Pittsburgh Tech Week and StartUP PGH: A guide to 9 days of events and how it all came together

Pittsburgh is just weeks away from a big push to show off its tech scene.

From Sept. 10 to 18, local leaders across niches have planned more than 25 events to highlight the city’s strengths in technology, innovation, entrepreneurship and culture. 

The nine-day stretch serves two purposes. Events planned under EXPlore: Pittsburgh Tech Week (Sept. 10-16) primarily engage local technologists and early-stage founders, while StartUP PGH events (Sept. 14-18) are more focused on connecting investment-ready startups to capital, customers and talent. 

For attendees, though, the distinction is mostly in name. Both Tech Week and StartUP PGH are a series of self-produced events that are organized under a branding umbrella. Interested individuals can pick and choose events from both series.

This year, more than a dozen Pittsburgh organizations are working together to engage locals and outside visitors who may be interested in the city’s tech and startup scene, Meredith Meyer Grelli, organizer for StartUP PGH, told Technical.ly back in July.

“This is really the first time I think in our region’s history that we’ve ever had all of these organizations come together with this very shared goal, galvanized around wanting to make sure that we are telling the story of Pittsburgh as the epicenter of frontier technology,” Grelli, who is also Carnegie Mellon University’s (CMU) vice provost for entrepreneurship, said.

Pittsburgh Tech Week, founded by local technologist Kenya Porter, has been connecting Pittsburgh’s tech ecosystem for four years now. Other annual tech-focused events, like the Pittsburgh Robotics Network’s Discovery Day or the AI Strike Team’s AI Horizon Summit, have attracted thousands of attendees in recent years. 

Then, CMU’s Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship threw a new program into the mix last year with its inaugural CMU Startup Week. Across four days, CMU attracted 2,000 attendees, including 200 investors and corporate partners, according to Grelli.

The startup week’s success signaled to CMU organizers that there could be an opportunity for people to “rally around a broader regional week … so that we are all inviting people in at the same time,” Grelli said. 

This year, StartUP PGH will test that theory. 

Planning all these events within a one-week window is “more efficient for out-of-town visitors — out-of-town investors — to come here and see what’s happening,” Ven Raju, president and CEO of Innovation Works, told Technical.ly. 

Beyond helping founders directly, another goal for StartUP PGH is to “build our region’s brand equity outside of Pittsburgh,” Grelli said.

Keep scrolling to find the events that best match your interests — whether you’re an investor, founder or technologist.

Browse the Tech Week or StartUP PGH calendars for more events.

Interested investors

• Venture Expo | Sept. 15-16 | Free
  • Accredited investors only
  • 40+ investor-ready startups pitching 
  • Dedicated Deal Room meeting space for investor-founder conversations

• AI & Robotics Venture Day | Sept. 16 | Free
  • Priority approval for investors 
  • 25+ investment-ready startups selected by CMU and Innovation Works
  • Pitches from AI and robotics startups 

• Bio+Health Summit | Sept. 16 | Free
  • Fireside chats and panels with investors and health-system leaders
  • Company showcases
  • Networking lunch and evening reception

Early-stage founders

• Startup Mode: Turning Ideas Into Income | Sept. 10 | Free
  • Insights from nonprofit Catapult Greater Pittsburgh
  • Interactive session 
  • Lessons on validating demand, automating tasks and choosing the right tech

• Startup Ecosystem Primer | Sept. 14 | Free
  • Analysis of the startup ecosystem in Pittsburgh
  • Data from Dealroom and ecosystem builders
  • Access to Pittsburgh’s startup dashboard

• EXPLORE Entrepreneurship: From Idea to Launch | Sept. 14 | Free
  • Two-hour workshop with CMU professor Mark Sanders
  • Offers a framework for thinking like a founder
  • Lessons on turning ideas into startups

• Tech Storytelling Workshop | Sept. 16 | Free
  • Learn from the deep tech storytelling agency Spiral
  • 45-minute walkthrough of a three-step process
  • Opportunity to improve a startup’s brand positioning

Technologists on the job hunt

• Robotics for the New Collar Economy | Sept. 14 | Free
  • Insights from CCAC’s Industrial Technology and Trades program
  • Discussion on the impact of automation and AI in the new collar economy
  • Interactive demonstrations built by CCAC students.

• EXPlore Upskill Days at Nova Place Day 1 and Day 2 | Sept. 14-15 | Free
  • A full day of career-forward programming
  • Hands-on workshops and career pathway panels
  • Includes events like How to get Hired in an AI Economy, $10K Pitch Competition and more

• CMU SPARK | Sept. 17 | Free
  • For student job seekers to connect with CMU startups 
  • Keynote and featured tech talks from CMU startups
  • Career fair and networking opportunities 

Anyone else looking to connect (and party!) 

• Infinite Horizons | Sept. 11 | Free
  • VR and remote telescope activities at the Moonshot Museum
  • Panel discussion on the intersection of imagination and technology
  • Rooftop reception 

• Robotics & AI Discovery Day | Sept. 16 | Free
  • 250+ exhibitors
  • Career pathways zone
  • Focused on AI, robotics, advanced manufacturing, defense and community

• Pittsburgh, Tomorrow: A City on the Rise | Sept. 18 | $59.95
  • Grand finale of StartUP PGH
  • Art installations, dance performances and music 
  • Food and drink available