Back for its 2nd year, the Silicon Forest Tech Connect is happening May 1st at White Owl in Portland, OR.

Who Should Attend? Whether you’re looking to engage with local tech companies, recruit tech talent, recreate the magic of TechCrawl, or just want to network with your experienced IT peers, the Silicon Forest Tech Connect is a can’t-miss event in Portland this spring.

What to Expect: Open networking with tech professionals and leaders Booths from local tech meetups, community partners, and tech companies Complimentary drink ticket with RSVP and light refreshments courtesy of ProFocus Technology A chance to win cool prizes

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to connect, collaborate, and contribute to the growth of the Silicon Forest tech ecosystem. See you there! RSVP required.

For Companies/Partners/Sponsors: Space for community partners, meetup groups, and tech companies interested in hosting a booth is limited. Secure your spot by emailing [email protected].

Are you looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity? CODE PDX is here to help! We are designers, developers, and product managers, both experts and learners, coming together to make our city better for everyone. We welcome all skill levels and disciplines.

CODE PDX is made up of individuals who are interested in changing Portland for the better. We work with local government to fix local services, utilize open data to improve citizen knowledge, and work for the betterment of all. We are just getting started, so there are plenty of opportunities to use your skills. Even if you are not a tech type, we can still have opportunities for you to contribute. So come by and become part of a movement to improve our community!

Adrian, the person behind the popular YouTube channel Adrian's Digital Basement, will be sharing his story of ditching the day job to become a full-time YouTuber. Join him as he dives into the world of vintage computers, exploring his process of troubleshooting and fixing these fascinating machines using logic and critical thinking skills.

This week’s AI Weekly chat will be on “Discussion on OpenAI Assistant API vs. Traditional Methods: Benefits and Platform Lock-In Concerns”

@Rian - would love if you could join and kickoff the conversation

AI Weekly Chat | Discussion on OpenAI Assistant API vs. Traditional Methods: Benefits and Platform Lock-In Concerns Friday, May 3 · 11:00am – 12:00pm Time zone: America/Los_Angeles Google Meet joining info Video call link: https://meet.google.com/mdi-zfdr-hie Or dial: ‪(US) +1 740-498-0166‬ PIN: ‪126 948 039‬# More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/mdi-zfdr-hie?pin=5449980177344

Every month, UpStart Collective invites the community to join us for some drinks and networking with the founders of the space. Each month we feature a founder working on something incredible who are part of the UpStart Collective family. You will have the opportunity to learn more about what they are working on and ways you can be helpful. Come to hang out, have a drink, and enjoy the view from one of UpStart Collective's 7 balconies.

Doors open at 5pm.

PDX2600 is a monthly open forum for hackers in Portland Oregon. It happens on the first Friday of every month. There are no memberships, no leaders, and no real structure. Only the free exchange of ideas.

For forty years Oregon Technology Awards has celebrated excellence and achievement in the region's technology industry.

This coming May, our community will gather to recognize 8 companies for their accomplishments, leadership, and commitment to the industry and community.

We will also honor a Student of the Year and 3 Teachers in the Portland Metro Area.

It's been a long while since our last meetup so it's time for us to reconnect and catch up! We'll have some time to network, show & tell, and collect your ideas for future meetup topics.

Our May Presenter is: Allie Persitz (Magyar)

Allie is a life-long entrepreneur renowned for her passion in fostering connections, crafting meaningful experiences, and developing impactful products through collaborative teamwork. She has a track record of successfully scaling and exiting multiple companies, Allie places a strong emphasis on cultivating cultures that enable individuals to lead fulfilled and balanced lives.

Her achievements have earned her accolades such as Entrepreneur of the Year by the Oregon Entrepreneur Network, Founder of the Year by TiE Oregon, Portland Business Journal’s Forty under 40, and a Portland Woman of Influence.

Currently, she serves as the Chairwoman of the Board for the Technology Association of Oregon (TAO) and Director of TiE Oregon, Allie is deeply involved in giving back to the community. She actively volunteers and mentors early-stage startups in the greater Portland area, all while savoring precious moments with her kiddos.

Allie is also known for her zest for life, marked by celebrating the journey and hosting epic costume parties.

