On day one today, TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 is at full throttle. 10,000 founders, investors, and builders flock to Moscone West to run ideas, demos, and trades nonstop. The energy is exciting, conversations are everywhere, and breakthroughs are just beginning.
From the startup battlefield to the AI Disruptor 60, from space entrepreneurs to founders redefining how and when startups go public, this is where the next decade of technology is being written. Every conversation in the hallway, every roundtable, every coffee chat can lead to a new partnership or the next big company. See the list of speakers.
Not registered yet? It's still possible, but don't wait. Get your tickets now and get in on the action right away. Five powerful stages, hundreds of startup exhibitors, investor meet-ups, Braindate networking, and side events that will light up San Francisco throughout the week.
expo hall
Doors open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Check out over 300 startups showcasing cutting-edge technology from a variety of industries. See who's exhibiting.
stage session
The stage is set. Today's speakers tackle everything from space technology and startup growth to scaling strategies and going public. Take a look at what's happening across the Disrupt stage today. Check out the full agenda.
disrupt stage
The Startup Battlefield 200, the “World Series of Pitch Competitions,'' continues to attract attention. TechCrunch vetted the top 20 early-stage startups pitching in front of the world's most experienced VCs for a shot at the coveted Disrupt Cup, which includes $100,000 in equity-free prize money.
Startup Battlefield – Session 1: Judges include Allison Baum Gates (SemperVirens VC), Cathy Friedman (GV), Katelin Holloway (Seven Seven Six), Charles Hudson (Precursor Ventures), and Nicolas Sauvage (TDK Ventures).
tech crunch event
San Francisco | October 27-29, 2025
Startup Battlefield – Session 2: Eryk Dobrushkin (Index Ventures), Jen Hoskins (NVIDIA), Thomas Krane (Insight Partners), Jon McNeill (DVx Ventures), Katie Stanton (Moxxie Ventures).
Self-driving reality check — Tekedra Mawakana (Waymo)
What Sequoia is looking at next — Roelof Botha (Sequoia Capital).
Moonshots, AI, and the future of the alphabet — Astro Teller (The Moonshot Factory).
space stage
At the intersection of technology and exploration, startups are reimagining the future of space.
Aerospace Startup Showcase: Solving the Toughest Problems in Space — Dr. Tom Cwik (Jet Propulsion Laboratory), Dr. Debra Emmons (The Aerospace Corporation), Katelin Holloway (Seven Seven Six), and Mandy Vaughn (GXO, Inc.).
From Robinhood to Aetherflux: Baiju Bhatt's next frontier — Baiju Bhatt (Aetherflux)
Investing at the edge of the universe – Morgan Beller (NFX), Celeste Ford (Stellar Ventures), Chris Morales (Point72 Ventures).
Made in Space: Varda's plan to build the next great supply chain — William Bruey (Varda Space Industries).
AI at the Edge: Startups Powering the Future of Space — Dr. Debra L. Emmons (The Aerospace Corporation), Dr. Lucy Hoag (Violet Labs), and Adam Maher (Ursa Space Systems).
Laying the foundation for a new space economy — Max Haot (Vast), Kelly Hennig (Stoke Space), Bridgit Mendler (Northwood Space), Even Rogers (True Anomaly).
Advance to the public stage
This track details frameworks and strategies for IPO preparation and post-exit success for founders at all stages.
How long should a startup stay private? — David George (Andreessen Horowitz)
Rethinking the exit: Kodiak AI founder on going public — Don Burnette, (Kodiak AI)
What happens after a breakout success? — Santi Subotovsky (Emergence Capital) and Eric Yuan (Zoom).
How AI is forcing late-stage startups to rewire GTM or be left behind — Jane Alexander (CapitalG), Vanessa Larco (Premise), Nirav Tolia (Nextdoor).
Everything you need to know before you exit — Jai Das (Sapphire Ventures), Dan Springer (Ironclad), Roseanne Wincek (Renegade Partners).
builder's stage
The raw, unfiltered reality of startups — lessons for scaling, raising money, and thriving amid disruption.
How to raise a Series A in 2026 — Thomas Krane (Insight Partners), Katie Stanton (Moxxie Ventures), Sangeen Zeb (GV).
Flying to the Future: AI Powers Aviation Industry — Natasha Del Toro (Del Toro Productions), Tanya Eves, Doug King (Epic Aircraft).
How much salary and stock should you really offer your early employees? — Randy Jakubowicz (645 Ventures), Rebecca Lee Whiting (Epigram Legal), Yin Wu (Pulley).
Building Next: Startup, DeepMind, Google Cloud — Tulsee Dosah (Google DeepMind) and Darren Mowry (Google Cloud)
Building a working GTM engine — Max Altschuler (GTMfund), Marc Manara (OpenAI), Alison Wagonfeld (Google Cloud).
Who will decide the future of AI in 2025? 60 AI disruptors revealed — Shay Grinfeld (Greenfield Partners) and Renen Hallak (Vast Data).
What VCs Really Want to Hear in a Pitch — Medha Agarwal (defy.vc), Jyoti Bansal (Harness), Jennifer Neundorfer (April Ventures).
Building in times of uncertainty — Ryan Petersen (Flexport)
pitch showcase stage
Visit the Expo Hall to see pitches from exhibiting startups.
9:30am – 11:30am: Startup Battlefield 200 Sustainability Pitch
11:30 am – 12:05 pm: Pavilion Pitch Session – KOSME
1:00pm – 1:30pm: Pavilion Pitch Session – Japan – JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization)
1:30pm – 3pm: Startup Battlefield 200 Build World Pitch
3:30pm – 4:15pm: Pavilion Pitch Session – South Korea – KOTRA (Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency)
4:15pm – 4:45pm: Pavilion Pitch Session – Sultanate of Oman
breakout stage
Join the panel for a 50-minute Q&A session. First come first served. All ticket types are welcome. See the full schedule for times and session details.
