The week of August 31 – September 6, 2026 marks the transition from summer to fall, and the St. Louis entrepreneurial community is ready to make the most of it. Entrepreneurs, tech professionals, and marketers can find events that set the tone for a productive season ahead. Erik Lutenegger, our Founder, has curated this week’s best events and opportunities covering networking, business development, professional growth, and community connection.
ESO, Accelerator, and Funding Opportunities
Apply Now // TechStars Accelerator
This global network of three-month accelerator programs supports early-stage startups with seed capital, world-class mentorship, curated workshops, and access to a vast investor and alumni ecosystem. Founders receive strategic resources, Demo Day exposure, and lifetime access to Techstars’ network. Applications are now open for: Northwestern Medicine & Techstars Healthcare, AI Health Baltimore, Boston, Anywhere, Chicago, London, New York City and USC. (Accelerator).
Apply Now // Square One (SQ1) Bootcamp | Cortex’s Square One
Ready to move beyond the idea stage? This intensive 10-week accelerator helps entrepreneurs transform early traction into a fundable business through expert-led instruction, hands-on coaching, and practical deliverables like financials, a business model, and a polished pitch deck. (Bootcamp)
Due August 31 // Empower Growth Micro-Grant | Black & Brown Founders
Underrepresented entrepreneurs with demonstrated revenue over the past 12 months can apply for one of four micro-grants designed to help scale, stabilize, or systematize an existing business. Funds can support marketing, technology and automation, website or e-commerce improvements, consultants, hiring support, or expanded production and service delivery. Applicants must provide proof of revenue, explain how the funding will support growth, and complete the assessment, with finalists also submitting a one-minute video pitch. (Grant)
Due September 8 // Founder Framework Fall 2026 Cohort | T-REX
Early-stage founders can build a stronger foundation for growth through this free, competitive 11-week program led by venture capitalist Vikram Lakhwara. In-person sessions at T-REX cover customer discovery, value propositions, business models, market sizing, go-to-market strategy, financial storytelling, and investor readiness, helping participants validate their ideas, refine product-market fit, and develop practical materials for future grants, pitch competitions, and fundraising. (Bootcamp)
Due September 10 // Startup World Cup | TechSTL
St. Louis startups have a shot at the global stage and a $1 million investment prize. Ten tech-based or tech-enabled companies will pitch at the regional finals, with one champion advancing to Silicon Valley to compete against founders representing more than 100 cities worldwide. (Pitch Competition)
Startup, Tech, and Marketing Events
August 31
Why Process Excellence Isn’t Enough: Rethinking Supply Chain Design for Growth | Gartner
Uncover the limitations of process-first supply chain models and the shift toward designing operations around value. The discussion shows how working backward from desired outcomes can create composable workflows, improve responsiveness, resolve competing priorities, and position supply chains to contribute more directly to growth. (Virtual)
AI Codecon: Building with Open Source AI | O’Reilly Media
Hear leading developers and technical experts discuss how AI is reshaping software workflows, development tools, and approaches to building applications. The free virtual conference features curated sessions focused on practical perspectives for developers working with open source AI. (Virtual)
Becoming a Thought Leader Without Being Famous or Having a Huge Following | NY Public Library, Thomas Yoseloff Business Center
Refine your core message and learn how to adapt your expertise across social media, websites, newsletters, and other channels without losing an authentic voice. Practical exercises and storytelling techniques help build a repeatable content framework that strengthens credibility and audience engagement. (Virtual)
Use YouTube to Grow Your Business | U.S. Small Business Administration
Learn how to use YouTube to promote products and services through practical guidance on channel setup, video formats, creative techniques, audience targeting, and performance measurement. The session is designed for both existing channel owners and business owners considering their first videos. (Virtual)
Business Pitch Lab: Pitching With Confidence | St. Louis County Library
Practice concise business pitches in a supportive setting while refining storytelling, delivery, tone, and audience engagement. Guided exercises and constructive feedback help entrepreneurs build confidence and create clearer, more memorable messaging for networking, presentations, and everyday business conversations. (In-Person | Clark Family Branch)