About North Bank Innovations North Bank Innovations is an organization based in Southwest Washington, committed to building a thriving ecosystem that helps early-stage startups.

About the Startup Conversations Event Each month we host a local founder who will give a short presentation about their company. They will focus on how it all got started, where they are today, and their plans for the future including the challenges they face to make their goals happen.

Following the presentation our host, Dave Barcos will dig into the founder's background, the company's story, and other observations. After the interview, we will have an audience Q&A session to help attendees ask direct questions of the presenter. It has proven to be a great format to catalyze the local founders and the startups in the region. You won't want to miss it.

For more details on other North Bank events check our event calendar at https://www.northbankinnovations.org/events

Please note, that we encourage genuine networking, not hunting for sales or leads. If you are genuinely starting or working with a startup, this is the right crowd for you. Thanks for helping us keep it real.

You asked and we listened. Fairlane was suggested by one of our attendees so we're making it the spot for May's founder.coffee. This cool SE spot boasts a lot of room for networking and some incredible drinks. We can't wait to learn more about what you are working on and how we can be helpful.

As always, be there thinking about ways you can help your fellow founders. No selling, no solicitations, just good conversations!

See you there! Josh & Mark

About founder.coffee: As a business owner, you are faced with many challenges. You're forced to make decisions every day that could make or break your business. founder.coffee is a way to network with other entrepreneurs to allow free-flowing information with the intent to collaborate and help each other. So often we're challenged and there's very little we can do to express our challenges with the people we work with or the people we care about. Think of founder.coffee as your own personal support group for business owners. We're all here to help!

The few, the proud, the founders that start it up, don't raise money, kick it into gear, and get to over a million in revenue.

They know things.

What do they know?

Come find out.

From launch to millions in revenue with not outside investment funding, hell yes to that

RSVP (free): https://www.meetup.com/startup-your-startup/events/300398663/

Why Participate? Pitch Club is an event where entrepreneurs learn the criteria and methods used by real investors to evaluate their venture as a potential investment. This is done by recreating a typical investor meeting where a few companies pitch and receive feedback from TiE Oregon Charter Members. These meetings follow the same basic agenda of an investor meeting with three sections: the pitch, Q&A, and investor discussion & decision.

Who facilitates Pitch Club? Pitch Club is organized by Kari Naone, TiE Oregon Executive Director and led by Tom Kingsley, a TiE Charter Member who is an investor and successful entrepreneur.

What to expect? Please minimally prepare for a 5-minute pitch. If time permits each person could get up to 10 minutes so be prepared for that as well. This can include a slides/ppt that will be presented from your computer. Directly after pitching, Q&A and discussion will take place.

Those who attend pitch club will walk away with a better understanding of what investors look for in a pitch and how to answer the questions possible investor will ask. In addition, each presenter will receive a digital copy of their pitch and feedback from their peers and TiE Charter Members.

Interested in sponsoring Pitch Club - please contact [email protected].

re you looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity? CODE PDX is here to help! We are designers, developers, and product managers, both experts and learners, coming together to make our city better for everyone. We welcome all skill levels and disciplines.

CODE PDX is made up of individuals who are interested in changing Portland for the better. We work with local government to fix local services, utilize open data to improve citizen knowledge, and work for the betterment of all. We are just getting started, so there are plenty of opportunities to use your skills. Even if you are not a tech type, we can still have opportunities for you to contribute. So come by and become part of a movement to improve our community!

DeveloperWeek AI/ML 2024 Hackathon

May 22, 2024 | In Person

Join 200+ developers who will be hands-on building new apps, bots and more using Amazon Bedrock generative UI! Hackathon participants can compete for $10,000+ in cash, products and prizes.

The DeveloperWeek AI/ML 2024 Hackathon sponsored by AWS will take place alongside Day 2 of the LaunchDarkly Galaxy conference on May 22, 2024 at Pier 27 in San Francisco.Admission to the hackathon is free, but hackathon participants are invited to join the rest of the Galaxy event via a special discount code (contact us for more details).

DeveloperWeek 2024 is produced and owned by DevNetwork, the world's developer event community and producer of leading conferences for the developer, engineering & IT industries.

