We have one word for you: plastics. We are lucky to have two speakers at this hardware meetup, both with experience in injection molding. Come learn from their personal journeys with this manufacturing technique.

Brandon Gamm of PRIXEL Press will share lessons in quality control from a factory visit to Dongguan, China. "Before I took off, I kept wondering, 'Do I really need to be there?' The tooling was already made and fit dialed in. Still, the thought of possibly receiving 250,000 unusable PRIXEL sorts because I didn't care enough to visit kept nagging at me."

Sam Wechsler, an engineer and entrepreneur, will share his experiences with recycling 3D prints, how plastics extrusion works and how it applies to 3D printing and injection molding.

How to find us: Find street parking anywhere downtown (free after 5pm). Enter the vestibule at 30 3RD St. Ring the doorbell. Sign in at the front desk. Join us in the Community Room.

Tech Valley Center of Gravity is an affiliated partner of Innovate 518.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Lally School of Management will host Invest Capital Region: Life Sciences + Healthcare, our second demo day to showcase emerging startups, invite investors to Upstate New York, and build connections within and across the investment ecosystem.

Registration closes April 23, 2024, so please register early as space is limited.

Bots and Brews

*Manufacturers Only Event*

Join us for an opportunity to mingle with fellow manufacturers.

Meet the owners of Murray's Fools Distilling Company and Adirondack Barrell Cooperage, and enjoy a complimentary tour and tasting at both establishments.

Appetizers will be provided, and a cash bar will be available for drinks.

Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to connect with industry peers!

🌟 Network with fellow founders and industry experts.
🌟 Gain valuable insights and tips for scaling your startup.
🌟 Enjoy refreshments and drinks in a relaxed atmosphere.

Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting your journey, this is an event you won't want to miss.

Don’t miss your chance to connect with other entrepreneurs, find resources to support your startup, and seek advice from investors and advisors.

Keynote Speakers: Timmy Oh and Christine Tate, Co-Founders of Vara Safety

Registration is free but required.

Attention Innovators and Dreamers:

What if we told you pigs could fly? The Flying Pig Society was created to inspire innovation. Our mission is to foster a mindset and community of skilled innovators. If you want to learn the skills necessary to innovate solutions to problems worth solving, come fly with us!

Join us for a special Pig Tale (seminar) on April 18th at 5:30 pm. Our speaker, Bill Hoffman, is co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Kitware, a company that provides advanced technical computing, state-of-the-art AI and tailored software solutions. Bill will share his story on creating an international computer software company built on open-source technology.

Please join us in the Biotech Center auditorium on the RPI campus in Troy. Free parking off of College Avenue. Food and drinks will be served.

Where pigs can fly, there are no boundaries. Unleash your inner innovator.

❗️ Startup Tech Valley is BACK❗️

📣Calling all entrepreneurs, startups/employees, mentors, investors, students & more!

Join us Wednesday 4/17, 5:30pm at Brown's Revolution Hall to network and hear from innovative startups. Presented in collaboration by CEG, Innovate 518 and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

No Cost to attend; RSVP Required.

What is Startup Tech Valley?

Meetup for first-time entrepreneurs, experienced entrepreneurs, aspiring entrepreneurs, investors, mentors, students, employees of startups, service providers to startups, and anyone else who wants to be involved or is curious.

What to Expect:

• Connect + Engage. Start with networking and then get introduced to startups through informal pitch sessions.

• No cost to attend, however RSVP is required.

• Light refreshments will be provided. Cash bar available.

• 5:30pm Networking | 6:00 - 7:00pm Pitch Sessions

Can’t see the button? Register at https://bit.ly/SUTV-2024

AMA with A Lawyer: Legal Considerations for Work Contracts, Scope of Work, and NDAs for Startups is your opportunity to learn everything you ever wanted to know about the legal side of your startup when it comes to customers and partners but didn’t know who or what to ask. We’ll be joined by the Albany Law School Community Economic Development Clinic team, including Fermin M Mendez (director).

In this interactive session, attendees will have the unique opportunity to gain invaluable insights into the nuances of crafting work contracts, defining the scope of work, and implementing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) based on the specific needs of startups.

The event kicks off with a 30-minute workshop covering essential legal considerations for startups, including best practices for structuring work contracts, delineating clear scopes of work, and safeguarding intellectual property through effective NDAs.

Following the informative presentation, attendees will have the opportunity to engage in a dynamic Q&A session with our presenter.

Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or embarking on your first startup journey, this event promises to equip you with invaluable legal insights for navigating the complexities of work contracts, scope of work, and NDAs. Don't miss this opportunity to equip your startup toolbox with the knowledge needed to ensure legal compliance and mitigate risks in your startup endeavors.

[Disclaimer: The information provided during this program is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter or creating an attorney-client relationship of any kind.]

