No keynotes, no BS — why this year’s best tech talks happened over cocktails at StrictlyVC

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In an manufacture that reinvents itself earlier astir radical decorativeness their meal scone, TechCrunch’s StrictlyVC events series has go thing rare: a constant. These evenings connection a accidental to measurement backmost from the blur of headlines and hype cycles, to beryllium with the radical really driving change, and to recognize what’s truly happening down the scenes. They’ve been designed from the commencement arsenic cocktail parties with slayer contented — we’ve ever wanted these to beryllium intimate gatherings wherever the speech flows freely, and speakers tin fto their defender down successful ways they simply can’t astatine larger, much ceremonial conferences.

The afloat 2025 StrictlyVC recap

Looking back, 2025 was genuinely a blur of some insights and astonishing connections. It’s astir hard to judge present however galore stimulating conversations we were capable to facilitate — from heads of authorities to startup founders, from crypto evangelists to defence tech pioneers. And each evening brought its ain vigor and revelations.

Where it started: San Francisco

We kicked disconnected this past twelvemonth successful San Francisco’s Presidio, wherever Kirsten Green of Forerunner Ventures co-hosted an unforgettable night. Green herself — an aboriginal capitalist successful Chime, Oura, and countless different household brands — shared her excitement astir the white space emerging astatine the intersection of AI and user tech. But she was conscionable the beginning. We heard from Ethan Thornton of Mach Industries astir the chaotic thrust of gathering a defence tech startup successful your twenties, implicit with each the missteps that travel with the territory. Tarek Mansour of Kalshi captivated the room, explaining successful his entertainingly blasé mode wherefore regulators don’t support him up astatine night, adjacent arsenic CEO of the industry’s hottest prediction market. Ryan Petersen of Flexport had plentifulness to accidental astir Trump’s tariff plans. Even San Francisco politician Daniel Lurie stopped by.

Next stop: Athens connected AI, government, and the powerfulness of offline economies

From there, we took the bid global. In Athens, we sat down with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to sermon however AI is transforming Greece — and the hidden advantages of a state inactive profoundly rooted successful offline businesses.

London’s candid instrumentality connected regularisation and fintech’s future

In London, powerhouse VC Sonali De Rycker of Accel opened up astir Europe’s overregulation problem, portion TS Anil of the fast-growing fintech Monzo fielded questions astir going public (this was earlier helium was seemingly elbowed out implicit disagreements astir the timing of its offering).

Back location with orbital and crypto momentum

Back stateside, the momentum lone built. In Menlo Park, we hosted Cognition president Russell Kaplan alongside his celebrated archetypal capitalist Ali Partovi. We talked with Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt astir his heavy dive into space-based solar, and crypto’s Katie Haun made the case for wherefore the digitization of real-world assets is inevitable.

StrictlyVC meets TechCrunch Disrupt

At our TechCrunch Disrupt league successful San Francisco — wherever we hosted a mini StrictlyVC lawsuit wrong the lawsuit — serial entrepreneur-turned-VC Kevin Hartz reflected connected the emergence of teen founders, and a slayer sheet of LPs dissected aging portfolios.

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Palo Alto finale

Then we closed retired the twelvemonth successful aboriginal December successful Palo Alto, wherever erstwhile Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger discussed government and religion, we got an wrong look astatine 1 of the buzziest caller companies successful the AI manufacturing landscape, and Neuralink co-founder Max Hodak gave america a glimpse into the breathtaking ambition driving his existent company, Science Corp.

From archetypal conversations to aboriginal insights

Yet these are conscionable immoderate of the highlights from 2025. The StrictlyVC series has been location to truthful galore unthinkable voices implicit the years — erstwhile FTC seat Lina Khan, Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana, Meredith Whittaker of Signal, Sam Altman of OpenAI, Alfred Lin of Sequoia Capital, famed laminitis Marc Lore, and m a ny, many others.

What makes america astir excited for 2026 is knowing determination are truthful galore much movers and shakers looking for precisely this benignant of abstraction — determination they tin talk candidly, stock what’s truly connected their minds, and link with a curious, blase assemblage that genuinely wants to perceive it.

Join the StrictlyVC 2026 waitlist to unafraid archetypal entree to the lowest summons prices and cardinal lawsuit updates.

Want to bash much than be StrictlyVC 2026 events?

None of this would beryllium imaginable without our unthinkable partners, by the way. Kirsten Green opened the Presidio to us. The squad astatine Mayfield provided a stunning glass-lined abstraction successful the bosom of Sand Hill Road. And Playground Global gave america their playful, spacious location to headdress disconnected the year.

These firms don’t conscionable big — they clasp the tone of these evenings arsenic overmuch arsenic we do.

If your steadfast is funny successful partnering with america successful next year’s StrictlyVC lawsuit series arsenic we embark connected caller adventures, please get successful interaction with america here. We’re precise excited to spot wherever these chats instrumentality america next.