Untapped opportunities hidden in business workflows — Umair Bashir (Signal), Umair Javed (tkxel), Marcus Torres (Quickbase)
From Vibes to Velocity: How AI tools can help you achieve your development goals — Tim Rogers (GitHub)
Build First, Fund Later: A Founder's Guide to Bootstrapping a Breakout Startup — Tarun Raisoni (Gruve)
How to get acquired (without selling) in the tech industry: M&A tips for founders and builders — Yonas Beshawred (StarSling) and Aklil Ibssa (Coinbase)
Fundraising mistakes that can ruin your round and how to avoid them — Kamila Khasanova (On Top Strategy), Sam Li (Thoropass), Dr. Richard Munassi (Tampa Bay Wave), and Ashley Paston (General Catalyst)
Fundraising Process Workshop with TC editor turned VC Josh Constine — Josh Constine (SignalFire)
AI on the brink: A strategic handbook for national security — Daniel Hendrycks (AI Safety Center)
Startup lessons you won't find in a playbook — Santi Subotovsky (Emergence Capital) and Melissa Wong (Zipline).
round table conference
These small group sessions give founders and investors the opportunity to tackle real-world challenges up close. Please note: Pre-registration on the event app is required for admission.
The future of banking and fintech: The AI wave — Nnamdi Okuke (645 Ventures)
Prototyping, tuning, and scaling GenAI applications using open models — Aishwarya Srinivasan (Fireworks AI)
A winning formula: Turn your business into a trusted, scalable community to drive growth — Tasneem Amina (Kindred) and Justine Palefsky (Kindred)
From Deployment to Enterprise: Selling Scalable AI Agents — Allison Baum Gates (SemperVirens Venture Capital)
The Future of Construction: The Role of AI and Data in the Field and the Office — Austin Yount, Brick and Mortar Ventures.
Berkeley Connect: Experience the world's #1 startup ecosystem — Siwen Deng (Evergreen Saponins) and Keith McAleer (UC Berkeley Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology)
How to train a model: Tame an AI agent without breaking it — Kyla Guru (Anthropic)
The community is the product — Brian Hamachek (Vently), Gargi Kand (Vently), Nick Khonaysser (Vently)
Physical AI: Designing, Funding, and Scaling the Future — Kahini Shah (Obvious Ventures)
The future of the space economy in low Earth orbit — Abhi Kumar (University of California, Berkeley).
Investor Insights — Itamar Novick (Recursive Ventures) and Brian Sparkes (Silicon Valley Venture, LLC)
The Future of the Space Economy in Low Earth Orbit (Encore) — Abhi Kumar (University of California, Berkeley)
Successful IPOs: Charting a path from private to public — Charly Kevers (Carta) and Daniel Tay (Morgan Stanley)
Building in the line of fire: What it takes to win with public sector AI — Ross Fubini (XYZ Venture Capital) and Ben Van Roo (Legion Intelligence)
Building an AI-enabled data infrastructure with lean teams — Michel Tricot (Airbyte)
Your EQ is your AI — Alex Malebranche (Cloudflare)
networking opportunities
Networking Lounge powered by Braindate: Open 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Find your next co-founder, investor, or mentor through curated and spontaneous meetups.
Deal Flow Cafe: Opens at 9am for founders and investors only, offering a quiet space to grab a coffee and make deals.
stocks live
Start your morning with Equity Live, a special on-stage recording of TechCrunch's flagship podcast, from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Join the TechCrunch team and dive headfirst into the business of startups, technology, and venture capital. Everything unfolds in real time from the builder stage.
Sabotage the 2025 side event
This week, company-sponsored side events will be held across San Francisco, spreading Disrupt's energy far beyond Moscone West. What's Happening Tonight is a panel, party, and meetup aimed at bringing together founders, investors, and innovators from all areas of the technology industry. If you are attending one of these, please be sure to RSVP.
Pitch&Drink with P2S.VC: Pre-seed to success (sponsored by AltaIR Capital, Yellow Rocks!, Smart Partnership Capital, I2BF Global Ventures)
Unlocking investor potential: How tech workers can become LPs using vested equity units: Sponsored by Musa Capital
Future Shock Deep Tech Meetup w/ SOSV & KIAC: Sponsored by SOSV
“Unofficial TechCrunch Disrupt 2025” Afterparty at Werqwise SF: Sponsored by Silicon Valley Venture, LLC
An exclusive gathering of founders, accredited investors, and VCs beyond Seed and Series A – a side event at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025: hosted by Equity X Investments, Vataseason, and Plus Ultra Capital Partners
South Asian Collective @ Disrupt Week: Sponsored by American South Asian Network (ASAN)
Beyond the Hype: Voices from the Future of Humane AI – Short Film Screening and Panel: Sponsored by Building Humane Tech
Post-Panel Ping Pong: Sponsored by Scrut Automation
TechCrunch disrupts unofficial welcome party: bullish or busted? Rooftop AI discussion with Baseten, Premji Invest, and Treble PR: Sponsored by Treble PR
Founders Happy Hour and Fireside Chat: Avoiding Identity and Compliance Scope Creep 👻: Sponsored by Descope & Delve
JetBrains Night in San Francisco: Sponsored by JetBrains
Night Zero: TechCrunch Disrupt Week's unofficial opening party: hosted by Fox Rothschild and Silicon Valley Bank
There's still time to attend Disrupt 2025
Think it's too late to join? Not a chance. Get your tickets here. There's so much more to experience at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, including Startup Battlefield pitches, game-changing sessions, and unforgettable connections. Tickets are on sale until the last day. Get secure today and be part of the future of technology.
