Summer arrives, and so does a fresh wave of opportunities for the St. Louis tech, startup, and marketing communities the week of June 1-7, 2026. Whether you’re kicking off a new project or building on existing momentum, this week’s events have something for you. Erik Lutenegger, our Founder, has assembled a lineup of events and opportunities covering networking, business growth, professional development, and community connection.
ESO, Accelerator, and Funding Opportunities
Due June 7 // Inno Under 25 2026 | St. Louis Business Journal
St. Louis’s next generation of startup talent is getting recognized. This annual list spotlights founders, innovators, student entrepreneurs, and community builders under 25 who are already making an impact across the region’s tech and entrepreneurial ecosystem. (Community Award)
Due June 8 // Velocity | TechSTL
Got a startup idea but not sure what comes next? This six-week founder program helps aspiring entrepreneurs move from concept to clarity through customer discovery, problem validation, MVP planning, market research, and pitch development. Designed for first-time founders, it provides a structured path from idea to actionable startup strategy. (Bootcamp)
Due June 10 // Techstars Accelerators
This global network of three-month accelerator programs provides early-stage startups with seed capital, world-class mentorship, curated workshops, and access to a vast ecosystem of investors and alums. Founders receive strategic resources, Demo Day exposure, and lifetime access to Techstars’ network. Applications are now open for: ABN AMRO + Future of Finance, AI Health Baltimore, Alabama EnergyTech, Anywhere, Boulder, Columbus Powered by The Ohio State University, Future of Food Powered by Ecolab, Healthcare Powered by Permanente Medicine Mid-Atlantic States, New York City, and Space. (Accelerator)
Due June 26 // Small Business Launchpad | St. Louis County Library
Built for formerly incarcerated individuals ready to build a new chapter, this eight-week entrepreneurship program provides hands-on training in business planning, marketing, sales, and funding. Participants develop real-world startup skills, receive expert guidance, and pitch their business ideas for a chance at startup funding. (Bootcamp)
Startup, Tech, and Marketing Events
June 1
How mindfulness can help your business perform better | Enterprise Nation
Enjoy a focused half-hour that unpacks how mindfulness supports better choices and clearer thinking in high-pressure business environments, featuring research-backed insights, practical approaches for day-to-day use, and tips to avoid burnout from an experienced practitioner and researcher. (Virtual)
AI in Procurement: What CPOs Need to Know | Gartner
Understand how procurement leaders can evaluate where AI delivers value, from machine learning and natural language processing to generative and agentic applications. The session explores readiness, data requirements and operating model shifts needed to scale AI with confidence and control. (Virtual)
How to Succeed at Jobs & Businesses That Don’t Exist Yet | NY Public Library, Thomas Yoseloff Business Center
Partake in a focused online session where a multifaceted presenter combines storytelling and practical tools: after a context-setting talk on technology-driven transformation, participants complete three workshop exercises to articulate their VOICE, sharpen ANTENNA for trends, and develop a supportive MESH of collaborators. (Virtual)
Vibecoding 101 for Startups: Build Your First App w/ Mark Montalban | Founder Institute
Connect with a supportive instructor who will walk you through building a first app in real time, teaching Replit usage, prompt techniques, and how this no-code, AI-assisted approach fits into startup workflows so you can validate ideas without hiring a developer. (Virtual)
The Wedge + SIUE Presents: Legal Support for Small Businesses
Applaud a hands-on session designed to connect entrepreneurs with attorneys who explain organizational choices, contract essentials, and regulatory responsibilities, providing clear next steps, risk-mitigation tips, and resources to help businesses operate smarter and more securely from day one. (In-Person | The Wedge)
June 2
June 2-3 // Microsoft Build 2026 | Microsoft
Embark on collaborative labs and networking opportunities that pair attendees with Microsoft engineering teams to explore performance optimization, distributed architectures, data pipelines, and security practices, featuring reproducible code examples and step-by-step guides to accelerate building scalable AI products. (Virtual)
Making Agentic AI Work for Insurance | Shift Technology
Transform your approach as experts demonstrate how to build a machine-readable insurance ontology, shift from task automation to agent-orchestrated workflows, and embed governance and integration controls to safely move agents from experimentation into core business processes while preserving human oversight for empathy and complex decisions. (Virtual)
Introducing Carta Law: AI-Native Legal & Compliance Operations for Private Capital | Carta
Gain perspective on where legal and compliance teams lose time and margin in private capital operations. Speakers examine routine contracts, KYC and AML processes, and LP transfer workflows while showing how connected systems can support faster deal flow and fundraising readiness. (Virtual)
Getting Started with ArcGIS Reality for ArcGIS Pro | Esri
Uncover how ArcGIS Reality for ArcGIS Pro converts drone, aerial, and satellite imagery into precise 2D and 3D products, with a clear walkthrough of workflows, key setup steps, educator-focused advice, and curated learning resources to accelerate adoption. (Virtual)
Agentic development patterns in 2026: Choose the right agentic journey to get work done | Google Cloud
