Venture Café Phoenix

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Venture Café Phoenix

Connecting innovators to make things happen 💥

05/18/2026

Some Thursday Gatherings are less about one topic and more about who the room brings together.

This Thursday, Venture Café Phoenix brings together people working across accessibility, artificial intelligence, clean energy, entrepreneurship, healthcare, hospitality, and civic innovation.

The throughline is practical: how do we build a city that is easier to navigate, easier to contribute to, and better prepared for what comes next?

That question takes more than one kind of person to answer. It takes founders and operators, caregivers and technologists, hospitality professionals and sustainability leaders, people with lived experience, and people who know how to turn an idea into infrastructure.

If you have been looking for a room where the future of Phoenix feels a little more tangible, this is a good week to be here.

05/15/2026

May 14 at Venture Cafe Phoenix: personalized wellness, founder stories, mentor hours, startup finance, and health tech demos in one Thursday night.

What we loved:

- Women Entrepreneur Network on the audacity to build
- Practical startup finance conversations
- Mentor hours for e-commerce and AI adoption
- AI, longevity, epigenetics, and DNA insights on the main stage
- Live demos of next-gen health tools
- The lobby conversations between it all

This happens every Thursday from 4:30 to 7:00 PM.

Free. Open. Just show up.

Link in bio to register.

PhoenixAZ

05/13/2026

Get your startup’s finances organized and ready to grow with QuickBooks Online at Venture Cafe this Thursday. Alexander McElfish will be here to help!

05/11/2026

Healthcare is no longer one-size-fits-all.

It is moving toward proactive, deeply personalized models driven by your unique data.

This Thursday, May 14, at Venture Café Phoenix, we are exploring “Turning DNA into Decisions: The Future of Genomics, DNA Data, Health and AI.”

Join us as we dive into how artificial intelligence, longevity research, and epigenetics are redefining disease prevention and health optimization.

Swipe through the carousel to see this week’s lineup, featuring:

The Audacity to Build: Mindset & Vision
with Sharon Ducati (Phoenix Bioscience Core)

Rewriting Health: AI, Longevity & Personalized Wellness
with Zachary Brooks, PhD, Marco Schito, PhD, and Susan Trapp (UGenome)

Personalized Wellness in Action (Live Demos)
with Komal Sharma, Marissa Rodriguez, PhD, and Stephen Ward (MedOAuth)

Plus, our weekly Mentor Hours.

Where: Venture Café Phoenix
When: Thursday, May 14, 4:30 – 7:00 PM
Cost: Free, as always.

Grab a drink, bring your curiosity, and come connect with the innovators building the future of health in Phoenix. See you Thursday.

PhoenixEntrepreneurs Innovation FemaleFounders

05/04/2026

Some of the most exciting work in life sciences right now is coming out of classrooms and student organizations. This Thursday, we’re putting that work front and center.

Gathering #188 is all about the students and researchers who are turning academic science into real companies. We’re partnering with Nucleate Arizona to bring together students, founders, researchers, and ecosystem leaders to dig into how that actually happens.

Here’s what’s on the schedule:

Nucleate AZ: How Students are Building Biotech
5:45-6:15 PM | CEI Main Stage

Nucleate helps students turn research ideas into real biotech ventures. Ayden Hall, Dante Dennis Acenas II, and Anwar Khaddaj from Nucleate Arizona will walk through what the organization does locally and globally, and how its education, mentorship, and network are showing up in Arizona’s life sciences community.

In collaboration with Nucleate, Sponsored by CEI

Panel: The Future of the AZ Biotech Ecosystem
6:15-6:45 PM | CEI Main Stage

Don Weber (CEI), Noreen Scheu (Arizona Commerce Authority), Joanna Yang Yowler (Flinn Foundation), and Dante Dennis Acenas II (Nucleate) sit down together to talk about where Arizona biotech is headed and why investing in student talent matters now.