Can’t see the button? Register at this link: https://bit.ly/ama-albany-law

NSF I-Corps @ UAlbany

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Hosted by UAlbany Innovation Center. Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAqde-grDsjGdJhgI6yvsFb5LgnfZkAK0sJ

Attention Innovators and Dreamers:

What if we told you pigs could fly? The Flying Pig Society was created to inspire innovation. Our mission is to foster a mindset and community of skilled innovators. If you want to learn the skills necessary to innovate solutions to problems worth solving, come fly with us!

Join us for a special free workshop on March 21st at 5:00pm. Our speaker, Geoff Ledet, is an award winning graphic designer and entrepreneur who has created branding and identity strategies for hundreds of products, individuals, and companies. He will share secrets for creating a brand that inspires and he will discuss how an identity can change the trajectory of an organization.

Please join us at the Heffner Alumni House in Troy. Free parking off of Peoples Avenue. Food and drinks will be served.

Where pigs can fly, there are no boundaries. Unleash your inner innovator.

Thursday March 21, 2024 @ 5 pm

Heffner Alumni House

1301 People Ave., Troy, NY 12180

Free + Easy Parking

Incubators are meant to be temporary homes for startups. At some point, startups must flee the nest, and thoughtful planning is key to a smooth transition.

March's Lunch and Learn is all about your company's current and future growth. Considering your company's space needs is an essential part of strategic planning. The right space can enable sustainable growth. This session will focus on space options in the Capital Region and what founders need to consider when looking for space.

Companies that want to take advantage of the tax incentives of START-UP NY will be particularly interested in learning about spaces located in the Tax-Free Area (TFA).

Join us at Launchbox, the Capital Region’s brand-new flexible warehouse and co-working space, located in Latham, NY. We’ll be joined by representatives from Rosenblum & Companies, one of our TFA space partners, who will describe the opportunities available to you and provide a tour of Launchbox. Lunch will be served.

Registration is required. This event is in-person only.

This event is hosted by UAlbany Innovation Center, with support from Innovate 518.

NSF I-Corps @ UAlbany

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Hosted by UAlbany Innovation Center. Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAqde-grDsjGdJhgI6yvsFb5LgnfZkAK0sJ

After you have conquered the concise articulation of what your business does, you need to be able to tell your startup story to potential stakeholders. You will be asked about it many times. Investors, partners, potential cofounders all need to feel your passion for the work you do and understand how you got where you are. Learn how to craft this story with a beginning, a middle and an end regardless of where you are in the startup journey.

About Our Speaker:

Jessica Fields has focused on entrepreneurs throughout her career, working at several start-ups. She served as the Network Manager for Savor the Success, an all-female entrepreneurial network in NYC, where she developed a mentor program for the network, overseeing the first three cohorts. Fields was also an Assistant Managing Editor for Odyssey, a startup based around a social-content platform for millennial thought leaders when fewer than thirty people were on the NY team. She shifted the company to an inclusive focus, managed over a dozen sites, and created a scaled program to develop the platform’s contributors. As coordinator at Kaplan International, she wore many hats, including business developer, human resources trainer, event manager, teacher, and assessment contractor.

She serves as Project Director for NYCRIN and the CUNY I-Corps Site. As a nationally trained TA for the I-Corps program, she manages the NYCRIN I-Corps programs nationally and regionally, as well as outreach, marketing, and compiling metrics.

This program is offered by UAlbany Innovation Center, with support from Innovate 518.

This is a virtual event. Registration required.

Join this in-person workshop to explore the key elements of PR and how it can be used for your business. This workshop will explore how to prepare your business for PR and choose the correct PR channels for your business.

Hosted by S.T.E.A.M Garden and presented by Community Loan Fund

Presenter Bio:

Sharon Leid, a seasoned Publicity Strategist, with over 20 years of expertise in the Public/Media/Community Relations Industry.  Holding prestigious positions such as Executive Director for the Community Relations Bureau in the Kings County DA Office and Executive Director Of External, Community, Media and Government Relations for the One Brooklyn Health System.

In 2015, Sharon founded NetStruc PR LLC with a passionate dedication to assisting small businesses in uncovering their newsworthiness and unique storytelling. She believes in creating tailored PR Campaigns for each client, ensuring that their brand and needs are met.

Sharon’s mission is to help clients “Increase Brand Awareness, Build Creditability, Show Expertise, Increase Prospects and growth in Profits.”

Navigate material changes seamlessly with the Advanced Materials Manufacturing Accelerator—Prioritize, test, and optimize with industry experts by your side.

Explore a streamlined manufacturing journey, discover resources, funding, and industry connections. Join our virtual info session with selected experts Mike Riedlinger and Mike Marvin to see if the Manufacturing Accelerator is your next step.

Presented by Fuzehub. Register on Eventbrite.

NSF I-Corps Info Session

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAqde-grDsjGdJhgI6yvsFb5LgnfZkAK0sJ

Attention Innovators and Dreamers:

What if we told you pigs could fly? The Flying Pig Society was created to inspire innovation. Our mission is to foster a mindset and community of skilled innovators. If you want to learn the skills necessary to innovate solutions to problems worth solving, come fly with us! 