September 1
September 1-4 // Small Business Growth Lab | NPower Community Help Desk
Build practical business skills through a four-part workshop series covering online presence, AI tools for everyday productivity, basic budgeting, and growth planning. Hands-on activities guide participants toward a personalized action plan for launching or expanding a small business or side hustle. (Virtual)
How AI helped one small business create more capacity for growth | Enterprise Nation
See how one small business used AI to free up time for customers, strategy, and growth in this concise case-study session. Dave Gibson shares what changed, what worked, where to begin, and how to keep human judgment central while introducing AI into daily operations. (Virtual)
The State of AI Fluency in Higher Education: 2026 Results | Datacamp
Explore the widening gap between rapid workplace demand for AI skills and the pace of academic response. The discussion reveals how students are learning independently, why educators increasingly worry about critical thinking, and how formal AI education can strengthen preparation for emerging career expectations. (Virtual)
LUNCH PARTY by Cortex
Gather outdoors for a lunchtime celebration featuring rotating food trucks, live music, casual communal seating, and a puppy playdate. The relaxed event offers coworkers, neighbors, and families a chance to sample local food, connect with the community, and enjoy the final stretch of summer. (In-Person | Cortex Commons)
Stop Guessing, Start Raising: An Investor Q&A | Founder Institute
Connect directly with VCs and investors from the FI Venture Network during an open Q&A focused on early-stage fundraising. Learn what investors look for, how to prepare before outreach, common mistakes that weaken momentum, and how different funding routes fit pre-seed and seed-stage startups. (Virtual)
The Client Acquisition Round Table Event | Gather & Grow Business Networking
Compare client-acquisition strategies with other small business owners in an interactive round table focused on referrals, networking, partnerships, and marketing channels. Participants share what is producing results, examine tactics that fell short, and leave with practical ideas to test immediately. (In-Person | Weldon Spring)
Cloud Agents and Automations: Building a Self-Driving Codebase | SpaceXAI
Explore how long-running cloud agents can launch from desktop, web, Slack, GitHub, Linear, or APIs and work in parallel across repositories. Demonstrations cover builds, testing, merge-ready pull requests, remote artifact review, automated security checks, incident triage, permissions, secrets, and guardrails. (Virtual)
Hiring Employees, Contractors or Family: Avoid Costly Tax and Payroll Mistakes | SCORE
Learn how to distinguish employees, independent contractors, and family hires so your business can make better-informed payroll and tax decisions. The session focuses on worker classification issues that can create costly mistakes when small businesses bring new people into the operation. (Virtual)
Modernizing the Marketing Curriculum for an AI-First Workforce | American Marketing Association
Modernize marketing education with practical guidance on where AI fits into existing courses, which competencies students need, and how to teach responsible AI use without rebuilding the curriculum from scratch. Examples and a clear framework help faculty prepare graduates for AI-first workplaces. (Virtual)
OWASP Saint Louis | Web Application Firewall
Dig into Web Application Firewalls during a hybrid OWASP chapter meeting that covers benefits, limitations, common pitfalls, and relevant vendor-neutral OWASP projects. Chapter updates, audience questions, and shared real-world experiences give security and software professionals space to compare approaches and lessons learned. (In-Person | RubinBrown)
September 2
September 2-4 // AI for Business 3-Day Workshop | AI for Business
Work through three live days of practical AI systems covering prompting, lead generation, content creation, sales bots, virtual assistants, and marketing workflows. Demonstrations and step-by-step processes are designed to help entrepreneurs apply AI quickly across sales, social media, and day-to-day business operations. (Virtual)
SecureWorld St. Louis
Spend a full day with cybersecurity practitioners and executives through keynotes, expert panels, educational sessions, vendor exhibits, and regional networking. Programming addresses governance, risk, threat response, and security operations, with opportunities to earn continuing education credits and access conference resources through the event app. (In-Person | The Ritz-Carlton)
