READ TIME: 4 MINUTES

Hey friends,

Welcome to Issue #13 of the Driver’s Seat 🚙

Friendly reminder to sign up for our upcoming TechChicago Week Hackathon at the Drive Chicago office!

🫂 Community Building in Chicago

📊 Chart of the Week

👨🏾‍💻 The History of VC in Chicago

🗺 Events Around the City

Make sure you’re subscribed to your go-to newsletter for information on Chicago's GROWING innovation economy 🙏

Let’s dive in! 🚙 🚙 🚙

Last week, I attended some well-organized gatherings for our tech community in Chicago.

Each of which were mentioned in the upcoming events section of my weekly newsletter !

I wanted to talk briefly about my experiences at these events, give special shoutouts to the hosts that put them together, and talk about why it’s so important that we continue to build community in the city!

On Wednesday, I stopped by the Chicago Venture Ecosystem 2030 Investor Salon.

The purpose of this event was to establish a platform for Chicago's VC and angel investor community to foster new connections and strengthen existing ones, all with the intention of introducing fresh perspectives.

In addition to the networking opportunities, I found great excitement in the distinctive structure of this event.

Every participant was thoughtfully assigned to a group, engaging in a "salon style" brainstorming sesh where we discussed questions / sparked dialogues about the direction of our ecosystem.

Shoutout to the hosts: my good friends Ellie Bahrmasel (FurtherFaster) and Michael Neff (Incued)

Last Thursday, we had a P33 Pitching Workshop at the Drive Chicago office.

A crowd of 50 individuals attended the workshop to gain insights on the dos and don'ts of pitching, as well as learn how to effectively convey their stories to secure investments, attract new talent, and acquire customers.

Shoutout to Desiree Vargas Wrigley (P33) for orchestrating this valuable event.

Lastly, on Friday I attended and spoke at the Gen Z VCs Future-of-Chicago summit.

Gen Z VCs is a collective of 24,000+ young VCs, angel investors, founders, startup enthusiasts, and aspiring VCs. I’m honored to be serving on the board for our Chicago chapter.

While the summit was open to people of all ages, it specifically aimed to provide a platform for young people to express their ideas and aspirations for the future.

This was the second summit we hosted in Chicago, and this one in particular was organized by Gen Z VC Chicago board members: Meagan Loyst, Kristina Chapple (11 Tribes), Michelle Rogoff (HPA), and Beatriz de Souza Kauffmann (World Business Chicago)

However, even more important than the act of gathering is the deliberate intention behind it.

When organizing events in Chicago, it’s essential to reflect on the purpose ("the why") and consider the individuals ("the who") that should participate.

These considerations will shape and guide the planning process, ensuring that the event aligns with its intended goals and engages the right audience.

Chicago secured the 5th top spot of total VC investment last year with $10.2B.

This figure represents roughly half the size of both LA and Boston, one-third of New York, and approximately one-eighth of San Francisco.

Fun fact: Between 2012 and 2022, the overall VC investment in Chicago surged by an impressive nearly 15 times.

Comparatively, during the same period, Boston witnessed a growth of four times, Los Angeles seven times, New York eight times, and San Francisco five times.

Between 2020 and 2021, VC investment in Chicago doubled from $3.1B to $6.6B—and experienced another 1.5 times increase in 2022.

When it comes to the roots of VC in Chicago, the formation of the Illinois Venture Capital Association in 1984 marked a pivotal moment, providing a platform for investors to network, collaborate, and share best practices.

During this period, firms like Golder, Thoma Cressey, and William Blair emerged as key players, supporting local businesses in their early stages.

The late 90s brought the dot-com boom, and Chicago quickly became a hub for tech startups.

The city witnessed an influx of venture capital firms and angel investors, seeking to capitalize on the emerging opportunities.

Notably, J.B. Pritzker co-founded New World Ventures, which became a successful early-stage investment firm in the region.

Over the past decade, Chicago's VC ecosystem has experienced significant growth. Several factors have contributed to this expansion, including the presence of prestigious academic institutions like the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, which have fostered innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.

Our VC landscape has always remained diverse, as there are no sectors currently in the city that make up more than over 13% of the overall economy. You can build anything in Chicago.

Chicago has also seen some great co-working spaces / incubators developed that play a critical role in fostering entrepreneurial spirit. Places like 1871, TechNexus, and mHub to name a few have helped to attract more VC $ / interest to the city.

I’m extremely grateful to be a member of Drive Capital, where we can play a significant role in promoting innovation / empowering revolutionary companies in Chicago, specifically with our pre-seed specific program designed to put founders on a path towards greatness and success! Beyond our city limits.

Chicago Cloud Meetup: Internal Platforms and Developer Portals

Revolutionizing HardTech In The Age Of OpenAI

In-Person Chi Hack Night

All Raise Chicago: Summer Kick-off Walk & Talk

VC Diversity Report Release

PostgreSQL Meetup

How to fund and launch your AI startup

Chicago Founder Night Out

AWS Community Day Midwest 2023

The Journey to PMF with Ellie Bahrmasel

Reply directly to this email if you have a tech event you want featured in the Driver’s Seat!

Thanks for making it this far! 😎

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram for even more Chicago startup news and photos of my favorite restaurants in the city.

Also please share the Driver’s Seat with others 🚙