StrictlyVC San Francisco: VCs and Founders

TechCrunch’s first StrictlyVC event of 2026 is set for Thursday, April 30, in San Francisco, with founders and investors gathering for a four-hour evening program. (techcrunch.com) The event will run from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Sentro Filipino Cultural Center, starting with check-in, drinks, and hors d'oeuvres before a slate of onstage interviews. Tickets are listed at $180, and the event page says attendance is limited to guests 21 and older. (techcrunch.com) The speaker list now includes Uber chief technology officer Praveen Neppalli Naga, Replit co-founder and chief executive Amjad Masad, Eclipse founder and chief executive Lior Susan, Forum AI co-founder and chief executive Campbell Brown, and TDK Ventures president Nicolas Sauvage. TechCrunch editor in chief Connie Loizos, senior reporter Tim Fernholz, and venture reporter Marina Temkin are slated to moderate. (techcrunch.com 1) (techcrunch.com 2) The agenda is built around artificial intelligence from several angles. Naga is scheduled to discuss Uber’s systems “in the age of AI,” Masad is booked for a session on software written with AI assistance, and Susan is set to talk about Eclipse’s $1.3 billion push into “physical AI” startups. (techcrunch.com 1) (techcrunch.com 2) Brown’s session adds a media and trust angle. TechCrunch says the former CNN anchor and former Meta news executive will discuss Forum AI as more people turn to large language models for advice and information. (techcrunch.com) Sauvage’s appearance puts corporate venture capital at the center of the night as well. TechCrunch says he leads TDK Ventures’ $500 million investment effort, and the event page lists TDK Ventures as the host and title sponsor. (techcrunch.com) (techcrunch.com) TechCrunch has been adding speakers in stages over the past month, first promoting Masad and Sauvage, then Susan, and most recently Naga on April 24. That rollout has steadily sharpened the event’s focus toward AI infrastructure, software development, and industrial automation. (techcrunch.com) (techcrunch.com) (techcrunch.com) The event page also frames StrictlyVC as a smaller-format series built around interviews and networking rather than a full conference floor. TechCrunch says past StrictlyVC events have featured guests including Sam Altman, Marc Andreessen, Katie Haun, and Hans Tung. (techcrunch.com) For San Francisco founders and investors, the pitch is straightforward: one evening, one room, and a speaker list tied closely to the questions dominating venture right now. By Thursday night, the conversations will move from ticket pages and lineup posts to the stage in SoMa. (techcrunch.com) (newsletter.strictlyvc.com)