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Upcoming Events
Filter these events by city and topic on our events page and see what's coming up in April.
May 2026 Events
Wisconsin Technology Association (WTA) Annual Tech Conference 2026 May 19, 11:00 AM [Milwaukee] Think Big, Think Small, Think Future. Keynote by Chad Steighner (CDIO, Clarios), breakout tracks on cybersecurity and AI, leadership panel, lunch, and free headshots. Free for IT practitioners.
Madison's Geek Lunch May 19, 11:45 AM [Madison] If you've never been to a Geek Lunch, it's an engaging conversation with your geekiest friends, where the topic bounces around depending on whatever anyone wants to contribute. All are welcome regardless of where you lie on any imaginary geek scale. Think "The Algonquin Round Table" with an emphasis on tech.
The Current AI Landscape May 19, 5:30 PM [Milwaukee] This session will focus on the current landscape of AI, emerging trends, real-world deployments, and the tools people are actively experimenting with today. We’ll also spend time networking and connecting with others interested in where AI is heading and how it’s beginning to impact industries, workflows, and everyday work.
Sip & Sync in Sun Prairie May 20, 8:00 AM [Madison] Join us for Sip & Sync - your casual networking meetup where meaningful connections happen over complimentary coffee. Drop in for relaxed conversations, share insights, or simply enjoy meeting fellow WIT members and friends in a laid-back atmosphere.
Sip & Sync in Appleton May 20, 8:30 AM [Appleton] Join us for Sip & Sync - your casual networking meetup where meaningful connections happen over complimentary coffee. Drop in for relaxed conversations, share insights, or simply enjoy meeting fellow WiT members and friends in a laid-back atmosphere.
StartingBlock's Her Network featuring Traycee Mayer - The Heart of Gold Framework May 20, 9:00 AM [Madison] Leadership isn’t about control or compliance—it’s about remembering our shared community and humanity. In this heartfelt and practical keynote, Traycee Mayer shares how love, kindness, and playfulness can reignite genuine connection in the workplace and in everyday life through her Heart of Gold Framework™.
Claude & Cocktails May 20, 5:45 PM [Green Bay] The first Claude & Cocktails in Green Bay. A casual evening for builders, marketers, founders, and curious folks figuring out what actually works with Claude and other AI tools.
Madison Area Software Developers Meetup Group Monthly Meetup May 20, 6:00 PM [Madison] A Madison area meetup for software developers focused on lifelong learning, networking, and bridging college to industry. Topics span scripting and compiled languages, Big Data, microservices, mobile and IoT, web tech, developer methodologies, and entrepreneurial resources.
FOR-M May Founder Showcase May 20, 7:00 PM [Milwaukee] Come see Milwaukee's newest tech startup founders showcase their great ideas! The FOR-M Founder Showcase is an incredible celebration of innovative ideas, the entrepreneurial journey, and Milwaukee's growing tech startup ecosystem.
i.c.stars Par for the Course: Tech Takes the Virtual Green May 21, 11:00 AM [Milwaukee] Innovation & Networking on the Green Screen at XGolf turns seven golf simulators into small-group networking hubs. Executives, sponsors, and emerging tech talent get strategic pairings and guided facilitation, sparking real conversations across Milwaukee's tech ecosystem.
AI Enabled & Cyber Resilient: Building the Bridge to Quantum May 21, 4:00 PM [Kenosha] Quantum is moving from research labs into real world risks, and addressing cybersecurity challenges is critical in quantum application. This executive level discussion will explore how quantum computing intersects with cybersecurity and how organizations can prepare for the future.
StartingBlock Alumni Happy Hour May 21, 4:00 PM [Madison] StartingBlock Program alumni and guests are invited to a rooftop Happy Hour. Come reconnect with old friends, share stories, network, or just relax with good company. Dress for the rooftop, and don't miss the chance to catch up in person.
Pitches & Pizza May 21, 5:30 PM [Sheboygan] Pitch your idea in 60 seconds, no slides or business plan needed. Free pizza, audience voting, and $2,000 in cash prizes ($500 first place).
StartingBlock presents: Lunch with Justin Reed from C-Motive May 26, 12:00 PM [Madison] C-Motive cofounder Justin Reed shares the story behind his deep tech startup, which uses "static cling" instead of magnetism to power electric motors. Hear about the science risks, unexpected challenges, and what's next for C-Motive's electric motor revolution in Madison.
