GrepBeat "Rising Stars"
2026-02-05 18:30 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | 21c Museum Hotel Durham, 111 North Corcoran St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States

First Friday at Raleigh Founded - North Street
2026-02-06, 2026-03-06 | Raleigh Founded – North Street, 509 W North St, Raleigh, 27603, United States

Free Coworking Day at The Junction
2026-02-06 08:30 - 17:00, 2026-03-06 08:30 - 17:00 | Innovate Carolina, 136 E Rosemary St, Chapel Hill, NC, 17514, United States

The Idea Village
2026-02-10 - 2026-02-12 | NC

State of Capital in North Carolina Dinner (Invite Only)
2026-02-12 17:30 - 20:30 | NC
CED is excited to host the third annual “State of Capital in North Carolina” Dinner – a small, invite-only investor dinner to discuss the 2025 venture investment landscape. This will include our analysis from the CED Venture Report as well as thoughts on trends from the larger group.
This dinner is invite-only and unfortunately we are unable to extend additional invitations.

Florida Venture Forum
2026-02-23 - 2026-02-25 | NC

Quarterly FORGE Networking (Members Only)
2026-02-26 08:00 - 10:00 | NC
This quarterly gathering is exclusively for members of FORGE — a peer community of growth-stage founders and operators navigating the unique challenges of scaling a company.
You must be a FORGE member to attend. If you’re interested in learning more, visit our FORGE membership page: https://cednc.org/forge/
Please note: This was rescheduled from February 5th, due to the weather.

BIO Investment & Growth Summit
2026-03-02 - 2026-03-03 | NC

Cowen & Co Health Care Conference
2026-03-02 - 2026-03-04 | NC

LiLa: Deal or No Deal? Evaluating the Pitch
2026-03-05 16:30 - 18:30 | Frontier RTP, 800 Park Offices Drive, Durham, NC, 27713, United States

New Orleans Entrepreneur Week
2026-03-09 - 2026-03-14 | NC

Startup Storytelling — powered by RDSW
2026-03-09 13:00 - 16:00 | NC

The Montgomery Summit
2026-03-10 - 2026-03-11 | NC

Smart Cities Connect
2026-03-10 - 2026-03-12 | NC

World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit
2026-03-11 - 2026-03-12 | NC

SXSW
2026-03-12 - 2026-03-18 | NC

Strength in Numbers x LiLa: Building Confidence for Conference Season
2026-03-12 16:30 - 18:30 | Frontier RTP, 800 Park Offices Drive, Durham, NC, 27713, United States
Whether you’re planning to attend Venture Connect or simply looking to sharpen how you show up at industry events this year, this session is for you.
Brought to you by LiLa and Strength in Numbers, we’ll kick off with a candid, moderated conversation featuring experienced leaders across venture and biotech who know how to navigate high-energy conference environments strategically. Expect practical insight on:

Preparing before you step onsite
Making meaningful connections in the moment
Following up in ways that build momentum

We’ll then transition into a tactical walkthrough with CED’s Katelin Wheeler and Elaina Bade to help you think strategically about your VC26 experience—from planning your schedule to mapping meetings and making the most of your time before you even arrive.

Instant Payment Summit Global Series 2026
2026-03-16 - 2026-03-17 | NC

LSI USA
2026-03-16 - 2026-03-20 | NC

GCVI Summit
2026-03-17 - 2026-03-19 | NC

Future Food-Tech
2026-03-19 - 2026-03-20 | NC

FFVC March Madness Open House
2026-03-19 08:00 - 17:00 | NC

All Things AI
2026-03-23 - 2026-03-24 | The Carolina Theatre, 309 W Morgan St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States

Transform
2026-03-23 - 2026-03-25 | NC

Strength in Numbers Mixer (RSVP Required)
2026-03-23 14:00 - 16:00 | Pine and Poplar, 307 S Roxboro St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
We’re excited to see our Strength in Numbers members at Venture Connect! We’ll be kicking off the summit with an invite-only Strength in Numbers Mixer on Monday, March 23th, the afternoon before Venture Connect begins. The private gathering is your chance to build connections with fellow female-identifying founders, operators, investors, and key ecosystem partners in a more intimate setting before the rest of the conference.
A special thank you to our Impact Investors – 4LV and Hutchison PLLC.

Our Event Sponsors – Customers Bank, Pappas Capital, and RSM US

How do you get your invite? By purchasing your Venture Connect ticket! Register Here.

RevUp Capital & Capacity Capital's Founder & Investor Happy Hour
2026-03-23 16:00 - 18:00 | The Velvet Hippo Bar & Lounge, 119 Orange St 3rd Floor, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
​Join Pilot, Melissa Withers of RevUp Capital, and Jonathan Bragdon of Capacity Capital for a casual happy hour bringing together founders and investors in town for Venture Connect.
Please note RSVP is required: https://luma.com/tyonl1ib

Kickoff Party
2026-03-23 17:00 - 19:00 | Bay 7, 324 Blackwell St #700, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Join us as we officially kick off Venture Connect 2026 with an evening designed to energize, connect, and celebrate the entrepreneurial community.
Thank you to our sponsors Baker Donelson and Xyzagen for this event!

How do you get your invite? By purchasing your Venture Connect ticket! Register Here.

Venture Connect 2026
2026-03-24 - 2026-03-25 | DPAC, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Join CED for Venture Connect 2026, the leading conference in the Southeast for scaling startups. Spotlight on: Next-Gen Hardware & Deep Tech, Software Innovation, Human Health: Biotech, Tools & Therapeutics, and Science for a Healthier Planet.
