Founders Gatherings with Buzz Solutions Co-Founder -Fresh Off a $20M Series A
Presented By Kyosuke Togami · Co-hosted by MindPal
About Kyosuke
Kyosuke Togami is a community builder and consultant at Transpose Platform, an early-stage VC firm based in New York. He is the founder of MELT, a curated event series that has brought together hundreds of founders and investors across San Francisco, New York, and Tokyo. He also publishes a weekly Substack covering the Bay Area startup and tech scene.
[This event will be led by MindPal]
A curated gathering for founders, CEOs and C-level operators in San Francisco
This Friday, we’re bringing together a select group of Bay Area founders for candid conversations, practical feedback and meaningful connections.
Our featured guest is Vikhyat “Vik” Chaudhry, Co-Founder, CTO & COO of Buzz Solutions—an AI company helping utilities inspect critical power-grid infrastructure and identify equipment faults, vegetation risks and other anomalies.
Buzz Solutions recently closed an oversubscribed $20 million Series A led by S3 Ventures, bringing its total funding to $30.8 million, according to PitchBook.
Vik is also a Forbes 30 Under 30 in Energy honoree, Stanford-trained energy engineer and former Cisco data scientist. He has spent nearly nine years building at the intersection of AI, energy and critical infrastructure.
We’ll discuss:
⚡ Building AI where errors can have real-world consequences
🏗️ Earning the trust of utilities and critical-infrastructure operators
🚀 Turning enterprise pilots into production deployments
💰 Lessons from raising an oversubscribed $20M Series A
🤖 Where industrial AI delivers value beyond the hype
🔥 Using computer vision to identify faults and vegetation-related risks
📈 Scaling a deep-tech company through long enterprise sales cycles
You’ll also meet founders building across AI, SaaS, climate tech, fintech, hardware and other emerging categories.
Who's in the room? A curated group of founders, CEOs and C-level executives, typically building companies from pre-seed through Series A.
Past attendees have included founders and operators connected to:
Y Combinator
500 Global
Techstars
Antler
Founder and investor communities from around the world
This is not a typical networking mixer. Expect concise introductions, candid feedback and conversations designed to create genuine opportunities for collaboration.
Please note: this event is intended exclusively for founders, CEOs and C-level executives.
AGENDA
4:00 PM – 4:15 PM
Free networking. Arrive, grab a drink, and meet other founders.
4:15 PM – 4:45 PM
Featured conversation with Vik Chaudhry + Q&A
4:45 PM – 5:15 PM
Official welcome and founder introductions. Each founder shares:
Their startup in one sentence
Their ICP in one sentence
Their GTM strategy in one or two sentences
Their biggest bottleneck in 15 seconds
After each round, the group shares candid feedback and advice.
5:15 PM – 5:16 PM
Group Selfie
5:16 PM – 6:00 PM
Open networking
[Also:]
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Content session. We'll record an interview with Vik
👫This Founders Gatherings will be led by MindPal
MindPal.co builds AI workflow automation for manufacturing companies — covering product configuration, quoting, recruitment and customer-facing automation.
What is this?
Founders Gatherings are networking events built by founders for founders, CEOs, and C-level executives.
Building a startup in the Bay Area isn't just about a great idea and hard work, it’s also about the people you surround yourself with. This isn't your typical networking event. It’s a community, a space to share insights, make genuine connections, and, most importantly, discover real opportunities to spread your wings and unlock your full potential. Expect fresh perspectives, honest advice, and a community that genuinely wants to see you win.
This event is strictly for founders, CEOs, and C-level executives.
Our attendees range from pre-seed to Series A, with past participants from Y Combinator, 500 Startups, and founder communities across the globe.
*Please note that if you register but can no longer attend, we kindly ask that you let us know in advance. Since space is limited, no-shows without prior notice may affect future invitations. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Join our team? Send"Team" on 👉 LinkedIn.
Registration & Privacy
By registering, you acknowledge that participation is voluntary and that the hosts cannot be held liable for any incidents during the event. Your personal information will only be used to manage the event and communicate with you about it. It will never be shared with third parties unless required by law.
If you can no longer attend, please let us know in advance. Since space is limited, no-shows without notice may affect future invitations.
We look forward to seeing you there!