Bay Area Founders Club

Fundraising is not storytelling. It’s a system. Most founders misunderstand the purpose of a pitch. Last Saturday, we hosted a virtual fundraising workshop with @mikojava (Managing Partner at @GumiCryptos Capital). 30+ founders joined from across the ecosystem. For the first time, female founders outnumbered male founders — a strong signal of where the next wave of innovation is coming from. Here’s the reality: Most founders still think fundraising is about: → Pitch decks → Vision → “Telling a great story” That’s outdated. What Miko broke down is much closer to how Silicon Valley actually works: Fundraising is a structured process. Not luck. Not vibes. Not just storytelling. It’s about: • Positioning yourself so VCs chase you — not the other way around • Running a tight process with real momentum • Controlling the narrative with data, not opinions • Understanding how VCs actually make decisions internally What surprised me most is this: The goal of pitching is not to ask VCs for money — it’s to intrigue them enough to start due diligence. Silicon Valley doesn’t reward the loudest founders. It rewards the ones who understand the game. If you missed this one, don’t miss the next. Let’s build what matters. #Fundraising #Startups #VentureCapital #SiliconValley #Founders #BayAreaFoundersClub

Bay Area Events For The Week Of March 30 linkedin.com/pulse/bay-area…

🚨 Happening TODAY — Last Call How to Raise Venture Capital with legendary investor Miko Matsumura (@mikojava) Most founders get fundraising wrong. This session shows you what actually works: • How VCs really evaluate startups • What makes you venture-backable • How to build investor relationships before you raise • What happens inside VC partner meetings If you're raising Pre-Seed → Series A, don’t miss this. ⏳ Limited seats. Starting soon. 👉 Comment “Funding” and I’ll send you the link. #venturecapital #startups #fundraising #founders #siliconvalley #entrepreneur

What a fantastic night at Silicon Valley AI Demo Night at @Zendesk As a community partner, we just wrapped another AI Demo Night  — and this one hit different. Hosted at @Zendesk HQ. 14 startups on stage. Zero fluff. Huge thanks to Zendesk & Anna Shchehula (@anna_shchehula) for hosting 🙏 And James Gee(@StartupGrind) for consistently putting together one of the largest pitch event in Silicon Valley. 🏆 14 Highly Selective Startups Breakdown: • 7 Pre-Seed • 5 Seed • 2 Series A 👉 Strongest lineup so far. No fillers. 🧠 Data → Decisioning Data to Insights AI— turning fragmented data into decision engines (~$23K MRR); Nimesh Kuinkel(CEO) RootCause.ai — causal AI: not predictions, but actual decisions (Bayer, Volvo) Ayman Elhalwagy (CEO); Jonas Skackauskas, PhD (CTO) 🤖 AI Infrastructure / Core Systems Aigo.ai - Pioneering Cognitive AI— self-learning AI without LLMs (contrarian, but interesting); Srini Pagidyala (Co-founder) VisOS AI— control layer for cloud ops (real incidents, real usage); Suzanne Taves (CEO) CipherSonic Labs— encrypted AI cloud (this will become table stakes); Ajay Joshi(Co-founder) ⚙️ Builders / Platforms Vector— “Shopify for AI apps” (strong team); Noe Becerra Portal— async product demos replacing sales calls (inevitable shift); Zachary Goldman 🧾 Enterprise / Automation DSALTA— compliance in 7 days vs. 6–9 months (20 paying customers); Dogan Akbulut; Jon Can Ozdoruk Minerva Intelligence (YC X25) — AI-native accounting; Om Agarwal Cornucopia Biosciences— natural language → lab robots; William Van Trump, PhD; Himay Makhija 💰 Consumer / FinTech Pamkit — AI vault for your life (assets, docs, decisions); Raja Kolli DeepShare — voice → memory → action (second brain); Samuel Wei 🎭 Interfaces / New UX Atmee.ai — real-time AI avatars (identity at scale); Yi-Hsuan Tsai(CTO) Xuman.AI— OS for solopreneurs (content → booking → revenue); Vishal Chamaria (CEO) 💡 My Take: We’re watching the shift happen in real time: Tools → Systems → Decision Engines → Autonomous Workflows Most people are still early. The best founders are already building here. This time, we tried something different. 👉 Live streaming + deep, unfiltered founder interviews No editing. No polish. No “perfect narratives.” Just the raw reality of building. What you see isn’t storytelling — it’s what’s actually happening on the ground: 👉 What founders are thinking in real time 👉 The real progress — and real challenges — behind each company 👉 The true builder energy at the front lines of Silicon Valley And honestly — this format worked better than I expected. More real. More engaging. More valuable. Now I’d love your feedback 👇 If you watched the livestream: 👉 What did you think? 👉 What worked well? 👉 What should we improve? We’re going to keep pushing this forward — and bring you the most real, unfiltered view of what it actually looks like to build in Silicon Valley 🚀 #AIDemo #SiliconValley #Founders #AI #StartupGrind #BayAreaFoundersClub

