“**Bridging Innovation & Opportunity™** brings together entrepreneurs, technology leaders, investors, corporate executives, policymakers, educators, and community stakeholders for an engaging TechChicago Week executive fireside chat and networking reception. Together, we’ll explore how artificial intelligence, quantum computing, entrepreneurship, and inclusive economic development can expand opportunities for Black-owned businesses, strengthen workforce pipelines, increase access to capital, and ensure underserved communities play a leading role in Chicago’s innovation economy.
The evening will feature thought-provoking discussion, meaningful networking, and collaborative conversations focused on building partnerships that drive technology, innovation, and sustainable economic growth across Illinois. Attendees will also learn about the vision for the Garfield Park Tech & Design Center and opportunities to help shape the future of inclusive innovation on Chicago’s West Side.
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“As part of Tech Chicago Week 2026, Gopher Security, The AI Collective-Chicago, Starplot, and Research Net AI are bringing together the people building, securing, and thinking seriously about the future of AI and agentic systems.
Agentic AI and Model Context Protocol (MCP) are reshaping how software operates — and with that shift comes an entirely new risk profile that most security frameworks were never designed to handle. This event is where the technical community, security leaders, and founders come together to talk about what that actually means and where it’s heading.”
“We are thrilled to invite you to celebrate the launch of the new Per Scholas Chicago satellite campus in partnership with Xchange Chicago!
We will officially announce this exciting collaboration to expand access to high-growth tech careers directly on Chicago’s South Side. Attendees will hear from organizational leaders about the importance of developing local talent pipelines for Chicago’s growing technology sector and learn how this collaboration is creating pathways to high-growth careers.
The program will include remarks from Per Scholas, Xchange Chicago, SDI Presence, and community partners, followed by an interactive classroom tour where guests can meet learners and experience the training environment firsthand.
The event highlights how cross-sector partnerships can address workforce challenges while creating economic mobility opportunities for Chicago residents.”
We’re bringing together Chicago founders and marketing leaders for a private preview of RichieBot: Memory and Machine, an experimental documentary and immersive art project exploring one question at the center of AI today:
As AI scales what we can create, how do we preserve what makes us human?
This project began with training AI on tens of thousands of pages of writing, business philosophy, sales training, voice recordings, and video from J. Richard Dema, a marketer, entrepreneur, and the late father of Department of Growth founder, Brian Dema.
Through film, psychology, and art, the RichieBot team is exploring how a person’s ideas and creative legacy can be explored in a new way.
As we go, we are scientifically testing our work to see how close the bot has come to the man (in terms of psychological profile, personality and memory), and capturing peoples’ reactions to it to understand how remembering someone in this way makes us feel. What happens when AI moves beyond efficiency and begins shaping memory, creativity, storytelling, and human connection?
This will be part gallery opening, part film shoot, and part conversation, designed to feel a little unexpected and very much of this moment.
The event will include:
– An interactive hologram of RichieBot that you can experience for yourself
– Participation in the ongoing documentary project as we film reactions to RichieBot
– An immersive art experience with local artists creating work built from the archives
- Conversation with the RichieBot team, as well as other Chicago tech and marketing leaders
- Drinks served by a real human
Grassroots Tech Week Pitch Competition is a community-led startup pitch event designed to spotlight early-stage founders during Chicago Tech Week. The event will bring together founders, operators, investors, and ecosystem partners for a structured pitch format focused on visibility, feedback, and meaningful connections.
Join us for a half-day built for the C-suite. Benchmark where your business stands and what to do next. See how others in the room rate themselves and where they are stuck, compare notes with your peers, and choose two working breakouts. Get immediate feedback from our lead strategist and technologist.
CuSP is excited to get ready for our BIG Annual Chicago Tech Week Event! We’re bringing together a series of fast-paced lightning talks designed to spark ideas, challenge perspectives, and share practical insights. Each speaker will present a topic they’re passionate about, followed by a brief audience Q&A, for a total of approximately 10 minutes per session.
Topics will focus on technology and tech-enabled innovation across Customer Success, AI, and Revenue, ranging from strategic and operational approaches to tactical best practices and future trends. Our goal is for attendees to leave with actionable takeaways, fresh ideas, and new perspectives they can apply immediately.
About our Sponsor:
We are so thankful for Sirra company to be our sponsor this evening!
At Sirra Company, we partner with organizations at every stage, helping founders build from the ground up, guiding Series A-C companies through the complexities of scaling, and positioning mature enterprises for structural efficiency and renewed growth. Most consultancies solve only one side of the equation. We pair product design leadership with go-to-market and customer experience expertise, designed together, not handed across a wall.
Website Link: https://sirraco.com/
Our Space Sponsor:
*About Workbox – River North
Workbox’s mission is to foster meaningful connections within a dynamic community!
Whether you’re a growing startup or an established company, Workbox offers flexible coworking solutions designed to support collaboration, growth, and real business impact.
Workbox is more than just an office—it’s a community designed to help your team thrive.
If you’re looking for a space that helps your team stay focused and feel connected, Workbox is the place to be.
The Future of Commerce aims to highlight the intersection of technology, entrepreneurship, and community impact. From AI-powered workshops to a Maker Faire showcasing Chicago’s finest builders, this event is designed to inspire collaboration and spark new ventures! This year’s main event: Hack-A-Thon
A keynote, a presentation, and a panel on what AI can do for work and the future that isn’t being built. From the Just AI Foundation
AI isn’t ending work. It’s taking it apart. The question no one in the conversation is asking is what gets built with the pieces and who decides. Join the Just AI Foundation for an evening that turns the AI conversation on its head: if the best future we can picture is today only faster, cleaner, with less people, then what are we really building?
