Startups don’t construct themselves. The Builders Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, going down October 27–29 at San Francisco’s Moscone West, is the place traders, operators, and founders come to speak ways — the nitty-gritty of getting one thing off the bottom and making it work. This yr, we’re bringing a few of the sharpest minds within the recreation to the stage, together with legendary investor Elad Gil, former Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, and Flexport founder Ryan Petersen. In the event you’re in search of real-world insights from individuals who’ve truly constructed and backed category-defining firms, that is the place it occurs.
Whether or not you’re wrestling together with your first time period sheet, constructing a GTM engine that truly converts, or questioning if AI must be your subsequent rent, the Builders Stage has solutions. Anticipate candid conversations, recent methods, and no-fluff recommendation from the oldsters who’ve been by the hearth — plus viewers Q&A throughout each session, so you may get your hardest questions answered, stay.
Scale smarter with actionable insights from the leaders sitting entrance and middle on the Builders Stage. Register now and save as much as $675 in your ticket.
A primary have a look at the Builders Stage agenda
See what’s locked in up to now under and keep tuned. The Disrupt 2025 agenda is just getting larger, with extra high names and daring conversations on the way in which.
Elevating Good
A Dialog with Investor Extraordinaire Elad Gil
Earlier than a lot of the world had skilled ChatGPT, Elad Gil had already written seed checks to startups like Perplexity, Character.AI, and Harvey. That’s on high of early bets on firms like Airbnb, Airtable, Anduril, Brex, Checkr, Coinbase, Deel, Figma, Flexport, GitLab, Gusto, Instacart, Notion, Opendoor, Pinterest, Rippling, Sq., Stripe… you get the thought.
Gil, who has additionally based a number of firms like Mixerlabs (purchased by Twitter) and Shade Health, all the time appears to know what’s subsequent. And he’s already engaged on the subsequent issues coming for AI and investing.
Constructing What’s Subsequent with the Minds Behind Twitter and Meta
Adam Bain and Dick Costolo, co-founders and managing companions, and David Fischer, associate, at 01 Advisors
Be a part of these three powerhouse traders from 01 Advisors for an insider hearth chat on what it actually takes to construct, scale, and fund early-stage startups right this moment. From product to progress to fundraising, you’ll get candid recommendation and recent views from trade veterans shaping the subsequent wave of tech success.
Seed Cash Secrets and techniques Each Founder Ought to Know
Gabby Cazeau, associate, Harlem Capital, Marlon Nichols, co-Founder and managing normal associate, MaC Enterprise Capital, and Maria Palma, associate, Freestyle Capital
Elevating your first spherical is hard, however removed from inconceivable. This panel brings collectively skilled traders to interrupt down what it actually takes to shut a seed spherical. From crafting the appropriate pitch to making sure you’re greenlighting the appropriate companions, get actionable recommendation to show investor curiosity into capital.
Easy methods to Elevate a Sequence A in 2026
Sangeen Zeb, normal associate, GV, and extra audio system to be introduced
On this unfiltered panel, high VCs reveal what actually will get them to supply a time period sheet with a wholesome valuation — from metrics that matter to the pitch errors that kill offers. Learn to place your organization for its first priced, institutional funding.
What VCs Actually Need to Hear in Your Pitch
Medha Agarwal, normal associate, defy.vc, Jyoti Bansal, CEO and co-founder, Harness, and Jennifer Neundorfer, normal associate, January Ventures
Buyers hear tons of of pitches, however only some stand out. Hear instantly from VCs on what they love, what makes them cringe, and the refined alerts founders usually miss. This panel reveals insider ideas that can assist you craft a pitch that grabs consideration, builds belief, and wins the appropriate checks.
Rethinking Startup Capital With out VCs
Erik Allebest, co-founder and CEO, Chess.com, Kay Makishi, Lupoff/Stevens Household Workplace, and Gale Wilkinson, managing associate, VITALIZE Enterprise Capital
VCs aren’t the one recreation on the town. Be a part of us as we discover different fundraising paths with an angel investor, a household workplace vice chairman, and a founder who bootstrapped to success. Learn to faucet into capital that aligns together with your imaginative and prescient, retains you in management, and will get you to the subsequent stage in your phrases.
Getting ready Now for Your Later Stage Elevate
Lila Preston, head of progress fairness, Technology Funding Administration, Andrea Thomaz, CEO and co-founder, Diligent Robotics, and Zeya Yang, associate, IVP
Elevating later-stage rounds takes greater than luck — it’s about technique from day one. Be a part of these three distinctive VCs as they share easy methods to construct metrics, storytelling, and relationships that place your startup for future funding success. Be taught the important thing strikes that set you as much as shut larger rounds with confidence.