Inside the BFC GTM Workshop: How Founders Actually Scale 🚀 Just wrapped our GTM workshop in Palo Alto — this one hit different. 12 startups. 24 founders. Zero fluff. Not theory. Not slides. Not “growth hacks.” 👉 Real operators 👉 Real systems 👉 Real execution We focused on one question: How do you go from 0 → users → revenue → real traction in the AI era? Key takeaways: 1️⃣ AI lowered the barrier to building — not growing Everyone can ship fast Very few know how to win distribution 2️⃣ GTM is no longer a function — it’s a system Growth = product + content + distribution + feedback loops 3️⃣ Founder-led growth is back At early stage, you are the channel Huge thanks to @ChangChen_CC and all the builders who showed up. We’re building something real here. More coming. If you’re serious about scaling in AI — stay close. 👉 Comment “BFC” to join the next one 🔥

🚀 This Week in Silicon Valley Felt… Different After going through 44 events, I only saw 3 signals that actually matter. 🔥 A lot of people are still talking about models. But Silicon Valley has already moved on. Here’s what’s really happening 👇 1️⃣ AI + Security is no longer optional — it’s the entry ticket This is no longer a “nice-to-have.” If you’re building AI without security, you’re already behind. Everyone is talking about: • Agent hijacking • LLM data leakage • System vulnerabilities 👉 Reality: The more powerful AI gets, the bigger the risks. Security is now part of the core stack. 2️⃣ The model war is over. The system war has begun. No one cares about GPT vs Claude anymore. What actually matters: • Can your agent run end-to-end? • Is your system stable under pressure? • Can your APIs scale? • Can you generate real revenue? 👉 Bottom line: Many can use models. Very few can build systems that actually work. 3️⃣ Tech is hot — but the real battlefield is people Yes, there were: • Hackathons • Workshops • Technical sessions But the most crowded places? 👉 Dinners 👉 Founder meetups 👉 Investor circles Because everyone knows: Opportunities don’t live in slides — they live in networks. 🔥 Final takeaway AI has shifted from: “Can we build it?” → to “Can we run it — and can we sell it?” The real gap now isn’t just technology. It’s insight + network + execution. If you’re in the Bay Area, you can feel it: 👉 AI is no longer the future 👉 It’s a survival game happening right now 💬 Comment “BFC” if you want the full list of 44 curated events this week. #SiliconValley #AI #Startups #FounderLife #AISecurity #Agents #VentureCapital

Bay Area Events For The Week Of March 23 linkedin.com/pulse/bay-area…

RT @PaulFangBayArea: Big move 🚀 Bay Area Founders Club (@BFC_Global) × MissionX 32 × GB300 We’re building the AI Gateway for 5,000+…

