Grassroots Founder Pitch Kickoff
Join Grassroots for the Founder Pitch Kickoff, the first open pitch competition of Chicago Tech Week.
This event brings together early-stage founders, builders, operators, investors, and technologists for a community-first evening of startup pitches, useful feedback, and real connection.
Selected founders will pitch live for a $1,000 cash prize, with judges and the audience helping spotlight one standout company.
This is not pitch theater. It is a room for people building, backing, and supporting the next wave of Chicago startups.
Want to pitch?
We’re selecting a small group of early-stage founders to pitch live at the Grassroots Founder Pitch Kickoff.
Selected founders will compete for a $1,000 cash prize and get in front of founders, operators, investors, and technologists from across Chicago’s startup community.
Pitch slots are limited. Apply here: Grassroots Founder Pitch Application
Expect founder pitches, sharp feedback, meaningful conversations, and a strong Tech Week kickoff with the Grassroots community.
About our sponsors
Anchorpoint Partners is a Chicago-based security and risk advisory company founded by former auditors who help founders build practical risk management programs through SOC 2, ISO 27001, and other security frameworks. Joe and Austin have been active supporters of the Chicago startup community and believe in giving first, being helpful, and celebrating wins across the ecosystem.
Quantarra is an AI-driven audit and compliance platform that helps companies stay audit-ready across frameworks like SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI DSS, GDPR, and NIST CSF. The platform supports continuous compliance through automation, risk and control mapping, evidence collection, live dashboards, and auditor-ready workflows.
Hosted by Grassroots Tech Community, Starplot, and Ogha
Grassroots Tech Community creates low-pressure spaces for Chicago founders, builders, operators, investors, and technologists to connect.
Starplot is the AI-native partner operating system for B2B companies, helping teams manage partner relationships, run co-sell motions, and prove partner-influenced revenue from one shared workspace.
Ogha helps companies hire with confidence by providing in-person technical interviews near the candidate’s location, conducted by verified senior engineers.