The place VCs Are Inserting Their Bets in 2026
Nina Achadjian, associate, Index Ventures, Jerry Chen, normal associate, Greylock, and Viviana Faga, normal associate, Felicis
Curious the place the sensible cash is heading subsequent? This panel brings collectively high VCs to share their 2026 funding priorities, rising sectors, and what improvements are catching their eye. Early-stage founders, this one is for you! Get a uncommon glimpse into the tendencies and applied sciences that would form your enterprise within the yr forward.
Scaling Good
Constructing in a Time of Uncertainty
Ryan Petersen, founder and CEO, Flexport
Uncertainty is the brand new regular, but it surely’s additionally a possibility. On this hearth chat, Ryan Petersen, CEO of world logistics unicorn Flexport, shares his hard-won insights. With $2.3B raised, Flexport’s transport know-how intersects worldwide enterprise and coverage, giving Petersen virtually prescient financial insights. He’s been vocal about every thing from tariff coverage to AI. He’s additionally skilled private volatility, famously leaving his CEO function after which returning lower than a yr later. Founders, take notes: that is the way you construct when the foundations hold altering.
Easy methods to Nail Product Market Match
Rajat Bhageria, founder and CEO, Chef Robotics, Ann Bordetsky, associate, NEA, and Murali Joshi, associate, ICONIQ
Constructing a product is tough. Constructing one which clients are chomping on the bit to get, that’s priced proper, and delivers on its guarantees is even more durable, and it’s all the time messy. However when you hit the holy grail of product-market match, your startup is on a quick observe to progress, funding, and traction. Hear from a founder who’s lived it and two traders who’ve helped many others get there. This panel breaks down easy methods to take a look at smarter and iterate with intention so you may cease guessing and begin rising.
How A lot Wage and Fairness Ought to You Actually Supply Early Workers?
Randi Jakubowitz, head of operations and expertise, 645 Ventures, Rebecca Lee Whiting, fractional normal counsel for early-stage startups, Epigram Authorized P.C., and Yin Wu, CEO and founder, Pulley
Early hires form your startup’s future, however provided that you may entice and hold them. This panel dives into constructing fairness and advantages packages that compete with large tech with out breaking your burn price. Hear real-world methods to align incentives, enhance retention, and construct a staff that scales.
With Vibe Coding, Do Early Stage Startups Nonetheless Have to Rent 10x Engineers?
David Cramer, co-founder and CPO, Sentry, Lauri Moore, associate, Bessemer Enterprise Companions, and a speaker to be introduced
Vibe coding merchandise have utterly modified the velocity, price, and technical ability wanted to construct merchandise, from prototypes to transport. That is very true for early stage startups. Some makers of those merchandise have even declared that nobody must study to code anymore. If that’s the case, meaning startups don’t must fill their early rosters with the famed 10x coders. However how a lot of that’s hype and the way a lot is actuality? Our panelists will dive into how the developer instrument world is altering and what comes subsequent.
Ought to You Rent AI as Early Workers?
Caleb Peffer, co-founder and CEO, Firecrawl, and extra audio system to be introduced
Most startups right this moment are utilizing AI in some capacities: vibe coding prototypes or new options, deep analysis by way of their favourite chat earlier than gross sales calls. Many are additionally constructing AI merchandise, or at the very least together with AI choices and options. So, do you have to embed AI on the root operations of your companies, like hiring AI brokers as a substitute of people for gross sales? For buyer help? To automate your billing? Learn to decide the appropriate use circumstances, construct smarter workflows, and get the most important influence with restricted sources.
Do Startups Nonetheless Want Silicon Valley?
Anh-Tho Chuong, CEO and co-founder, Lago, Heather Doshay, associate, head of expertise, SignalFire, and David Corridor, managing associate, rise of the remainder seed fund, Revolution
Whereas Silicon Valley continues to be the startup capital, how necessary is entry to it anymore? This panel debates whether or not founders should plant roots within the Valley to succeed or if alternative is so robust elsewhere that they don’t want it. Hear views from traders and founders redefining what it means to construct, scale, and fund an organization in right this moment’s decentralized tech world.
Constructing a GTM Engine that Truly Works
Max Altschuler, founder and normal associate, GTMfund, and extra audio system to be introduced
A killer product wants a killer go-to-market technique. This panel breaks down how early-stage startups can construct a GTM perform that drives progress, wins clients, and scales effectively. Hear from founders and GTM specialists on hiring, messaging, gross sales ways, and the important thing metrics that show your method is working.
Need to see extra?
Not solely will you achieve invaluable insights from these tech giants stay at Disrupt 2025 alongside 10,000+ startup, tech, and VC leaders this October, however it’s also possible to save as much as $675 in your cross right this moment. Register right here to lock in your financial savings.