AI Demo Night – March 24 | San Francisco Zendesk 🚀 We received incredibly positive feedback from our last AI Demo Night hosted by Startup Grind Silicon Valley with Bay Area Founders Club joining as a community partner — and we’re back again this month. We’re bringing founders, operators, and investors back in person — rotating across top SF tech HQs. This month, we’re hosting at Zendesk. This one hits different. Not perfect. Still early. Still risky. 👉 But this is where real alpha is. We’re back in SF at our newest venue — with 14 startups (yes, 14) taking the stage. Huge thanks to Zendesk & Anna Shchehula for hosting 🙏 🏆 14 Highly Selective Startups Breakdown: • 7 Pre-Seed • 5 Seed • 2 Series A 👉 Strongest lineup so far. No fillers. 🧠 Data → Decisioning Data to Insights AI— turning fragmented data into decision engines (~$23K MRR); Nimesh Kuinkel (CEO) RootCause.ai — causal AI: not predictions, but actual decisions (Bayer, Volvo) Ayman Elhalwagy (CEO); Jonas Skackauskas, PhD (CTO) 🤖 AI Infrastructure / Core Systems Aigo.ai - Pioneering Cognitive AI— self-learning AI without LLMs (contrarian, but interesting); Srini Pagidyala (Co-founder) VisOS AI — control layer for cloud ops (real incidents, real usage); Suzanne Taves (CEO) CipherSonic Labs— encrypted AI cloud (this will become table stakes); Ajay Joshi (Co-founder) ⚙️ Builders / Platforms Vector — “Shopify for AI apps” (strong team); Noe Becerra Portal— async product demos replacing sales calls (inevitable shift); Zachary Goldman 🧾 Enterprise / Automation DSALTA— compliance in 7 days vs. 6–9 months (20 paying customers); Dogan Akbulut; Jon Can Ozdoruk Minerva Intelligence (YC X25) — AI-native accounting; Om Agarwal Cornucopia Biosciences— natural language → lab robots; William Van Trump, PhD; Himay Makhija 💰 Consumer / FinTech Pamkit — AI vault for your life (assets, docs, decisions); Raja Kolli DeepShare — voice → memory → action (second brain); Samuel Wei 🎭 Interfaces / New UX Atmee.ai — real-time AI avatars (identity at scale); Yi-Hsuan Tsai (CTO) Xuman.AI— OS for solopreneurs (content → booking → revenue); Vishal Chamaria (CEO) 💡 My Take: We’re watching the shift happen in real time: Tools → Systems → Decision Engines → Autonomous Workflows Most people are still early. The best founders are already building here. 🍽️ Bonus: High-signal room. Curated crowd. Founders × Operators × Investors. 👉 Want the special registration link (50% OFF)? Comment “Funding” below — I’ll send it to you 🔥 Let’s build the future together. #AIDemo #SiliconValley #Founders #AI #StartupGrind #BayAreaFoundersClub

🚀 Big update from Bay Area Founders Club (BFC) We just opened our new office in Palo Alto (next to Stanford) — and tomorrow we’re hosting our FIRST workshop there. 12 startups. 24 founders. Working hands-on with growth expert Chang Chen (HeyGen, Otter, Gamma 🚀) Focus: 0 → users → revenue → hypergrowth 📈 Not a typical workshop. Operator-level. Real execution. Some of these founders could be the next: HeyGen / Gamma / Otter 🌟 🍽️ VC Exclusive: VIP Dinner (March 21, 6 PM) • Strong founders • High-signal convos • Real deal flow 👉 Register HERE: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAI… Get involved: 👉 Interested in volunteering? DM me on Twitter. 👉 Still want to join the GTM workshop? We’ve opened a few individual passes. Register HERE: luma.com/04ajnytg?coupo… Hope to see you there this Saturday! Let’s build 🚀 — Dr. Paul Fang #BFC #AIStartups #Founders #GTM #SiliconValley

RT @PaulFangBayArea: Just received the OpenClaw all-in-one machine🎉 This is the speed of China. Last night, it was just a simple reach-…

🚨 This Saturday: GTM Workshop for Founders Most startups don’t fail because of product. They fail because of distribution. If you're building → and asking: How do I get users and reach $10M revenue? This is for you. In this hands-on session, you’ll learn how to: 👉 Validate product–market fit 👉 Find the right distribution channels 👉 Build a scalable growth engine These are the exact playbooks that helped multiple startups hit $30M ARR in <2 years. Led by growth expert Chang Chen (advisor to HeyGen, Otter.ai, Gamma + more). 📍 Palo Alto + 🌐 Online 🎟 Limited spots (small, curated group) Comment “Growth” — I’ll send you the private registration link (limited spots). Let’s turn product into traction 🚀 #AI #Startup #GTM #Growth #Founders #SiliconValley

Record-breaking registrations for tonight’s OpenClaw Workshop 🎉 Grateful for all the support! Tonight, we’re diving in hands-on—learning OpenClaw by actually building and using it 🚀 Not just listening, but doing, building, and truly mastering. See you tonight 👇