Entrepreneur Networking May 26, 5:00 PM [Milwaukee] An entrepreneur networking event hosted by "The Workshop"
MKE Tech Founders Day – May 2026 May 27, 9:00 AM [Milwaukee] This is a day of free resources for Milwaukee's growing startup founders. We've got open coworking, mentor office hours, coffee, snacks, and a networking happy hour. Come for part of the day or the entire thing!
Reasoning for Complex Data through Self-Supervised Learning May 27, 6:00 PM [Madison] Anderson Rocha shares strategies for self-supervised learning when classes aren't obviously different. He'll cover novel ensemble-based clustering that combines configurations to group unlabeled data, with results from Person Re-ID and Text Authorship Verification, plus recent causal analysis work.
Reasoning for Complex Data through Self-Supervised Learning and Causality Discovery May 27, 6:00 PM [Virtual] Anderson Rocha, Full Professor of AI at Unicamp and IEEE Fellow, presents on self-supervised learning when labeled data is scarce. He'll cover ensemble-based clustering strategies for Person Re-ID and Text Authorship Verification, plus recent work on Causal Analysis to refine AI methods.
Researchers, industry leaders to discuss future of quantum technology at Tech Council luncheon May 28, 11:30 AM [Milwaukee] Wisconsin Technology Council hosts a luncheon panel on Wisconsin's quantum tech opportunity, Thursday, May 28 at UW-Milwaukee's Lubar Entrepreneurship Center. Panelists from UWM, UW-Madison, Marquette, and the Chicago Quantum Exchange dig into research, commercialization, and the Midwest's role.
Founder Factory Kickoff May 28, 6:00 PM [Milwaukee] Come understand how Founder Factory works, how founders are selected, and how you can step into the pipeline -- whether you bring an idea or adopt one ready to launch. Founder Factory is a new regional consortium designed to move founders from concept to investment readiness through structured programming, mentorship, and milestone-based funding.
June 2026 Events
WI Drives Manufacturing Summit 2026 - Day 1 June 1, 8:00 AM [Green Bay] The Wisconsin Drives Manufacturing Summit brings together leaders from across disciplines to collaborate on the challenges shaping the future of manufacturing. From workforce and technology to cost, resilience, and growth, every session is designed to move from insight to action.
Wisconsin Digital Symposium 2026 June 1, 8:00 AM [Green Bay] On June 1, UWEBC will bring technology, data, and digital leaders together at Lambeau Field in Green Bay for a reimagined Digital Symposium, co-located with the Wisconsin Drives Manufacturing Summit taking place the very next day.
WI Drives Manufacturing Summit 2026 - Day 2 June 2, 8:00 AM [Green Bay] The Wisconsin Drives Manufacturing Summit brings together leaders from across disciplines to collaborate on the challenges shaping the future of manufacturing. From workforce and technology to cost, resilience, and growth, every session is designed to move from insight to action.
Sip & Sync in Green Bay June 4, 8:00 AM [Green Bay] Join us for Sip & Sync - your casual networking meetup where meaningful connections happen over complimentary coffee. Drop in for relaxed conversations, share insights, or simply enjoy meeting fellow WiT members and friends in a laid-back atmosphere.
June Code & Coffee June 6, 9:00 AM [Milwaukee] This gathering is designed to foster connections within our local tech community. Whether you are a seasoned professional, a hobbyist, or just getting your feet wet in the world of coding, there's a place for you here.
Sit By Me - V3 Launch Party June 6, 5:00 PM [Milwaukee] Come celebrate the launch of Sit By Me V3 with a night built for Milwaukee’s young professionals, tech builders, creatives, and beer lovers. This isn’t just a launch, it’s a gathering of the people shaping what’s next for our city.
(Hybrid) Random Testing with ‘Fuzz’: 35 Years of Finding Bugs June 8, 6:00 PM [Madison] Fuzz testing turns 35. Bart Miller revisits his landmark studies (1990, 1995, 2000, 2006, 2020) where simple random input crashed 25-73% of UNIX, Windows, and Mac apps. He'll show how black box generational testing still holds up today, plus the bugs and coding practices behind the failures.
June Code + Brews June 10, 5:30 PM [Milwaukee] This gathering is designed to foster connections within our local tech community. Whether you are a seasoned professional, a hobbyist, or just getting your feet wet in the world of coding, there's a place for you here.
Sip & Sync in Milwaukee June 12, 8:30 AM [Milwaukee] Join us for Sip & Sync - your casual networking meetup where meaningful connections happen over complimentary coffee. Drop in for relaxed conversations, share insights, or simply enjoy meeting fellow WIT members and friends in a laid-back atmosphere.
