Chicago Startup Week – An open invitation to engage in and experience Chicago’s entrepreneurial community – this March 15-19.
Chicago Startup Week (CSW) 2021 announced registration is now open for its week-long celebration of the city’s thriving startup community. This year’s edition will mobilize Chicago’s entrepreneurial community to connect students from various universities and high schools in an empowering and engaging environment, ideal for networking and learning. Students can participate in CSW to develop their entrepreneurial mindset and make significant connections to student peers, mentors, and tech industry professionals that can move them forward in their entrepreneurship journey.
“Chicago is home to one of the most vibrant and fastest-growing tech scenes in the world, and Chicago Startup Week will serve to inspire our best and brightest students to take part in our global startup hub,” said Samir Mayekar, Deputy Mayor Economic Development & Neighborhoods. “From its many events, information sessions, leadership seminars, and more, this year’s experience will connect students with the fantastic opportunities available here in Chicago and help drive our city’s future for decades to come.”
The CSW organizing committee includes Techstars Chicago and Illinois Tech’s Intinium, in partnership with UIUC Founders, UChicago ILC-E&I, The Garage at Northwestern, Loyola Limited, Lane Tech Protostars from Chicago Public Schools, and the City Colleges of Chicago. Additional partners include ThinkChicago of World Business Chicago, Gokyo Solutions, and The Coleman Foundation.
“Intinium at Illinois Tech is delighted to lead the renewal of Chicago Startup Week,” said Justine Bracco, Project Lead of Intinium. “We can’t wait for students to enjoy the incredible speakers and events and learn more about the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Chicago.”
Chicago Startup Week will include around 30 individual events such as customer discovery, IP strategy, and women-in-entrepreneurship surrounding topics such as entrepreneurial behaviors and the Chicago startup & innovation ecosystem.
Each day will also be themed to bring more cohesion to the programs, these include things like Mythbusters Monday where all the events will be either proving or disproving a common myth about entrepreneurship.
CSW 2021 will also include larger programs that will span the entire week and even beyond including a Pitch competition, Startup Symposium, and mentorship program.
Chicago Startup Week is a five-day celebration of our local community,” said Neal Sales-Griffin, Managing Director of Techstars Chicago and local serial tech entrepreneur. “We’re calling all students to join our community in a new type of conference that builds momentum and opportunity around entrepreneurship, led by an all-student organizing committee. CSW 2021 is a reflection of Chicago’s diverse and unique entrepreneurial identity.”
REGISTER HERE: CSW 2021 is free and open to the public, you can register via chicagostartupweek.com
Press Release by World Business Chicago (WBC). WBC is a public-private, nonprofit partnership that drives inclusive economic growth and job creation, supports business, and promotes Chicago as a leading global city.