2026 | Austin AAPI Professional Summit
The Austin AAPI professional community doesn't need another networking happy hour: We need a room where the conversations are guaranteed to move us forward.
Join us for the 4th annual Austin AAPI Professional Summit (AAPS) -- an event built around the connections, conversations, and community that move careers and lives forward.
📅 Friday, May 29 · 1:30 PM – 5 PM
📍 City of Austin Permitting & Development Center
Agenda:
🏷️ 1:30 pm - Check-in and networking
❤️🩹 2:00 pm - Keynote Panel: Healing the past, building the present, designing for the future
Featured panelists include Judge Denise Hernandez, Lau Lau owner Hannah Foy, writer & therapist Sara Bawany, civil rights attorney Andrew Hairston and ACC Board of Trustees chair Sean Hassan.
📱 3:00 pm - Workshop: Solidarity in the Age of AI (Amy Pandit & Minjae Lee)
🎤 4:00 pm - Workshop: Finding our Voice in a World that Tries to Silence Us (Saamiya Seraj, A Better Force)
Mentorship circles, interactive activities, and networking with non-profits available all throughout event! Workshops each have a cap of 30 attendees - first-come, first-served.
This Year, We're Going Deeper
By 2025's event, we had almost 300 attendees show up — and they told us what they actually wanted more of: real conversations, real relationships, & real support. So this year, we're building the Summit around that.
In a climate where budgets are tightening and uncertainty is rising, the most valuable asset you have is community. We are designing AAPS 2026 to help you meaningfully connect with the full ecosystem of Austin's AAPI professional community: mentors, community builders, nonprofit leaders, entrepreneurs, and allies — and discover how we can show up for each other (not just at work.)
What to Expect
🌟 Meet the Whole Ecosystem: Not just your industry bubble! AAPI professionals across corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial Austin will be in one room, with programming designed to introduce you to each other.
🌟 Conversations Catered to You: More participation and opportunities to connect. We will have different activities available based on your own networking style. (For example: Not in the mood to chat much? We'll have a crafts table so you can take a break!)
🌟 Be Part of Something That Grows: AAPS is part of a sustained, multi-year effort to build lasting bridges between Austin's for-profit and nonprofit AAPI communities.
🌟 Bites & Refreshments Included: Small bites and drinks will be provided, so you can snack throughout the event! (TBD, more details soon)
Built by Community, For Community
Interested in Volunteering? Please fill out our Volunteer Sign-Up here! https://survey.cmx.ventures/aaps2026volunteers :)
AAPS is led by a team of individual volunteers and supported by organizations who believe in what we're building — including A Better Force, The Cultured Chefs, HDR's Central Texas API ENG, Dell Technologies' Asians in Action ERG, Applied Materials' Asians in Motion ERG, and Austin Optometry Group, with additional support from Linh Judin Solutions and the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce (GAACC).
[Additional supporters and sponsors coming soon]
If you were there previous years — You helped build something real, and we are so grateful. Come back and bring someone who needs to be in the room. :)
If this is your first time — Welcome! You belong here: AAPI professionals, allies, and supporters are all welcome.
👉 RSVP now to secure your spot.
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