students and workers for emerging, high-growth roles across the AI economy. In partnership with: Discovery Partners Institute (DPI): https://dpi.illinois.edu/ The Discov

Tech Pulse 2030 is more than just an event. It’s a movement dedicated to showcasing the brightest minds and fostering deep engagement among leaders, entrepreneurs, and changemakers. Together, we’ll explore the real-world impact of emerging technologies and chart a course for a future where responsible innovation drives progress for both businesses and society. ​What began in Chicago has now expanded across multiple U.S. cities and international hubs, delivering 50+ high-impact events, engaging over 50,000 professionals and academic partners, featuring 300+ world-class speakers, and advancing responsible AI conversations across 10+ industries. Tech Pulse 2030 is your platform to learn, connect, and lead—driving real progress for businesses, society, and the world we are building together. Reserve your spot today! We look forward to welcoming you to Tech Pulse 2030 and sharing this exciting journey with you. ## Become an AI 2030 Member: ​https://ai2030.org/apply-to-be-a-member/ Hosted by ​​AI 2030 www.ai2030.org AI 2030 is a global initiative committed to mainstreaming Responsible AI by 2030. Through cross-sector collaboration, capacity building, and inclusive programming, AI 2030 empowers leaders, organizations, and communities to harness AI for the benefit of humanity. Chicago AI Council www.chicagoaicouncil.org The Chicago AI Council is committed to a future where AI benefits everyone—from Chicago to the world. Its mission is driven by three core priorities: (1) making Chicago the global capital of responsible AI by convening international leaders through forums, awards, and innovation showcases; (2) fueling AI innovation by uniting research, entrepreneurship, and industry to build and scale trustworthy, real-world solutions; and (3) turning AI education into real job opportunities by preparing students and workers for emerging, high-growth roles across the AI economy. In partnership with: Discovery Partners Institute (DPI): https://dpi.illinois.edu/ The Discov