Indulge in sessions that compare agentic patterns, highlight integration strategies, and demonstrate best practices for governance, task orchestration, and monitoring, enabling participants to choose the right agentic journey and deploy it effectively to accomplish specific work outcomes. (Virtual)
June 3
Morning Hatch | T-REX
Learn practical ways business leaders can reduce AI-related uncertainty and identify immediate opportunities to apply the technology. The session pairs a strategic perspective with real-world examples to turn complexity into clearer, actionable decisions across teams and workflows. (In-Person | T-REX)
The B2B content playbook for AEO | Webflow
Enjoy a practical AMA focused on crafting B2B content for AI-driven discovery, where Gaetano DiNardi explains why traditional ranking isn’t enough, which content behaviors drive visibility, and how to make the case internally to reallocate resources toward AEO-ready content. (Virtual)
The AI Skill Flip: Reinventing Work | ODSC AI
Join professionals and leaders for a focused webinar in which Sheamus McGovern outlines how AI is reorganizing workplace skills, shifting value from execution to direction. Expect practical frameworks, real-world examples, and actionable guidance to help attendees recalibrate skills and stay relevant in 2026. (Virtual)
Your Freelance Rate Is Lower Than You Think | Freelancers Union
Take a tactical walkthrough of recalculating what your work is truly worth, including concrete strategies for negotiating higher fees, identifying money-losing clients, and shifting from grinding hours to a profitable, scalable freelance approach, backed by real-world examples. (Virtual)
The AI Employee Blueprint | Network After Work
Discover practical tactics to build a fully trained AI teammate through a structured, three-step methodology. The session covers role design, training regimens, and validation protocols, with actionable takeaways and templates for professionals seeking to streamline AI-driven tasks. (Virtual)
Agentic AI in Action: 10-Minute Demo Spotlights from the Frontier Q2 | Data Science Connect
Savor a brisk lineup of ten-minute demonstrations that illuminate agentic AI’s frontier capabilities across practical use cases, complemented by analyst perspectives that highlight technical advances, measurable outcomes, and lessons learned for teams evaluating adoption and integration. (Virtual)
Bauer Leadership Session | Skandalaris Center
Admire the practical insights shared by leadership practitioners as they unpack approaches to guiding teams, making high-impact decisions, and sustaining momentum during organizational growth, with opportunities for questions, peer exchange, and social networking, followed by refreshments. (In-Person | McMillan Hall)
Creating Talking Head Videos For Social Media Using Screengrabs | CreativeMornings
Engage in a collaborative tutorial where a filmmaker demonstrates how to use screengrabs and smartphone A-roll to construct an educational or story-driven short, teaching background removal and mobile editing techniques in Premiere for Mobile, with the recorded workshop available afterward for 30 days. (Virtual)
Intellectual Property – Patent, Trademark & Copyright Law | SCORE
Attend an educational session on patent, trademark, and copyright law that outlines how these rights build business value, explains registration status and capacity constraints, guides participants through contact and notification preferences, and clarifies payment, discount codes, and billing details. (Virtual)
From Startup to S-1: The Evolution of Forecasting at Hinge Health | STL Big Data – Innovation, Data Engineering, Analytics Group
Discover a practitioner-led walkthrough of how forecasting matured from spreadsheets to production-grade R workflows, covering targets and fable, statistical modeling, accuracy and variance analytics, stakeholder alignment, data-model integration, and practical steps to deploy forecasts, preceded by pizza and networking. (In-Person | CIC St. Louis – CET)
Build & Protect: Small Business Protection & Opportunity Overview | Porscha Anderson
Immerse yourself in a practical workshop that demystifies legal protections such as contracts and trademarks, clarifies tax support options, and highlights income-enhancing opportunities; expect real-world examples, resource handouts, and interactive discussion to translate learning into concrete next steps. (In-Person | Cortex @ 20 S Sarah)
June 4
June 2026 Coffee Club | AMA Saint Louis
Revel in morning conversations over handcrafted coffee, pastries, and chocolate at this casual AMA meetup, where St. Louis marketers gather to network, share perspectives, swap real-world ideas, and collect a Coffee Club passport stamp while staying energized for the summer ahead. (In-Person | Chocolate Cafe at The Factory)
Coffee Connections – AI Tools and Best Practices | SMPS St. Louis
Take in a short, community-driven session focused on practical AI adoption for A/E/C marketing, where members share lessons, tool recommendations, and safeguards to maintain brand voice and quality while streamlining workflows; includes an opportunity to earn a CPSM continuing education credit. (In-Person | June’s Breakfast + Patio)
PitchSTL
Applaud the fast-paced structure: six minutes to present your startup idea followed by twenty minutes of audience Q&A and constructive critique, with one or two presenters per session. Meetings foster meaningful connections, offer mentorship pathways, and encourage presenters to apply or donate. (In-Person | NEEC powered by SLDC)
Selecting the Right Automation Partner | Automate
Take in practical insight on matching automation projects with the right external expertise. Speakers will examine how partner readiness, technical knowledge, and implementation support influence the design and implementation of complex systems involving robotics, vision technologies, conveyors, storage solutions, and other industrial automation tools. (Virtual)