If you are interested in having a leadership role in innovation and entrepreneurship in our region, come to the next meeting of the Flying Pig Society. We will discuss future plans for the FPS, upcoming events, speakers, workshops, and the new innovation consulting network. We are also looking for future leaders who want to fly with the executive committee and lead innovation in the region.

Wednesday January 24, 2024 @ 5 pm

Bruggeman Conference Room, Biotech Center, RPI Campus

Food and drinks will be provided!

RSVP HERE

Where pigs can fly, there are no boundaries. Unleash your inner innovator.

Explore the intentional design of cutting-edge materials, leveraging the latest advancements in synthesis and characterization for enhanced properties. Discover how these materials drive innovation in the high-tech sector.

Presented by Fuzehub

Register at their site: https://ecornell.cornell.edu/keynotes/overview/K012424/

Introducing yourself and what you do can be difficult as an entrepreneur or an early employee of a startup. The day-to-day intricacies of what you do best can distract you from the bigger picture of your organization’s societal impact.

Join us (founders and employees) to learn how to summarize what you do in your company so others can easily understand your impact. We’ll discuss the elevator pitch sentence, the executive summary (one-pager), and the job posting. Three applications that benefit from concise articulation of your company’s awesomeness.

This two-part workshop will introduce tools that can be used in multiple settings. We’ll learn together, then return on 1/24/23 to share our progress in a follow-up session.

This is a virtual event. Registration required.

Introducing yourself and what you do can be difficult as an entrepreneur or an early employee of a startup. The day-to-day intricacies of what you do best can distract you from the bigger picture of your organization’s societal impact.

Join us (founders and employees) to learn how to summarize what you do in your company so others can easily understand your impact. We’ll discuss the elevator pitch sentence, the executive summary (one-pager), and the job posting. Three applications that benefit from concise articulation of your company’s awesomeness.

This two-part workshop will introduce tools that can be used in multiple settings. We’ll learn together, then return on 1/24/23 to share our progress in a follow-up session.

This is a hybrid event.

Lunch will be served. Registration required.

This month, we’re talking electrical prototyping! Whether you’re an electrical wizard or just getting started out, you’re invited to join the conversation. Longtime TVCOG member and volunteer Konstantin Avdashchenko has built a plethora of electrical prototypes for work and fun. He will talk through how he approaches bringing a prototype from idea to reality through the lens of one of his more recent projects (a gate valve lamp, which uses a custom hall effect sensor, a component found in many devices that convert mechanical motion into data). Expect a conversation delving into:

• Useful design software

• Component selection

• Circuit board manufacturing services

• Testing & programming

• Assembly and breaking things

• and more!

Konstantin is an Electrical Design Engineer, specializing in electronic design and firmware development for custom electronic sub-assemblies. He attended Union College, where he earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering with a Nanotechnology Minor.

How to find us: Find street parking anywhere downtown (free after 5pm). Enter the vestibule at 30 3RD St. Ring the doorbell. Sign in at the front desk. Join us in the Community Room.

NSF I-Corps Info Session

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAqde-grDsjGdJhgI6yvsFb5LgnfZkAK0sJ

Attention Innovators and Dreamers:

What if we told you pigs could fly? The Flying Pig Society was created to inspire innovation. Our mission is to foster a mindset and community of skilled innovators. If you want to learn the skills necessary to innovate solutions to problems worth solving, come fly with us! 

Join us for a special workshop on December 6th at 5:00pm. Our speaker, Matt Pinckney, JD is an attorney who specializes in intellectual property (patents). Matt will talk about strategies for inventors to build value through a robust patent portfolio.

Please join us at the Rensselaer Alumni House, 1301 Peoples Avenue, Troy. Free, easy parking. Food and drinks will be served. Scan the QR code for more information.

Where pigs can fly, there are no boundaries. Unleash your inner innovator.

The 8th Annual Awards Ceremony, presented by Upstate Capital Association of New York recognizes the most deals and the most active dealmakers across the state. Jack Greco, Co-founder & GP of Farout VC and Co-founder of ACV Auctions, will be the host.

NSF I-Corps Info Session

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAqde-grDsjGdJhgI6yvsFb5LgnfZkAK0sJ

NSF I-Corps Info Session

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEoduCqpjIoGtepkKJA3WjLDN-QiTr3MxUb#/registration

NSF I-Corps Info Session

Condensed entrepreneurship education for STEM researchers

Join this info session to learn more about the I-Corps program and whether it is right for you!

What is I-Corps?

The National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) makes entrepreneurial training and mentoring available to academic researchers and entrepreneurs. The University at Albany is part of the New York Region I-Corps Hub.

The program helps researchers of diverse backgrounds bring their scientific and engineering discoveries to the marketplace as commercial ventures that spur economic growth and narrow long-standing racial and gender disparities in the STEM workforce. 

Held on Zoom.

Can’t see the button above? Here’s the link: https://albany.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEoduCqpjIoGtepkKJA3WjLDN-QiTr3MxUb#/registration