Build Your First OpenClaw AI Agent with a Stanford Mentor - Let AI Work for You 24/7 🚀 Quick reminder: BFC OpenClaw Workshop is happening tomorrow. I Just Watched Jensen Huang Take the Stage at NVIDIA GTC from the Front Row — The AI Future Is Unfolding On Monday at NVIDIA GTC, thousands of builders, researchers, and founders gathered to hear Jensen Huang’s keynote. I sat in the front row and listened to the entire session from start to finish. When it ended, one thought stayed in my mind: The AI era has only just begun. Here are a few takeaways that stood out to me: 1️⃣ AI Factories Are the New Data Centers Jensen described the next generation of computing as AI factories — systems designed to produce intelligence. In this new economy, companies will generate tokens, models, simulations, and intelligence at scale. Compute → Intelligence production. This is a profound shift. 2️⃣ The AI Infrastructure Boom Is Just Getting Started The demand for AI computing is exploding. NVIDIA is building an entire AI infrastructure stack: • GPUs • Networking • AI supercomputers • Robotics platforms • Digital twins This isn’t just chips anymore — it’s the operating system for the AI era. 3️⃣ The Rise of Physical AI One theme that came up repeatedly: AI moving into the physical world. Robotics, autonomous systems, digital twins, industrial AI — the boundary between software and the real world is dissolving. This is where the next trillion-dollar industries will emerge. 4️⃣ The AI Economy Is Being Built Right Now What struck me most is how early we still are. The AI revolution isn’t just about models. It’s about building the infrastructure that powers intelligence globally. And that infrastructure is being built right now. Jensen made one thing very clear: OpenClaw may be one of the most important skills to learn this year. 🚀 Quick reminder: BFC OpenClaw Workshop is happening tomorrow. If you’re serious about building in AI—this is the moment. Join Chinat Yu (Stanford LDT | AI Educator | MLH Top 50) to build your first OpenClaw AI agent—and let AI work for you 24/7. Whether you’re in Seattle, Tokyo, Munich, Sydney, or Beijing — you can join us live from anywhere in the world. 🌍 Over 4 sessions, we’ll go from concept → working agent → real automation systems. 📅 Session 1 — Foundations of AI Agents March 19 | 7–9PM PDT 📅 Session 2 — Launch Your First OpenClaw Agent March 26 | 7–9PM PDT 📅 Session 3 — Connect Agents to Messaging Platforms April 2 | 7–9PM PDT 📅 Session 4 — Skills, Automations & Multi-Agent Systems April 9 | 7–9PM PDT 💡 By the end of the series you’ll know how to: • launch your own OpenClaw AI agent • connect agents across real platforms • build AI automation workflows • design your own AI productivity system No heavy engineering required — this is designed for founders, builders, and curious professionals. Comment “Agent” and I’ll send you the registration link.

I Just Asked @nvidia CEO Jensen Huang: How Will OpenClaw Solve Data Privacy at Scale?

🚀 Just asked @nvidia CEO Jensen Huang question live at the @alibaba_cloud GTC Event Honored to represent the Bay Area Founders Club on stage and raise a critical question: 👉 How will OpenClaw tackle data privacy challenges at scale? This is one of the most important questions as AI moves from demo → real-world deployment. Incredibly insightful discussion. Definitely something every AI founder should be thinking about. To be honest—this moment felt a bit surreal. From following Jensen’s journey during my PhD years to now standing there, asking a question in person… It reminded me of something simple but powerful: 👉 The future doesn’t belong to spectators. 👉 It belongs to those who step forward. #AI #Founders #SiliconValley #BFC #OpenClaw #GTC #AlibabaCloud

Grateful to @Tiancaixinxin for supporting our event 🙏 She was one of the very first founders I met on my entrepreneurial journey — back when I was still a PhD student. Looking back, it’s been quite a journey. We’ve both been growing, evolving, and pushing forward in our own ways — and now we’re standing in very different places than where we started. One thing I’ve realized: The strongest long-term relationships aren’t accidental — they’re built as both sides keep evolving. Really happy to see how far we’ve both come. Excited for what’s next — and to build something even bigger, with greater impact 🚀

