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 16
SF
Agent Builders Breakfast - Founders & Builders in SOMA, SF
Agent Builders Breakfast - Founders & Builders in SOMA, SF for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
AI GTM Roundtable
AI GTM Roundtable for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Aperitivo @ Marriott Marquis: Winning in AI Search, Amazon Edition
Aperitivo @ Marriott Marquis: Winning in AI Search, Amazon Edition for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Dovetail Sun’s Out: NYC launch party
Dovetail Sun’s Out: NYC launch party for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Health2Tech NYC, July 16 2026
Health2Tech NYC, July 16 2026 for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Inertia's (first) Launch Party
Inertia's (first) Launch Party for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Tech and AI Founder Night!- West Village
Tech and AI Founder Night!- West Village for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
AI TECH & Startup Night — Manhattan, New York
AI TECH & Startup Night — Manhattan, New York for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Applied AI in Practice: Real-World Enterprise Use Cases Across Industries
Applied AI in Practice: Real-World Enterprise Use Cases Across Industries for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Build Your AI Content Engine
Build Your AI Content Engine for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
VC Networking: Pitch Day — Manhattan, New York
VC Networking: Pitch Day — Manhattan, New York for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Workshop: Mastering AI Observability
Workshop: Mastering AI Observability for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Agentic Commerce Demo Day
Agentic Commerce Demo Day for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Fonzi's Poker & Game Night
Fonzi's Poker & Game Night for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
NYC
Flatiron AI Reading Group (FLAIR)
Flatiron AI Reading Group (FLAIR) for the NYC builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
ElevenLabs x Sauna Hack Night
ElevenLabs x Sauna Hack Night for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Build From the Dock: How Open Source Built the AI Revolution
Build From the Dock: How Open Source Built the AI Revolution for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Build From the Dock: How Open Source Built the AI Revolution
Build From the Dock: How Open Source Built the AI Revolution for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
CoCo Labs + Summit Encore Bay Area Meetup | July 16 @ 5PM PDT
CoCo Labs + Summit Encore Bay Area Meetup | July 16 @ 5PM PDT for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Find the Revenue Moments in Your AI Product🍗🍺Seamate Crazy Thursday
Find the Revenue Moments in Your AI Product🍗🍺Seamate Crazy Thursday for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Mahjong Party for AI Builders
Mahjong Party for AI Builders for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Qualcomm Arduino Uno Q Hack Night
Qualcomm Arduino Uno Q Hack Night for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Bits in Bio Discussion: Genomics, Dx, and Data
Bits in Bio Discussion: Genomics, Dx, and Data for the SF builder network with curated in-person attendance.
JUL 16
SF
Dovetail Sun’s Out: SF launch party
Dovetail Sun’s Out: SF launch party 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.