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SF Tech Week 2025: The Definitive Guide

September 27, 2025
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What Is SF Tech Week?

SF Tech Week, also called SF Tech Week 2025, is part of Tech Week, a decentralized, city-wide technology festival organized by a16z (Andreessen Horowitz). Rather than being confined to a single convention center, SF Tech Week is an ecosystem of hundreds of independently hosted events across San Francisco: from pitch nights, workshops, hackathons, founder dinners, investor panels, and themed meetups.

The spirit is decentralized: any company, startup, or community can host an event (subject to calendar inclusion) and contribute to the momentum. Speakers, sponsors, and community organizers converge to make it a showcase of the future of tech.

SF Tech Week is frequently billed as “Tech’s Largest Decentralized Conference.”

sf tech week 2025

When Is SF Tech Week?

  • Dates: October 6 to October 12, 2025 (SF Tech Week)
  • The calendar of events — covering all sessions, locations, times, hosts — typically launches in early spring.
  • The SF edition is immediately followed by LA Tech Week (Oct 13 to Oct 19, 2025) as part of a broader California rollout.

Thus, when people ask “when is SF Tech Week?”, the clear answer is Oct 6–12, 2025.

Why Attend SF Tech Week 2025?

1. Unrivaled Business Networking & Deal Flow

Being decentralized allows serendipitous encounters. Rather than being funneled into formal corridors, you’ll cross paths at dinners, co-working spaces, and local events. The density of founder-investor overlap makes it fertile ground for term sheets, partnerships, and recruiting.

2. Access to Big Names & Emerging Voices

Featured speakers include:

  • Marc Andreessen, Co-founder & GP, a16z
  • Ben Horowitz, Co-founder & GP, a16z
  • Shuo Wang (Co-founder, Deel)
  • Spencer Rascoff (CEO, Match Group)
  • Guillermo Rauch (Founder & CEO, Vercel)
  • Sam Shank (Founder, HotelTonight)

You’ll hear from operators and investors who are shaping AI, fintech, infrastructure, and regulation.

st tech week speakers

3. Exposure to Cutting-Edge Themes

Past and upcoming event topics include AI safety, regulation, generative models, biotech, global talent, Web3, sustainability, and more. The diverse agenda means even niche interests can find a home.

4. Ample Content & Learning Opportunities

From hands-on workshops to deep-dive panels, demo days, and small-group salons—expect a variety of formats. The model aligns with data showing that developer/event communities favor expert talks, hands-on sessions, and open discussions over passive formats.

5. Credibility & Visibility

Being part of SF Tech Week can elevate your startup’s profile. Many media, VCs, and analysts monitor the week closely. Hosting or speaking is a signal of credibility.

Your Guide to Surviving & Thriving at SF Tech Week

Plan Your Experience

  • Set goals first: Are you there to fundraise, recruit, learn, or launch?
  • Use the official calendar (when launched) to filter by theme, location, time.
  • Block time in advance, including travel slack between venues.
  • Prioritize “must-attend” events, but leave buffer space for serendipity.
  • Coordinate with teammates or cofounders — splitting up can maximize coverage.

How to Arrive & Get Around

  • Fly into SFO or OAK depending on your origin.
  • Use BART, Muni, Caltrain, or MUNI buses to reach different neighborhoods.
  • Rideshares (Uber/Lyft) and scooters can help with last-mile connectivity.
  • Aim to cluster events in geographic “zones” (SOMA, Mission, SoMa, Embarcadero) to reduce transit time.
  • Be mindful of San Francisco traffic patterns (rush hours, rainy days).

san francisco map guide

c) What to Bring

  • A Digital Business Card is non-negotiable. A quick, scannable QR or NFC exchange ensures you don’t lose connections. (KADO is a great option)
  • Chargers, Power Bank – multiple events, long days.
  • Laptop or tablet – for note-taking, demos, connecting with remote folks.
  • Notebook & pen – analog still helps during deep sessions.
  • Comfortable shoes & weather-appropriate layers – San Francisco can be fickle.
  • Snacks & water bottle – to avoid fatigue between sessions.

SF Tech Week Must have

SF Tech Week 2025 Themes & Topics

Below are core themes likely to dominate SF Tech Week 2025 — both from past signals and sponsor/agenda hints — plus some additional forward-looking ones:

SF Tech Week 2025 Themes & TopicsInfo

Artificial Intelligence & Generative Models

Deep discussions on model scaling, alignment, toolchains, safety, regulation, and applied domains such as biotech or media.

Regulation, Policy & Tech Governance

Sessions like “Law Meets Code: AI Rules That Could Shape Your Startup” (a Fenwick + a16z + Databricks event) show how regulation is front-of-mind.

Future of Work & Global Talent

Given the presence of Deel, Atlassian, and global-first startups, expect panels about distributed teams, cross-border compliance, payroll, talent acquisition, and remote-first models.

Cloud, Infrastructure & Dev Tools

With sponsors like AWS, IBM, Vercel, expect infrastructure, serverless, observability, and dev tool discussions.

Fintech, Banking & Innovation

HSBC Innovation Banking is a key sponsor. Expect fintech, payments, embedded banking, regulation, and crypto overlap tracks.

SaaS & Productivity

Atlassian’s involvement signals deep interest in productivity stacks, platform strategies, team collaboration tools.

Web3, Blockchain & Decentralization

Given Tech Week’s ethos and past sessions, expect panels on tokenization, crypto regulation, DAOs, and decentralized infrastructure.

Bonus: Useful Data & Comparisons

  • In NY Tech Week 2025, over 1,000 events were hosted during the week, reflecting the sheer scale and decentralized modeL.
  • NY Tech Week is commonly compared with SF’s version in structure: dozens of neighborhoods host events, allowing for local community-driven programs.
  • The model of distributed tech events has been growing: open meetups, hackathons, and expert sessions remain the most popular formats in developer communities.

These comparisons suggest that SF Tech Week 2025 might expect hundreds to over a thousand events, thousands of attendees, and broad global participation — making it one of the largest tech weeks in scale.

SF Tech Week 2025 is set to be a landmark gathering for innovators, founders, and investors. Plan ahead, explore the themes, and make the most of every connection. Don’t forget your digital business card—it’s the easiest way to network seamlessly across dozens of events. If you want the best free option, KADO is your go-to digital business card—download it now and start networking smarter.

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