🚀From 0 to $10M — Join This Saturday’s Silicon Valley Growth Masterclass One of the biggest questions founders ask in Silicon Valley is simple: How do you actually go from building a product → to getting real users → to reaching $10M in revenue? Many startups build impressive technology, but struggle with distribution, growth, and go-to-market strategy. The truth is: Great companies are not just built on technology. They’re built on distribution. That’s why we’re hosting a hands-on Go-To-Market workshop for AI founders and builders with growth expert Chang Chen. Chang Chen has served as a growth advisor to breakout AI companies like @HeyGen , Otter ai, @GammaApp , Bardeen, @cartesia , @AutoblocksAI , Conversion, @Zeemoai , Wegic, @LiveX_ai, Xmind, AddEvent, @FirstRoundAI , @jobrightai, Lanhu, Linkloud, and @MileIQ helping teams scale from zero to millions of users, and from zero to eight-figure ARR. “Chang from Hockey Stick was instrumental in helping us navigate the early stages of HeyGen. She didn't just provide strategic guidance—she rolled up her sleeves and worked alongside us to experiment with different product directions and go-to-market approaches. Her support accelerated our path to product-market fit and product channel fit in ways we couldn't have achieved alone.” - @joshua_xu_ CEO at @HeyGen “Hockey Stick Growth drove 1B+ views with 1,500+ creators—no extra ad spend. Their success is no accident: spot trends early, craft viral hooks for each platform, understand why they spread, then replicate 100x across creators. They avoid the usual mistakes: thinking small, being too selective, giving up early. Their systematic approach—test everything, track what converts, scale what works—turns viral content into predictable signups.” - @thisisgrantleeCo-Founder/CEO at @GammaApp “Chang's approach was revolutionary—she didn't just bring marketing expertise, she brought an engineering mindset to growth. The integration of data science with creative marketing unlocked growth channels we never knew existed.” - @kurtapen CMO at Otter.ai Most startups don’t fail because of technology — they fail because they never figure out growth. In this session, we’ll break down: • How to validate real Product-Market Fit • How to design a scalable growth engine • GTM strategies that actually work in the AI era • Why most startups get stuck before $1M 📍 Hybrid format (In-person in Silicon Valley + Global Zoom) Join from anywhere — Seattle, Tokyo, Munich, Sydney, Beijing 🌍 🗓 March 21 | 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM PDT Comment “Growth” — I’ll send you the private registration link (limited spots).

I Just Watched 𝐉𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐧 𝐇𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐠 Take the Stage at @nvidia GTC from the Front Row — The AI Future Is Unfolding Today at NVIDIA GTC, thousands of builders, researchers, and founders gathered to hear Jensen Huang’s keynote. I sat in the front row and listened to the entire session from start to finish. When it ended, one thought stayed in my mind: The AI era has only just begun. Here are a few takeaways that stood out to me: 1️⃣ AI Factories Are the New Data Centers Jensen described the next generation of computing as AI factories — systems designed to produce intelligence. In this new economy, companies will generate tokens, models, simulations, and intelligence at scale. Compute → Intelligence production. This is a profound shift. 2️⃣ The AI Infrastructure Boom Is Just Getting Started The demand for AI computing is exploding. NVIDIA is building an entire AI infrastructure stack: • GPUs • Networking • AI supercomputers • Robotics platforms • Digital twins This isn’t just chips anymore — it’s the operating system for the AI era. 3️⃣ The Rise of Physical AI One theme that came up repeatedly: AI moving into the physical world. Robotics, autonomous systems, digital twins, industrial AI — the boundary between software and the real world is dissolving. This is where the next trillion-dollar industries will emerge. 4️⃣ The AI Economy Is Being Built Right Now What struck me most is how early we still are. The AI revolution isn’t just about models. It’s about building the infrastructure that powers intelligence globally. And that infrastructure is being built right now. 🔥 My biggest takeaway as a founder: The next generation of startups will not just build apps. They will build AI-native systems. Platforms. Agents. Autonomous workflows. Entire industries will be rebuilt around AI. The next decade will produce some of the most important companies in history. Exciting times to be building. If you're at NVIDIA GTC this week, come say hi 👋 Always great to meet fellow founders and builders. #NVIDIA #GTC #ArtificialIntelligence #Startups #AIInfrastructure #Founders

At NVIDIA GTC already — lining up for Jensen Huang’s keynote 👀 BFC fam, if you’re here and see me around, come say hi. Always happy to meet founders, builders, and investors. Let’s connect and talk AI 🚀 #GTC #AI #Startups