Field notes
Notes from the rooms,
city by city.
City guides, playbooks and records of the evenings, written by the people who run them. Every number carries its date.
Series · 4 parts
Before you book
Straight answers to the questions people ask before they give up an evening.
- 1Are Startup Networking Events Worth It? A Founder's FilterSome are, most aren't, and the event page usually tells you which. Five checks, four reasons to stay home, and how our own evenings score.4 min
- 2Pitch Night, Demo Day, Accelerator, Founder Dinner: Which Room Fits Your AskSix kinds of rooms a founder can walk into, what each one costs, and which of the four asks it answers. Including the ones where we're the wrong choice.4 min
- 3What a Ticket Buys at an Ascent Valley Evening, and What It Doesn'tThe seat, the table, the stage and the hour after. Also the things no ticket can buy, and how the price moves as the date gets closer.3 min
- 4Five Seats on Stage: How Pitching at an Ascent Valley Evening WorksHow the five seats are filled, what happens to your application before and after the evening, and what five minutes on stage does and doesn't get you.3 min
From the founder
The Room Belongs to the Founder
Why Ascent Valley is built the way it is, and an exact list of what's live today and what isn't yet.
Bogdan · Oct 6, 2026 · 3 min read
All notes
By city
One city at a time
Guides and records for the cities where we run evenings.
Amsterdam2 notesLatest: Amsterdam So Far: From a Ping Pong Bar to De PijpRead the note Los Angeles2 notesLatest: Los Angeles So Far: Five Founders on the First NightRead the note New York2 notesLatest: New York So Far: The Record Since Tech WeekNew York notes San Francisco1 noteSF Tech Week 2026: A Founder's Plan for October 5–11Read the note San Jose1 noteStartup Events in San Jose: A Founder's Guide for Fall 2026Read the note Toronto1 noteStartup Events in Toronto: A Founder's Guide for Fall 2026Read the note