September 9, 2025 – Leaders from across America’s innovation ecosystem have joined forces to co-create the inaugural American Venture Fest, a first-of-its-kind, nationwide series of simultaneous gatherings happening October 2025. This unprecedented collaboration of 35+ cohosts across the country will bring Venture Fest events to life across America, gathering startups, investors, and others in the entrepreneur support ecosystem locally, while linking them into a powerful national network.

“It’s something we’ve never seen before in the innovation ecosystem,” said CS Freeland editor of the American Venture Newsletter in Washington, DC. “Not only are Fests being hosted growing from the first out-of-state initiative out of Texas, there has been collaboration for gatherings alongside other signature events such as Massachusetts’ Boston Startup Week, Idaho’s Boise Entrepreneur Week, Tennessee’s 3686, and more! Americans are working with and learning from each other to promote entrepreneurs together. ”

The American Venture Fests have become a living showcase of the states really uniting as the United States, featuring a wide variety of participation from: venture capital firms, universities, governors’ & mayors’ offices, state commerce departments, accelerators, incubators, venture studios, startup development organizations, chambers of commerce, economic development corporations, coworking hubs, membership clubs, and more.

American Venture Fests are free to co-host, and the organizers cover any food and drinks for their attendees at no extra charge to the guests. Events range from small or niche happy hour meetups, to lunch and learns, to panels drawing 100+ participants, all designed to spark connections, share knowledge, and strengthen local ecosystems together nationally.

“I'm thrilled to help carry the Venture Fest torch outside of Texas and bring it to Photon Junction!,” said Princeton University Office of Innovation Director, Christine Galib of Advancing Photonics Technologies (APT) “Here in New Jersey, we aim to bolster domestic supply chains, supercharge American technology capacity, and onshore manufacturing jobs, powering continuous cycles of photonics and optics innovation and investment.  With American Venture Fest, we're particularly excited to build community and spotlight Women in VC and Deep Tech, industry members, and innovators throughout 'the Junction!”

“Excited to feature American Venture Fest to accelerate tech translation into commercialization at scale,” said Apprentis Ventures’ Chief of Staff & Venture Partner, Bianca Schilling in Pennsylvania. “By convening universities, founders, industry, capital partners, and community partners, we strengthen regional competitiveness and drive technology-driven modernization across essential industries.”

American Venture Fest is the evolution of a movement that began in Austin, Texas in 2022, where 1,000+ attendees gathered across multiple downtown venues co-hosted by a few Texas venture capital firms and other investors. In 2023, it expanded statewide to more Texas cities with nearly 2,000 participants, and by 2024, the event grew to host 3,000 people. View the Venture Fests Texas has been having, here. Its success laid the foundation for today’s national vision: a coast-to-coast celebration of innovation powered by many different types of organizations who are a part of the American ecosystem of entrepreneur support.

“We’re excited to host again a Fest in a massive collaboration of this ecosystem of entrepreneur support,” the Texas Association of Business (the state chamber) CEO Glenn Hamer said. “Last year we helped experiment growing the Fest outside of Texas, and this year in Austin, we are happy to host the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Deputy Administrator the Honorable Bill Briggs (invited) on our rooftop in downtown Austin in partnership with the Texas Economic Development Corporation. Thanks to the Texas Governor Greg Abbott for his message commending the Fest’s collaboration to promote innovation, startups, investors, and small businesses, all as part of our powerful economic development.”

“At The Innovation Space, we’re cultivating a hub where startups turn breakthrough science into real impact,” said Innovation Space’s Chief Growth Officer Marcie Reilly from Delaware. “This event strengthens our mission by making the full capital stack visible, giving founders the tools to connect more effectively with resources, investors, and industry to power their startups’ growth. This collaboration highlights the strength of our regional ecosystem, where innovation advances not in silos but through intentional partnership.”

Oklahoma: Oklahoma Commerce Department

Nebraska: University of Nebraska / Student Husker Venture Fund

Tennessee: Standups & Startups

Massachusetts: Boston Startup Week

New York City: Geek Ventures

The American Venture Fest is a first launch of events that are promoted alongside the first nationally co-created periodical featuring the ecosystem of entrepreneurs support, the American Venture Newsletter.