Leaders Learning & Connecting | Kirkwood – Des Peres Area Chamber of Commerce
Start the morning with intentional networking and a panel discussion on cultivating an abundance mindset in business, relationships, and leadership. Denise Huber, Hardy Washington, and Jeff Balleau share practical perspectives while audience participation and conversation create opportunities to connect with other local professionals. (In-Person | Kirkwood Performing Arts Center (KPAC))
PitchSTL
Watch local founders deliver focused six-minute startup pitches followed by extended audience Q&A and constructive feedback. The recurring forum also creates space to meet entrepreneurs, sponsors, and supporters while giving presenters a practical environment to sharpen their story and respond to real questions. (In-Person | NEEC)
Morning Hatch – Beyond Chat: Building an AI Operating System for Your Business with A.J. Gherigich | T-REX
Explore how businesses can move beyond isolated AI chats toward a more integrated AI operating system, with A.J. Gherigich leading the discussion. The session centers on applying AI more systematically across business workflows rather than treating individual chat interactions as standalone tools. (In-Person | T-REX)
Leadership Lunch & Learn – Developing Leadership Within | JWI Partners Group & SLDC
This introductory workshop provides a practical overview of Lean Six Sigma principles and tools used by organizations worldwide to improve processes, reduce waste, and increase quality. Bring Your Own Lunch (In-Person | NEEC at the William J. Harrison Education Center)
Unlocking the Future of Video Editing with AI: Introducing Gemini Omni Flash | Google Cloud
See conversational AI applied to video post-production through demonstrations of automated edits, scene-aware adjustments, color and audio fixes, and collaborative review workflows. The session shows how natural-language controls can simplify repetitive editing tasks and fit into existing production pipelines. (Virtual)
The Query Nobody Wants to Touch | STL Big Data – Innovation, Data Engineering, Analytics Group
Break down massive legacy SQL by learning how to read execution graphs, identify meaningful model boundaries, and avoid ineffective fixes such as naive CTE splits. BigQuery and dbt examples demonstrate a systematic approach to refactoring unwieldy queries, with runnable SQL shared during the talk. (In-Person | CIC St. Louis – CET)
September 3
September 2026 Coffee Club | AMA Saint Louis
Reconnect with local marketers over specialty coffee and pastries in a relaxed neighborhood setting designed for conversation and idea sharing. The informal gathering gives attendees time to trade perspectives, meet peers across the marketing community, and build professional relationships before starting the workday. (In-Person | Maypop Coffee & Garden Shop)
Coffee Connections – September 2026 (IL) | SMPS St. Louis
Trade practical marketing and business development ideas with A/E/C professionals during an informal breakfast conversation focused on what to stop, start, or continue. Bring a challenge or success story, compare experiences with peers, expand your network, and earn one CPSM CEU. (In-Person | June’s Breakfast + Patio)
SheCan Global Circle Morning Moves | #SheCan Connect Global Network
Begin the day in a virtual circle combining faith-centered reflection, practical leadership insights, prayer, intentional conversation, and accountability. The session is designed to help women clarify priorities, strengthen confidence, and build supportive connections while navigating careers, entrepreneurship, or personal transitions. (Virtual)
From a Blank Chat to a Product You Actually Use | Product School
Follow a conversational product idea from blank chat to a usable application through prototyping, UX decisions, technical integration, testing, and feedback loops. Live demonstrations and implementation examples show how teams can validate ideas, iterate quickly, and move toward products people actually adopt. (Virtual)
Understanding Your Credit | Women Empowering Women
Get clear guidance on how credit scores affect borrowing and interest rates, which habits matter most, and what common mistakes can undermine financial options. Mortgage professional Audrey McFadden shares practical, nonjudgmental steps for building or improving credit while attendees connect with other local professionals. (In-Person | Tavern On Main)
Getting Started with Claude Design | Anthropic
Watch live demonstrations showing when to use Claude Design, how to import a company design system for consistent branding, and how to move from a brief to finished visual assets. The workflow covers decks, one-pagers, graphics, and exporting deliverables into familiar presentation formats. (Virtual)
