How to Break into SF as an Immigrant Founder
How do you actually break into San Francisco as an immigrant founder?
Moving to SF is exciting...until you realize everyone already seems to know everyone.
How do you build your first network? Meet investors? Find your people? And avoid wasting months learning the same lessons every founder before you?
In this founder-led workshop, we'll unpack what it actually takes to build a startup as an immigrant founder in Silicon Valley.
You'll walk away with:
👉 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 (the communities, events, and relationships that actually open doors)
👉 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗼𝗻 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆 (how networking, fundraising, and founder culture work differently here)
👉 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺 (finding customers, mentors, investors, and opportunities without an established network)
Whether you've just landed in SF or are planning the move, you'll leave with practical advice you can use immediately.
This is not a panel. It's a founder-led workshop in a bar, designed to go deep on one topic so you leave with real takeaways.
Come for the lesson, stay for the conversations after.
About the Speakers
Aggie Krajewska is the Founder & CEO of SF Startup Labs and previously led programs at Google for Startups EMEA. She has spent the past decade helping 300+ founders scale internationally through partnerships, accelerators, and startup programs across Europe and North America.
Rachael is the founder of Gullie, an AI relocation platform that helps companies move talent across 160+ countries. Gullie has raised $2M led by B Capital, with participation from Gold House Ventures and executives from Meta, BCG, Roblox, and Jane Street. Previously, Rachael worked at Google across Google Shopping, YouTube APAC, and Google Cloud, and has been building companies since she was 18.
Sebastian Scott is the Co-Founder & CEO of Clera, a VC-backed AI recruiting startup that has raised $3M in pre-seed funding. Sebastian previously founded multiple startups and studied at Columbia University and the Technical University of Munich. Clera matches over 130k+ startup talent to 600+ companies backed by a16z, Index, YC, GC and more. Tell us who your next hire should be and get warm intros to vetted engineers, PMs, and operators in <24h.
What should I expect?
6:30–7:00 PM
Arrival, snacks, and casual networking.
7:00–7:45 PM
Founder workshop.
7:45–8:05 PM
Q&A.
8:05–9:00 PM
More chatting, snacks, and meeting people.
About the Sponsors
LegalOS is a YC backed AI-native immigration law firm built specifically for startup founders. They combine 40+ years of immigration expertise with highly specialized AI agents to deliver faster, more affordable, and more accurate immigration outcomes. They specialize in the visas founders and their companies need most: O-1s, H-1Bs, E-2s, E-3s, L-1s, TNs, and Green Cards.
Text Linc to get pre-qualified for your visa and jump directly to a free consultation with their most experienced attorney.
InsForge is the agent-native cloud infrastructure platform. Think AWS built for AI coding agents. One CLI gives your agent everything it needs to ship a full-stack app end to end: database, auth, storage, compute, hosting, and an AI gateway.
🧠 About Founders on Tap
Founders on Tap is a workshop series in SF's coolest spots.
Each session goes deep on one useful topic, such as community, GTM, fundraising, automation, or getting your first customers.
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How do I become a speaker?
👉 Fill out our speaker form.
We’ll reach out if your session feels like a good fit.
Do I have to be 21+?
Yes. You must be 21+ and present a valid ID to enter the venue.
Will this event be photographed or recorded?
Photos and short video clips may be taken for promotional purposes. By attending, you consent to being photographed or recorded.
Accessibility
If you have specific accessibility needs or questions, please email Lyvia at foundersontap@gmail.com and we’ll do our best to support you.