Portland Oregon startups, tech, news, events, jobs, and community

They grow up so fast. It seems like just yesterday that we were watching the inaugural Oregon AI Accelerator come into being. Now…? They’re hard at work on cohort 2. More than 50 startups applied. Here’s who made the cut…

Here’s a roundup of interesting startup links I came across today:

Design for the Win: Creatives Behind Women’s Sports in Portland Tickets, Wednesday, October 14  •  6 PM – 8:30 PM | Eventbrite

Join us for an inspiring evening celebrating the incredible creatives who work behind the scenes to fuel the surge of support for women’s and gender expansive sports in Portland! This event features presentations and a dynamic panel with talented individuals who have contributed their magic to teams and organizations like the Rose City Rollers, Portland Fire (WNBA), Cherry Bombs FC (USL W), Portland Cascade (AUSL), The Sports Bra, and Unmatched filmmakers who retell the iconic Portland Pilots 2005 season with legends Megan Rapinoe and Christine Sinclair.

We’ve all been there. You’ve been saving stuff willy nilly to your laptop. A gig here and there. That one massive mp4 you’d forgotten about. The suboptimal pdf that is hundreds of megs for some reason. It adds up. Quietly. Until all of the sudden, your Mac is completely out of space. Could be time for a Cloud Diet.

Demolicious is a monthly pitch event run by Josh Carter. It’s designed to give startup founders the opportunity to practice their pitch, learn from one another, and maybe — just maybe — walk away as the crowd favorite from month to month. But that’s not all. At the end of every year, all of the previous monthly winners compete to become the Demolicious Champion of Champions. And if you want to watch that competition, tickets are now on sale.

Bend Venture Conference is just around the corner. And until today, the last spots on the main stage were still up for grabs. Not anymore. EDCO has announced the Growth Stage finalists for BVC 2026. They join the Early Stage finalists revealed on September 28. And the whole bunch will take the Tower Theatre stage in downtown Bend on October 15 and 16, 2026.

The Launch Oregon team at the University of Oregon has partnered with January Ventures to provide a fellowship program for aspiring VCs. Applications will be accepted from current Ducks until October 9, 2026. (Fun fact: Alline Akintore who is now with Oregon Venture Fund went through the fellowship program)

Here’s a roundup of interesting startup links I came across today:

Humanoid robot company Agility Robotics names 3 new board members – Portland Business Journal

“Merline, Derek and Pierre have helped lead some of the world’s most consequential technology businesses and institutions,” said Johnson in a written statement about the new board. “Their collective experience, together with Damion’s deep understanding of Agility, will be instrumental as we move into our next chapter and work to make humanoid robotics an integral part of the global workforce.”

If you’re looking for an event or two to attend this week, we’ve got a few options for you. Hoping to run into you out in the community, this week.