Start-up Stars: Turning Skills Into Start-ups | Business & IP Centre Liverpool City Region
Hear experienced founders explain how they turned existing skills, interests, and experience into viable businesses. The online panel shares candid lessons about early challenges, opportunity recognition, growth, and practical next steps while giving aspiring entrepreneurs useful examples and encouragement for their own ventures. (Virtual)
ChatGPT Work for marketing teams | OpenAI Academy
See practical marketing workflows for ChatGPT Work, including content creation, research, ideation, and collaboration using context from familiar tools. The beginner-friendly walkthrough demonstrates realistic use cases and straightforward techniques to help newly enabled teams begin producing useful workplace outputs. (Virtual)
Your Brand Story: How to Build a Business People Remember | Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center
Turn personal stories into clearer brand positioning through a founder-led workshop featuring guided exercises and real-world examples. Participants learn how to identify an authentic core narrative, shape it for product or service businesses, and use storytelling to build customer trust and early market traction. (Virtual)
Founders Lounge | Powered by Metis Analytics
Meet entrepreneurs, creators, and innovators in a community setting built around sharing ideas, exchanging feedback, and forming useful connections. The broader founder community hosts recurring roundtables, workshops, pitch practice, demos, and networking activities aimed at helping ventures move from concept toward traction. (In-Person | Spark Coworking St. Louis)
Cryptography + Quantum Computers | STL Rust
Explore cryptography concepts relevant to Rust systems programming, including symmetric and asymmetric encryption, key exchange, signatures, authentication, and emerging post-quantum standards. The meetup also introduces quantum computing, with potential hands-on examples using Rust crates and sample programs if time permits. (In-Person | OCI)
September 4
New Skills for Work: Making Meetings Disappear | Filament
Reduce unnecessary meetings by learning practical alternatives such as asynchronous updates, clearer decision ownership, concise agendas, pre-reads, and responsibility mapping. Hands-on exercises and templates help teams audit meeting habits, protect focused work time, and maintain alignment without filling calendars. (In-Person | Filament)
A Simple and Scalable AI Roadmap to Confident Growth | Small Business University
Apply AI to customer discovery, marketing, and sales through a practical session covering AEO, GEO, streamlined workflows, and a clear 90-day roadmap. The workshop focuses on helping small businesses improve visibility, build trust, generate leads, and turn AI experimentation into repeatable growth activities. (Virtual)
Virtual Create Now | Adobe
Learn how emerging Creative Cloud features can make everyday creative work faster and more flexible through real-world demonstrations, useful shortcuts, and AI-assisted workflows. The program explores Photoshop, Illustrator, Express, and Firefly while showing practical approaches to ideation, content creation, and professional presentations. (Virtual)
Bourbon Friday | Sponsored by Tenacity
Spend Friday evening connecting with St. Louis entrepreneurs and professionals in a relaxed social setting built around conversation and curated bourbon tastings. The weekly gathering gives attendees time to share startup experiences, meet new people, and wind down together while sampling responsibly. (In-Person | TechArtista CWE)
September 5
September 5-10 // 3rd Annual Creve Coeur Plein Air Art Event
View plein air paintings created around the community during a public reception featuring juried awards, artwork available for purchase, live music, food, and opportunities to meet participating artists. Sales directly support the artists, who retain the proceeds from their work. (In-Person)
September 6
Code & Coffee STL
Bring a project or simply join the conversation at a welcoming tech co-working meetup for all skill levels. Brief introductions lead into self-directed coding, peer help, networking, optional member-led workshops, and community announcements about jobs, projects, and other local technology events. (In-Person | TechArtista UCity)
Join us on Meetup or Tiktok.
What’s on your agenda as we head into fall? Tell us in the comments! We’re always looking for ways to enhance the St. Louis Startup, Tech, and Marketing Ecosystem, and your voice shapes that work. If you have an event or deadline coming up, email us at [email protected].
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