A new three-day event will put the spotlight on Chicago's tech scene next month, with speakers ranging from Gov. J.B. Pritzker to Obama Foundation CEO David Simas. Even rapper Pusha T will make an appearance.
The event, called TechChicago Week, will take place July 12–14 and is spearheaded by P33 and World Business Chicago. It's the brainchild of Claude Cimeus, P33's new director of platform and experience, who transformed what was intended as a one-day conference into a multi-day event series with afterparties designed to merge Chicago's startup community with the city's culture and nightlife, Cimeus told Chicago Inno.
Cimeus, who previously worked for Chicago tech unicorn ActiveCampaign and was one of Chicago Inno's previous 25 Under 25 honorees, has been actively working to connect Chicago's tech community through in-person events since the Covid-19 pandemic. He helped launch ChiTechIRL, a startup event and networking group that launched a series of events in Chicago.
Cimeus says he eventually wants Chicago to own an event like Austin's SXSW, which combines the city's tech community with its arts and culture scene. TechChicago Week is a step forward in seeing that goal through.
"I've always had the dream of Chicago having its own SXSW," he said.
Gov. Pritzker will speak on Tuesday. Wednesday's programming will focus on Chicago's underrepresented founders in an event called The Cookout, which will feature tech leaders like Alkeme Health's Ryan Mundy, Capitalize VC's Tessa Flippin, Cashdrop's Ruben Flores-Martinez, Science on Call's Luisa Castellanos and others.
Thursday features an afternoon of more startup and VC panels, with familiar names like M1 Finance's Brian Barnes, Tasty Trade's Kristi Ross, Starting Line's Ezra Galston and Chingona Ventures' Samara Hernandez scheduled to speak. Afterparties during the week will feature DJ Commando, the official DJ of Chicago Bulls, and Grammy-nominated rapper Pusha T.
It's a lineup that Cimeus hopes will help create the "most memorable tech event in Chicago’s history."
The events are free and open to the public. Cimeus said he expects more than 1,500 to attend throughout the week. You can find more information on the schedule and ticketing here.