In collaboration with Nucleate, Sponsored by CEI

LEGO Serious Play Workshop: Unlock “What If...”
3:30-5:30 PM | CEI South Classroom

Patrick McNeil from Chart House Solutions leads a hands-on workshop combining analytical thinking with intuition. You’ll build 3D models representing your organizational challenges and walk away with new strategies.

GIG (Global Innovation through Gathering)
5:00-5:45 PM | CEI Conference Room

This week features fellows from the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative sharing their work and connecting with the Phoenix innovation community. Moderated by Melissa Armas.

Decomposing Venture
4:00-5:00 PM

An open conversation exploring what venture means, who it serves, and what it could look like if we reimagined it.

Thursday, May 7 | 5-7 PM
850 N 5th St, Phoenix AZ
Free and open to all. Link in bio to register.

05/01/2026

320+ people came to last night’s Thursday Gathering.

The Global AI & Innovation Exchange — Taiwanese investors and Phoenix founders in the same room, a session on AI that went past the buzzwords, and exhibitor tables where people actually stopped to ask questions.

A few things worth noting:

→ “Harvesting Collective Genius” explored how teams are using AI together, practically
→ Founders from Taiwan shared what brought them to Phoenix
→ The exhibitor tables were busy the entire evening

This happens every Thursday. 4:30 to 7. Free. Open to anyone.

Link in bio to register for next week.

04/27/2026

Global AI and Innovation Exchange · Gathering #187
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📅Thursday, April 30
📍850 N 5th St.
🕓4:30 - 7:00 PM
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Free and open to all. Link in bio to register.
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This Thursday is a full one. Swipe through for the full program.
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(Slide 2) International Startup Mixer · 4:30–7:00 PM · Patio · Founders and community builders from across the globe. Good conversations, no agenda required. Sponsored by the Arizona Commerce Authority’s International Trade and Investment Office.
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(Slide 3) Guided Tours · 4:30–7:30 PM · Tours of the Taiwan AI Smart Health Showcase Center run every 15 minutes. Sign up in the lobby when you arrive. Sponsored by Huija Health.
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(Slide 4) Taiwan AI Smart Health Showcase · 5:45–6:45 PM · CEI Main Stage · Live demos and hands-on time with AI-driven care systems, advanced sensing tech, and digital health solutions built for real-world deployment. Sponsored by Huija Health.
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(Slide 5) Startup Finance 101 · 5:00–6:00 PM · CEI South Classroom · Alex McElfish of Narrowgate Ventures walks founders through revenue modeling, key business levers, and projections that tell your company’s real story.
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(Slide 6) AI Meetup · 5:00–5:45 PM · ASU Space · What if your team could do more without adding headcount? Sabrina Valdez of The Next Move Consulting covers how to put AI tools and agents to work on the repeatable stuff. Powered by Serpico AI Learning Center, CEI, and Alimental Business.
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(Slide 7) The Main Street Succession Crisis · 6:00–6:45 PM · ASU Space · Malcolm Marzett and Erik Schlesinger on what it takes to build a business you can actually step away from. In collaboration with Build Scale Prosper and MZT:1990INC.
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04/25/2026

When Tahmina attended her first Venture Café event on December 17, she arrived with a vision. Watch this video to learn how she realized her app Waitstop in just four months.

04/21/2026

This Thursday, Gathering #186 brings the answer across three rooms and the main stage. A fireside chat with Colleen McLeod Garner, Taryn Struck, and Skip Williams on what it actually takes to build in space and what Arizona’s growing role means for founders here.
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An inside look at global space programs from David Ariosto.
A session on turning game mechanics into real marketing revenue with Jason Hsieh.
A venture finance workshop with Alex McElfish for founders building their financial story.
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And one-on-one mentor hours with Tahmina Ghaforova and Robert Walker.
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Swipe to meet this Thursday’s speakers.
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Thursday, April 23 · 5–7 PM 850 N 5th St., Phoenix AZ · Free and open to all.
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Link in bio to register!
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Address

850 N 5th Street
Phoenix, AZ
85004

Opening Hours

5pm - 7pm

Website

https://venturecafephoenix.org/

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