Venture Night@TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 – The Ultimate Startup & Investor Experience!

Hey San Francisco, get ready for a startup pitch competition, investor feedback sessions, and curated networking - happening alongside TechCrunch 2026! Join us for a high-energy evening where founders take the stage, investors share insights, and global tech leaders connect at Venture Night San Francisco. Venture Night is part of TechEmbassy’s global event series, connecting ambitious founders, investors, and technology leaders around the world’s major tech conferences. Expect promising startups, fast-paced pitches, direct investor feedback, and meaningful connections with people building and backing what’s next. Our Co-hosts & Community Partners Nazar Gulyk - tech entrepreneur and Forbes Business Council member based in San Francisco. A Stanford GSB graduate and Techstars Community Leader, he empowers early-stage founders to bring their innovative ideas to life. Our co-hosts, Techstars Startup Weekend SF AI & Catalyst Bay, bring together the Bay Area’s AI startup community. Techstars Startup Weekend SF AI is a 7,500-person community that brings together founders, builders, researchers, and investors through startup pitches, hackathons, and events exploring how AI is transforming health, fintech, and consumer products. Catalyst Bay started with Techstars Startup Weekend SF hackathons. Now it's a 10,000+  person SF community running pitch nights, fireside chats, and meetups for people building and betting on AI products: founders, investors, engineers, designers, PMs, marketers, and devrels. What to expect 🚀 Startup Pitch Competition with Prizes 10 selected startups from around the world will pitch live on stage to a panel of active investors and industry leaders. Each founder gets 3 minutes to pitch, followed by rapid Q&A and direct jury feedback. Expect quick pitches, real investor perspectives, and a high-energy format that keeps startups in the spotlight. 💡 Founder Feedback Session Next up is a founder feedback session with investors and experienced startup leaders. Expect practical perspectives on pitching, positioning, fundraising, market fit, and what helps a startup stand out when speaking with investors. 🏆 Award Ceremony Three winners will be recognized at Venture Night @ TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: 🏆 Pitch Competition Winner - selected from all startups participating in the pitch competition. 🇺🇦 Best Ukrainian Startup - recognizing a standout Ukrainian-founded company. 👥 Audience Favorite - chosen by the event audience. 🏆 Main Prizes: $25,000 in AWS credits from Clowdey and USFNote: The full amount is guaranteed for winners who haven't previously redeemed $25k+ in AWS credits. Others may receive an adjusted amount.1-year Reply.io Multichannel Plan, valued at $1,000Fast-track interview opportunity with our local partner Alchemist Accelerator for the top pre-seed startup. 🤝 Networking Wrap up the evening with real conversations and real connections as founders, investors, tech leaders, and ecosystem builders come together in a setting designed for meaningful exchange, not just small talk. ⚖️Judges:Volodymyr Demianenko -Founder, UAtech, Co-Founder, SOLU & TENOSvitlanka Sergiichuk -Co-Founder, NeofinIgor Goldenberg -CEO, Podium TeamsStan Puchyn - CEO, MarTech DoAnu Bharadwaj - Partner & Go-to-Market Advisor, ICONIQAnuj Kapoor - Senior Software Engineer, Microsoft, IEEE Senior MemberManpreet Kaur - Principal Software Engineer, Salesforce 🤝 Sponsors & Partners​Special thanks to our sponsors and partners supporting Venture Night: Clowdey - our official Pitch Competition Prize Partner, providing $25,000 in AWS Credits. Jason AI by Reply.io - an AI SDR that automates outbound sales, finding leads, personalizing outreach, and booking meetings on autopilot, so teams can grow pipeline without growing headcount. Stelmakh & Associates helps tech founders and their teams secure U.S. visas and green cards. Since 2008, we have turned U.S. ambitions into reality for hundreds of entrepreneurs and tec…