By registering for this event, you are opting into DevNetwork email updates and one-time email-based promotions from top-level DeveloperWeek 2024 sponsors including exclusive invitations to DeveloperWeek 2024 parties and partner events. These updates will notify you about DeveloperWeek 2024 news, as well as announcements about DevNetwork events and services. You can opt out of DevNetwork email updates at any time.

Why are we doing this?

The goal of this workshop is to provide a refreshing approach to networking. We coach individuals to confidently navigate networking events, ensuring they represent themselves well, understand expectations, and leverage their key skills to achieve their goals. Nobody gives proper training on how to approach these events, making it an oversight in our community. We want to change that! This 90-minute training is the first step in understanding how you can be and what you can do at networking events. I highly encourage those who frequent events to come to this training too. You experts can also come out of this with a new fun approach to the next event you go to.

Who is it for?

We aim to have people in leadership roles to people just starting out in their industries attend this workshop. With the intention to learn from one another no matter what experience level they are at. There is a lot to learn when we come together with intention and skill-sharing practices. An equitable networker seeks diverse gatherings and welcomes opportunities to share.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Active engagement and opportunities to move around (no more feeling glued to your seats) Diverse interactions with a variety of attendees (up to 80 people) Access to tools facilitating meaningful connections throughout the entire workshop (including improv exercises and Toastmaster frameworks) A welcoming atmosphere where networking feels natural

Each person attending will be guided through our education and facilitation training to encourage each and every one of you to leave feeling more in control of your place on the networking floor.

You will leave feeling cheerful, lightweight, and ready for more!

Event Details: Date: Wednesday, May 22nd Time: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Location: 205 NW 4th Ave, Portland, OR 97209 Don't miss this opportunity to learn and grow in your networking skills. Reserve your spot today!

UPDATE: MAY Demolicious will be at the new westside UpStart Collective location!

::::::: Applications for May are STILL OPEN! Please use the form below to apply to pitch.:::::::::::

Demolicious is back! This monthly pitch event brings together founders and the community to learn about what is being built here and around Portland.

How this all works: If you are a founder, you will apply to pitch here. Don't worry. "Apply" simply means you want to pitch, but there's no real competitive process to be accepted. We just want to see what you're working on before we put you in front of a room full of people.

You will be given 3 minutes to pitch at the event.

The audience will be given a number to text and vote for their favorite one. The one with the most votes will go home with the Demolicious Championship belt.

The belt is not for you to keep as you will have to come back and "defend" it. However, you will be allowed to put your startup sticker (if applicable) on the belt for all to see and to live on forever in infamy!

We will post the projects/companies that will be pitching a week prior to the event. Which means you have until then to fill out the form.

Teams Pitching: TBA

Will you be the next founder to pitch!?!

Portland Design Thinkers is thrilled to host our next speaker Lucy Ziegler: The Power of Design and Strategic Foresight in Practice.

An exploration of the combined power of Design and Strategic Foresight in practice: why and how to apply human-centric research, creativity, and long-term mindset to strategic business problem-solving.

Join us for an enlightening evening as Lucy Ziegler shares her expertise, providing invaluable insights and practical strategies to enhance your approach to tackling challenges.

About our speaker: Lucy Ziegler has been a practitioner in Industrial Design, Experience Design, and Service Design for 20+ years. Over the past 5 years at McKinsey & Company, she split her focus between design projects and projects that use Design to solve complex business problems. As a Certified Futurist and co-creator and leader of McKinsey's Design x Foresight practice, she had the opportunity to bring the unique combination of Design and Strategic Foresight to numerous clients across many industries from startups to Fortune 10 and learned many lessons on how to make this approach more nimble and effective. As a mother of a young daughter, she is committed to helping leaders make the right decisions today to proactively shape a future for generations to come.

If you have any questions or would like to connect with other members of PDT, join our Slack community.

PDT is a volunteer-run organization, and as you can imagine, organizing events can be expensive. We rely on sponsors and donations to help us offset these costs. If you would like to help, we accept donations through Venmo @PortlandDesignThinkers.

RainSec is an informal group of like-minded security professionals who meet to network and discuss topics of interest in a non-work, non-vendor setting.

While our target audience is experienced information security professionals, this is a public event open to any interested parties. If you have a friend or colleague who might benefit, please pass an invite along.

Follow @PDXRainSec on Twitter for last minute updates.

