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SF IRL - Dec 1st, 2025

A curated newsletter showcasing the top tech & startup events in San Francisco

Author

Jonathan Chang
December 01, 2025

Hi SF IRL! There's a ton of vibrance and energy coming back into the city and at SF IRL, we are excited to be a part of it. Excited to come with you all with some great events for Issue #172. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving and wishing you an amazing December.

I'm Jonathan, the creator of SF IRL. I've been a Bay Area resident all my life and moved into San Francisco about 4 years ago. My full-time job is at Brex where I meet founders and VCs while trying to create a community in the city. My vision for SF IRL is simple. Showcase the best tech + startup events in SF and to connect all of our builders and investors together. We are a growing community having over 9000+ subscribers. As we keep growing, if you enjoy reading these, please share this with your friends so we can hit 10,000 readers. As always, SF IRL is one of my many side projects. If you like to be involved in helping, please shoot me an email!

Day ZeroMeeting the top folks in tech, find your next cofounder, and your next role

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-8pm

What: Product is changing faster than the job descriptions that used to define it. Designers are shipping end-to-end, engineers are talking to customers, and AI tools are collapsing entire workflows. So what does great product design look like now?

Lightfield is hosting an intimate fireside chat with Jonathan Arena, co-founder of New Generation - the startup building AI-powered storefronts that put “a brain behind every pixel on the web.” Jonathan previously led Consumer Product Design at Patreon, designed core photo + community experiences at Facebook used by billions, led design for the Portal AI hardware OS, and managed design for Cruise’s driverless rider experience.

He’ll be sharing lessons from building beloved consumer products, how AI is reshaping interface design, and what it means to craft products that feel magical in an AI-native world.

I’ve made a form to connect the best founders raising with my list of VCs. If you are a founder raising your next round and want to potentially be featured to investors in the SF IRL network, please fill out this form.

I’m launching a newsletter that will feature the top founders looking to hire, founders looking for their cofounder, and operators that are looking for their next role. If you are interested in being featured, fill this form here.

You can subscribe to Day Zero here.

Events Coming Up

Dec 2nd, 2025 - Helium Builders Bootcamp

Location: San Francisco

Time: 5-8pm

What: ​A hands-on evening for Helium builders in San Francisco.

Join us for builder-focused programming followed by networking.

Whether you're deploying your first Hotspot or scaling your network, learn the practical skills to succeed.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 5:30-8pm

What: Join us for a casual happy hour at Barbarossa Lounge, where professionals and enthusiasts in life sciences, techbio, healthcare, and health tech can connect, swap ideas, and unwind after work.

Dec 3rd, 2025 - Get YC Ready!

Location: Palo Alto

Time: 6-8pm

What: ​Thinking about applying to Y Combinator? This 2-hour live session could give you the edge.

​Join YC Founders for a hands-on workshop breaking down what it really takes to stand out in the YC application process and pitch with confidence under pressure.

​What you’ll get out of it:

  • ​A real-time teardown of the YC application, what works, what doesn’t

  • ​Live founder pitch reviews: 5 spots available (optional, first-come basis)

  • ​An open Q&A with YC alumni

  • ​A practical founder checklist and resources to help you apply

Location: San Francisco

Time: 5:30-7:30pm

What: What We'll Explore:

  • ​How AI's massive energy hunger is changing communities and infrastructure

  • ​How AI is creating an energy revolution on the demand side

  • ​AI and it's use within the energy industry - the ways in which innovative software and machine learning can unlock new sources of energy and capabilities for energy companies

  • ​Real stories from the trenches: where is energy now? where is energy going? What will it be like in 15 years?

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-8pm

What: Product is changing faster than the job descriptions that used to define it. Designers are shipping end-to-end, engineers are talking to customers, and AI tools are collapsing entire workflows. So what does great product design look like now?

Lightfield is hosting an intimate fireside chat with Jonathan Arena, co-founder of New Generation - the startup building AI-powered storefronts that put “a brain behind every pixel on the web.” Jonathan previously led Consumer Product Design at Patreon, designed core photo + community experiences at Facebook used by billions, led design for the Portal AI hardware OS, and managed design for Cruise’s driverless rider experience.

He’ll be sharing lessons from building beloved consumer products, how AI is reshaping interface design, and what it means to craft products that feel magical in an AI-native world.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-9pm

What: The frontier we focus on cultivating at SPC is all about blending research, product, and engineering. this demo night — "in the lab" — brings together a wide range of builders who defy the boundaries between the three.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6:30-8:30pm

What: Join us for our end of year dynamism mixer co-hosted by James from a16z and supported by Vanta.

It's been a busy year with lots to celebrate! This intimate event brings together founders of hyper-growth companies actively hiring via dynamism, exceptional builders and operator investors in our network.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 5:30-8pm

What: We're happy to invite you to another amazing gathering of The AI Collective San Francisco!

​This time, we'll be hosted at AWS Builder Loft for an evening of connections, light snacks, insightful conversation, and fascinating talks.

​We'll host our own community experts, who will share their insights about Agents, Feedback loops, and everything in between:

Location: San Francisco

Time: 5:30-8pm

What: ​Grab your holiday sweaters and join Auth0, DigitalOcean, and Intercom for a festive evening of trivia and networking ☃️

​Let’s test your knowledge on AI, the Cloud, and other tech topics.

  • ​5:30-6:00 pm: Networking, food, & hot cocoa ☕

  • ​6:00-7:00 pm: Trivia and Winners Announced 🌟

  • ​​7:00-8:00 pm: Networking and Close

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-9pm

What: 2025 has been nothing short of historic – record crowds, breakout startups, and a wave of innovation that’s reshaped the city’s tech scene. This December, we’re finishing stronger than ever with our grand finale: 8 hand-picked pre-Series A demos that prove why San Francisco remains the beating heart of AI.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 10:30am-12pm

What: South Park Commons is delighted to host Kevin Scott, CTO of Microsoft, as part of our -1 to Now series!

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-8:30pm

What: AI is reshaping how the best product teams build. Join us for a private dinner with the leaders driving that change.

​Unicorner + Bolt.new are bringing together 20 Heads of Product, Product Leads, and Founders for a private, curated dinner. Expect sharp insights, great food, and an honest conversation about where AI fits into product strategy. Featuring special guest, Bolt CEO Eric Simons.

Location: San Francisco

Time: 6-8:30pm

What: ​Join Harrison Chase (Co-founder and CEO, LangChain) and Jason Ginsberg (Head of Engineering, Product at Cursor) for a fireside chat on coding agent UX, how teams are building with Cursor, and what trends Jason is excited about as we head into 2026.

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