Curated AI events in NYC and SF.
For Students, Developers, and Funded Founders
I run two calibrated tracks: Students / Developers and Funded Founders. We host high-quality hackathons, founder dinners, and premium PMF conversations in NYC and SF.
Design Principles
Built like a real team: curation, context, and execution discipline.
Room Quality First
Attendee quality beats vanity metrics. The right room creates compounding outcomes.
Context by Track
Students/developers and funded founders get separate, purpose-built experiences.
Operator-Led Formats
Events are run with production-level planning, not community chaos.
Real Follow-Through
Dinners, intros, and post-event workflows are built to move relationships forward.
Ecosystem
Trusted by leading organizations
Mission
From discovery to PMF: events that match founder stage and technical depth.
We blend flagship hackathons with intimate founder rooms. Early builders get momentum, while funded teams get high-context peer networks and PMF-level strategy conversations.
See founder dinner formatsAbout James Steinberg
AI researcher, serial entrepreneur, and host of high-signal builder rooms.
Background, operator context, and founder outcomes are documented below. These references explain why these events are run with a tighter standard than generic meetups.
Two Tracks
One network, two intentionally different experiences.
Students / Developers
Execution-heavy programs for technical builders shipping projects and meeting mentors.
- Hackathons with clear build milestones
- Hands-on workshops and technical talks
- Demo-focused events with real feedback loops
Funded Founders
Private founder rooms optimized for tactical growth and high-trust relationship building.
- Curated dinners across NYC and SF
- Operator and investor-adjacent conversation
- Selective PMF conversations and peer exchange
Event Formats
Programmed with card-level precision and strong attendance intent.
JUL 31
NYC
Civic Hall Summer Camp Celebration Day!
Civic Hall Summer Camp Celebration Day! for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
NYC
Robot Brunch Hackathon with UFactory & Viam
Robot Brunch Hackathon with UFactory & Viam for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
a1mobile Voice AI 1 day Hackathon - $4000 in Prizes
a1mobile Voice AI 1 day Hackathon - $4000 in Prizes for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
KYA brunch hosted by Persona
KYA brunch hosted by Persona for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
AI Safety Career Pivot Office Hours
AI Safety Career Pivot Office Hours for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Hilbert (a16z) Co-Work 2.0
Hilbert (a16z) Co-Work 2.0 for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Moms Who AI: Build Club (July)
Moms Who AI: Build Club (July) for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
StarOS Presents BuildDeployWin: Hands-On AI Coding Workshop
StarOS Presents BuildDeployWin: Hands-On AI Coding Workshop for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
NYC
AI Unlocked: AI Literacy Workshop
AI Unlocked: AI Literacy Workshop for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Unified Control Plane for the Agentic Enterprise
Unified Control Plane for the Agentic Enterprise for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
🏕️🚀 AINative Startup Camp — Build an AI-Native Startup in a Weekend
🏕️🚀 AINative Startup Camp — Build an AI-Native Startup in a Weekend for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Architect Labs - Chips & Dip
Architect Labs - Chips & Dip for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Black Forest Labs x Nous Research
Black Forest Labs x Nous Research for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
INTENT Research Series: Frontiers of Adaptive Intelligence - Continual Learning, RSI, Self-Improving Harnesses, and more
INTENT Research Series: Frontiers of Adaptive Intelligence - Continual Learning, RSI, Self-Improving Harnesses, and more for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
San Francisco | Claude Conversation
San Francisco | Claude Conversation for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
The Private Table: Robotics Founders Dinner @ SBC
The Private Table: Robotics Founders Dinner @ SBC for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Vibe Night Demos (#22)
Vibe Night Demos (#22) for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Beyond Founder-Led Sales: A Closed-Door GTM Session
Beyond Founder-Led Sales: A Closed-Door GTM Session for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 31
SF
Builder & Researcher Dinner @ Panhandle
Builder & Researcher Dinner @ Panhandle for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
AUG 01
NYC
Build with Gemma NYC: On-Device AI for Healthcare
Build with Gemma NYC: On-Device AI for Healthcare for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
AUG 01
SF
CIMC Hackathon: Distributed Mind Sandbox Coopetition
CIMC Hackathon: Distributed Mind Sandbox Coopetition for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
AUG 01
SF
VCN #46: Bake-Off
VCN #46: Bake-Off for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
AUG 01
SF
Get-together, the email game (we have $1.7k in prizes!)
Get-together, the email game (we have $1.7k in prizes!) for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
AUG 01
SF
She Nicest Hackathon Pop-up|The Bay Area
She Nicest Hackathon Pop-up|The Bay Area for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
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Real rooms. Real builders. Real follow-through.
Founder Dinner Series
Funded Founder Rooms
We host intimate dinners across NYC and SF with founders from ecosystems like Y Combinator, Speedrun, and Techstars.
PMF Track
Product-Market-Fit Dinner
More selective than standard founder dinners, this room is generally reserved for teams that have raised $4M+ and are beginning to show PMF.
Contact
Want your next event room to feel this sharp?
If you are building in AI and care about room quality, we should talk.