Sip & Sync in Middleton June 17, 8:00 AM [Madison] Join us for Sip & Sync - your casual networking meetup where meaningful connections happen over complimentary coffee. Drop in for relaxed conversations, share insights, or simply enjoy meeting fellow WIT members and friends in a laid-back atmosphere.
Summerfest TechAI 2026 - Opening Night June 23, 4:00 PM [Milwaukee] Conference kickoff at 3rd Street Market Hall's "The Venue." Pick up your badge, grab a bite, and catch the opening panel featuring the Microsoft AI Co-Innovation Lab, UW-Milwaukee's Connected Systems Institute, and TitletownTech. The panel digs into how Wisconsin has become a hub for applied AI through real solutions built in the lab.
Summerfest TechAI 2026 - Day 1 June 24, 8:00 AM [Milwaukee] Day One at The Westin Kristin Milchanowski (Chief AI and Data Officer, BMO) keynotes on scalable AI agents. Sessions run across seven tracks, the first Pitch Competition hits Downtown Kitchen, and the night closes with the Milwaukee Innovation District Bar Hop across four Walker's Point venues.
2026 ELITE Tech Showcase and Golf Outing - Lake Geneva June 24, 10:00 AM [Milwaukee] Join us for an exclusive two-day conference and golf outing on the Brute Course in Lake Geneva, WI, bringing together technology leaders from the Greater Milwaukee, Madison, and Chicagoland areas. This two-day event returns for 2026 and offers even more opportunities to connect, learn, and grow.
Summerfest TechAI 2026 - Day 2 June 25, 8:00 AM [Milwaukee] Day Two at The Westin Christa Markgraff (Microsoft Data Center Operations) keynotes on Wisconsin's role in Microsoft's AI super factory. Sessions continue across all tracks, the second Pitch Competition (Healthcare/Biotech and Disruptive Tech) runs at Downtown Kitchen, then Summerfest takes the night.
Summerfest TechAI 2026 - Day 3 June 26, 10:00 AM [Milwaukee] Marquee Day in the Third Ward A focused half day for Marquee and All-In ticketholders. Chris Barton (Founder, Shazam) delivers the marquee keynote, followed by a closing panel on innovation as business strategy. Networking at Lasso Lounge runs noon to 3 PM, then the Summerfest grounds open up.
The gBETA Frontier Technology Accelerator is an early-stage program for high-growth startups with roots in Wisconsin, working in frontier technology sectors including advanced materials, AI, robotics, energy storage, and quantum computing
StartingBlock's Level Set program is an intense 6 week program designed to help you build and validate a business model. Offered 6x per year, we help you explore the pros and cons of different business models, model revenue and get real world feedback on your ideas.
FOR-M is your first step to creating a tech startup company in Milwaukee. Solidify the startup idea that’s been bouncing around in your head and understand your next steps. This program is limited to 25 founders and will begin accepting folks immediately…so apply soon!
gener8tor Madison invests in six high-growth startups per cohort. This is an industry-agnostic and business model-agnostic program. We accept ALL types of startups across ALL industries and business models.
Episode 19 now available! Ep 19 - Jon Eckhardt, Pyle Bascom Professor, Wisconsin School of Business Inside the Founder Forward Vision for UW-Madison Jon Eckhardt asked one question: what would Google do if it ran this university and wanted to produce more entrepreneurs? His team surveyed the entire student body. 20% had product or service ideas. They were in history, political science, women's studies, engineering, medicine. The university needed to create a better system to support them....
Episode 18 now available! Ep 18 - Justin Byers, Founder and CEO, Axio BioPharma Fixing the Data Problem Slowing Down Life-Saving Drugs Justin Byers had to tell a founder, after 18 months and nearly $2 million, that their drug couldn't be manufactured at scale. The information was there the whole time. It was just trapped in the wrong systems in the wrong formats. That moment became Axio BioPharma. Justin is a scientist by training who spent years at Illumina and Fujifilm watching drug...
Startup Wisconsin is organized by Headway, a digital product agency based in Green Bay, WI. Powered by our state sponsors, Nicolet National Bank and gener8tor. New on the podcast Learn about Wisconsin's growing tech scene through stories of startups, founders, investors, and the incredible people making it happen. The Startup Wisconsin Podcast is presented by Valency Fund EP 16The Invisible Tech Changing How We ConnectRussell From, President & Co-Founder, WayFi Wireless EP 17Building...