Because COVID-19 still presents significant risk to some members of our community, we ask that you observe the following and make your own risk assessment decision regarding your attendance:

• If outdoor seating is available and weather permits, we will be outside.
• If you are feeling sick, stay home!
• If you've had a recent COVID exposure, stay home!
• If you are not vaccinated, stay home!
• If you are otherwise considered high risk for COVID, please stay home until you feel it is safe to gather in large groups (20-40 people). We don't want to be the cause of anyone's illness or death.

You can also find us on Meetup.com and Google Groups.

If you're looking for more security-focused community meetups in the Portland area, check out pdx-infosec.com.

PDX2600 is a monthly open forum for hackers in Portland Oregon. It happens on the first Friday of every month. There are no memberships, no leaders, and no real structure. Only the free exchange of ideas.

What other event can say that they practice real-time failover in action? Join us again to hear talks from industry experts and community leaders discuss the newest approaches in monitoring and observability. Find out which tools and techniques are in use at some of the largest web architectures in the world.

An Inclusive Event for Monitoring and Observability Practitioners

Monitorama events bring together the brightest minds among the open source development and operations communities. Our goal is to continue to push the boundaries of observability software and practices, all while having a great time in a casual setting.

This event takes place in the beautiful city of Portland, Oregon. If you haven't already experienced Monitorama, this is a great chance to make our acquaintance.

TICKETS: $400

CascadiaJS is the JavaScript conference for the Pacific Northwest. This year’s event will bring together an amazing group of web developers from across the Pacific Northwest (and beyond). You will find every kind of developer you can imagine:

• Code newbies all the way to senior executives
• Front-end, back-end and full-stack engineers
• Expertise in popular frameworks
• Members of under-represented groups in tech

Over the course of 2 days, you’ll hear 20+ amazing talks by experts in their fields, covering everything from GenAI to TypeScript to leadership. There will be ample opportunities for you to connect with other developers and hiring companies, during coffee breaks, meals and social gatherings at the venue, and karaoke!

RainSec is an informal group of like-minded security professionals who meet to network and discuss topics of interest in a non-work, non-vendor setting.

While our target audience is experienced information security professionals, this is a public event open to any interested parties. If you have a friend or colleague who might benefit, please pass an invite along.

Follow @PDXRainSec on Twitter for last minute updates.

Because COVID-19 still presents significant risk to some members of our community, we ask that you observe the following and make your own risk assessment decision regarding your attendance:

• If outdoor seating is available and weather permits, we will be outside.
• If you are feeling sick, stay home!
• If you've had a recent COVID exposure, stay home!
• If you are not vaccinated, stay home!
• If you are otherwise considered high risk for COVID, please stay home until you feel it is safe to gather in large groups (20-40 people). We don't want to be the cause of anyone's illness or death.

You can also find us on Meetup.com and Google Groups.

If you're looking for more security-focused community meetups in the Portland area, check out pdx-infosec.com.

Why Participate? Pitch Club is an event where entrepreneurs learn the criteria and methods used by real investors to evaluate their venture as a potential investment. This is done by recreating a typical investor meeting where a few companies pitch and receive feedback from TiE Oregon Charter Members. These meetings follow the same basic agenda of an investor meeting with three sections: the pitch, Q&A, and investor discussion & decision.

Who facilitates Pitch Club? Pitch Club is organized by Kari Naone, TiE Oregon Executive Director and led by Tom Kingsley, a TiE Charter Member who is an investor and successful entrepreneur.

What to expect? Please minimally prepare for a 5-minute pitch. If time permits each person could get up to 10 minutes so be prepared for that as well. This can include a slides/ppt that will be presented from your computer. Directly after pitching, Q&A and discussion will take place.

Those who attend pitch club will walk away with a better understanding of what investors look for in a pitch and how to answer the questions possible investor will ask. In addition, each presenter will receive a digital copy of their pitch and feedback from their peers and TiE Charter Members.

Interested in sponsoring Pitch Club - please contact [email protected].

Yeah, no kidding! We’re bringing XOXO back this August 22–24 to Revolution Hall in Portland, one last time.

After the last XOXO in 2019, we had decided to start wrapping things up, planning for one final festival in September 2020. Then obviously the pandemic arrived, derailing our plans entirely, and turns out, postponing them for almost four years.

