Less than 24 hours to apply for a Side Event at Founder Summit 2026

If you have a brand or product to promote to tech founders and investors, you can apply to gain direct access to an audience of over 1,000 leaders at Founder Summit 2026.

TechCrunch is holding its Founder Summit 2026 in Boston from November 1st to 7th. Interested parties have less than 24 hours to apply to host a "Side Event" during the week. Applications close at midnight PT tonight, October 2nd. These Side Events offer a way for organizations to connect with the summit's attendees, which include founders, investors, partners, and tech leaders. Hosting a Side Event allows for broader brand reach and increased visibility through TechCrunch's official channels. Approved events will be listed on the Side Events page, agenda, mobile app, attendee emails, and featured in a TechCrunch article and on social media. Attendees can also share a ticket discount with their network. The responsibility for all logistics and costs associated with the Side Event falls on the applicant. The event aims to bring together over 1,000 tech leaders.

The call for Side Event applications highlights a strategy by TechCrunch to amplify attendee engagement beyond the main conference. By outsourcing event creation to external entities, TechCrunch can offer a richer, more diverse program without bearing the full production burden. This model allows for broader ecosystem participation, potentially increasing overall attendance and sponsor interest in the main Founder Summit.

This approach also serves as a marketing extension for TechCrunch itself, generating content and buzz across multiple platforms for the summit. For organizers, it's a low-risk, high-reward opportunity to reach a curated audience of tech decision-makers. The emphasis on the applicant covering all logistics and costs indicates a revenue-sharing or cost-recovery model for TechCrunch's event services.