VC 101: Venture Capital Fundamentals | Alumni Ventures
Participate in an instructional session that demystifies venture capital fundamentals, detailing how returns are created, why VC can offer uncorrelated upside, how AV constructs multi-stage portfolios, and what accredited investors should consider before adding venture exposure to their allocations. (Virtual)
Build the Brain, Then the Agents: How B2B Marketing Leaders Turn AI Into Real Pipeline | MarketingProfs
Explore a hands-on, cut-through-the-hype session showing how to connect tools and knowledge into a unified marketing brain, launch production-ready agents, and create a leadership-ready 90-day roadmap focused on pipeline impact, ROI, and distinguishing real transformation from AI theater. (Virtual)
2026 John Dwyer Lecture in Biology: Citrus: A World History with Dr. David Mabberley | Missouri Botanical Garden
Enjoy an illuminating talk by noted botanist and author Dr. David Mabberley about citrus’ global influence on flavor, fragrance, and health, complemented by a book signing of Citrus: A World History and framed within the John Dwyer lecture tradition. (In-Person | Lelia J. and David N. Farr Auditorium)
Founders Lounge Global
Unveil practical AI knowledge through conversational sessions that combine foundational theory with real-world engineering lessons, enabling founders and operators to dissect model behavior, design better systems, and collaboratively develop workflows that translate AI understanding into tangible product and business improvements. (In-Person | Spark Coworking)
Business and Brews Networking | Circle of Marketing
Partake in an informal evening of networking with craft brews as a backdrop, where peers circulate freely to trade ideas, referrals, and collaborations. Expect approachable conversation, a laid-back atmosphere, and a mix of entrepreneurs, freelancers, and community leaders ready to connect. (In-Person | 4 Hands at The District)
Summer Social: Futures Fund Awardee Celebration & Announcement | The Luminary
Bask in a festive summer social honoring new creative projects, featuring dancing, handcrafted cocktails, and delectable bites. Capture moments at a dedicated selfie backdrop, meet fellow supporters and artists, and listen for an official award announcement and remarks scheduled for 6:30 PM during the three-hour event. (In-Person | The Luminary)
Introduction to cooperatives | Cooperation STL
Join a community-centered workshop focused on demystifying cooperative structures, exploring how co-ops distribute power and build equity, and outlining actionable next steps; attendees will hear real-world examples, receive resource recommendations, and learn how to register and contribute a suggested donation. (In-Person)
June 5
Summer AI Learnathon | The Wedge Innovation Center
Revel in an accessible AI training experience that pairs the Google AI Professional Certificate with weekly in-person support, collaborative Friday work-and-start sessions, and optional discounted Wedge coworking benefits, designed to expand skills for employees, small businesses, and community members. (In-Person | The Wedge)
New Skills for Work Topic: Solve Harder Problems | Filament
Embrace a practical training session focused on elevating analytical and strategic thinking, where attendees will learn structured approaches, work through challenging examples, collaborate on solutions, and practice applying techniques that make tackling harder problems more systematic and effective. (In-Person | Filament)
Bourbon Friday | Sponsored by Tenacity
Network with local innovators over guided bourbon tastings and informal discussions that spotlight personal experiences, lessons learned, and collaborative opportunities, held during a three-hour social window, with practical arrival details, age-restricted drinking, and a focus on creating a welcoming atmosphere. (In-Person | TechArtista UCity)
June 6
June 6-7 // Lafayette Square Art Fair | Arts Council of Lafayette Square
Take in a lively arts fair hosted by the Arts Council of Lafayette Square, featuring diverse artist displays, chances to shop for original pieces, arts-focused vendor offerings, and a convivial environment that highlights local creativity and community engagement. (In-Person | Lafayette Square)
Business Women’s Brunch | African Chamber of Commerce, St. Louis
Cherish a cozy, two-hour gathering centered on nourishing food and purposeful conversation as local professionals discuss business objectives, exchange resources, and cultivate supportive relationships facilitated by the African Chamber of Commerce network. (In-Person | House of Jollof)
Minority-Owned Small Business Day 2026 | Mound City Bar Association
Enhance your business knowledge with back-to-back workshops covering formation, credit, funding, taxes, branding and AI-informed marketing, supported by Black Wall Street resource tabling at doors open. Sessions throughout the day emphasize practical steps, expert advice, and resources to advance minority-owned small businesses. (In-Person | Delmar Divine)
How to Apply to SLICE | St. Louis Independent Comics Expo
Appreciate a clear walkthrough of how to craft a successful exhibitor application for SLICE, with organizers explaining best practices, selection criteria, and common pitfalls, followed by an interactive Q&A with application judges; a livestream option lets remote attendees watch and ask questions. (In-Person | Regional Arts Commission)
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What’s on your summer agenda this week? We’d love to hear from you in the comments! Your input helps shape the St. Louis Startup, Tech, and Marketing Ecosystem. Got an upcoming event or deadline to share? Email us at [email protected].
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