Since 2019, XOXO sat unfinished in our imaginations, while we’ve watched the world continue to become a more challenging place for independent artists and creators. Many in our community are out of work, crushed by widespread layoffs across the media, games, and tech industries. It feels like many technology companies and platforms are doing everything they can to hurt artists instead of supporting them.

More than ever, we need community and solidarity, to hear each other’s stories, to experience and share our work with each other, to come together and organize to make things better.

Why Attend? Pitch Club is an event where entrepreneurs learn the criteria and methods used by real investors to evaluate their venture as a potential investment. This is done by recreating a typical investor meeting where a few companies pitch and receive feedback from TiE Oregon Charter Members. These meetings follow the same basic agenda of an investor meeting with three sections: the pitch, Q&A, and investor discussion & decision.

Who facilitates Pitch Club? Pitch Club is organized by Kari Naone, TiE Oregon Executive Director and led by Tom Kingsley, a TiE Charter Member who is an investor and successful entrepreneur.

What to expect? Please minimally prepare for a 5-minute pitch. If time permits each person could get up to 10 minutes so be prepared for that as well. This can include a slides/ppt that will be presented from your computer. Directly after pitching, Q&A and discussion will take place.

Those who attend pitch club will walk away with a better understanding of what investors look for in a pitch and how to answer the questions possible investor will ask. In addition, each presenter will receive a digital copy of their pitch and feedback from their peers and TiE Charter Members.

Interested in sponsoring Pitch Club - please contact [email protected].

WordCamp is a conference that focuses on everything WordPress. WordCamps are informal, community-organized events that are put together by WordPress users like you. Everyone from casual users to core developers participate, share ideas, and get to know each other.

Save the date because the first hacklandia happens this October at the old Portland State University Business Accelerator/new westside UpStart Collective location! You will have the opportunity to come to build an idea you have been thinking about or join a team that will be formed to create over 48 hours.

RSVP here: https://hacklandia.splashthat.com/

Space is limited to 150 RSVPs so don't wait. This event will fill up fast!

Why Participate? Pitch Club is an event where entrepreneurs learn the criteria and methods used by real investors to evaluate their venture as a potential investment. This is done by recreating a typical investor meeting where a few companies pitch and receive feedback from TiE Oregon Charter Members. These meetings follow the same basic agenda of an investor meeting with three sections: the pitch, Q&A, and investor discussion & decision.

Who facilitates Pitch Club? Pitch Club is organized by Kari Naone, TiE Oregon Executive Director and led by Tom Kingsley, a TiE Charter Member who is an investor and successful entrepreneur.

What to expect? Please minimally prepare for a 5-minute pitch. If time permits each person could get up to 10 minutes so be prepared for that as well. This can include a slides/ppt that will be presented from your computer. Directly after pitching, Q&A and discussion will take place.

Those who attend pitch club will walk away with a better understanding of what investors look for in a pitch and how to answer the questions possible investor will ask. In addition, each presenter will receive a digital copy of their pitch and feedback from their peers and TiE Charter Members.

Interested in sponsoring Pitch Club - please contact [email protected].

Why Participate?

Pitch Club is an event where entrepreneurs learn the criteria and methods used by real investors to evaluate their venture as a potential investment. This is done by recreating a typical investor meeting where a few companies pitch and receive feedback from TiE Oregon Charter Members. These meetings follow the same basic agenda of an investor meeting with three sections: the pitch, Q&A, and investor discussion & decision.

Who facilitates Pitch Club? Pitch Club is organized by Kari Naone, TiE Oregon Executive Director and led by Tom Kingsley, a TiE Charter Member who is an investor and successful entrepreneur.

What to expect? Please minimally prepare for a 5-minute pitch. If time permits each person could get up to 10 minutes so be prepared for that as well. This can include a slides/ppt that will be presented from your computer. Directly after pitching, Q&A and discussion will take place.

Those who attend pitch club will walk away with a better understanding of what investors look for in a pitch and how to answer the questions possible investor will ask. In addition, each presenter will receive a digital copy of their pitch and feedback from their peers and TiE Charter Members.

Interested in sponsoring Pitch Club - please contact [email protected].