April 24, 2025

Welcome to this issue of Austin Business Review, a weekly roundup of great local events and insights for Austin business owners (plus some other cool stuff for your life outside of work).

My name’s Ethan and I’m the one writing this (holler at me here!).

This week, we’ve got a few things on-deck:

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-Ethan

Upcoming Events

Running a business is tough. Here are a few great places to meet cool people going through the same sh*t you are.

🗓️ TONIGHT: Investor Poker: My buddies, Justin Schoenfelder and Abhi Sinha, are hosting this table, complete with five exclusive founder pitches to kick the evening off

🗓️ TONIGHT: Women Sellers in Amazon’s Store: Amazon’s ​Abby Malchow, is facilitating this killer panel, including Shannon Ross of Springer Pets (Shark Tank)

🗓️ TONIGHT: Nerd Nite: Like a mini TED, for nerds, by nerds, this month’s topics span music, the uncanny valley, and networking (for people who hate networking)

🗓️ Apr. 25: Creator Marketing Unconference: This one’s for you if you manage creator partnerships for your brand, or are a founder in the creator marketing space

🗓️ Apr. 25-27: Ultimate Speaker Competition: If you’re into public speaking – watch 15 speakers compete across 3 categories, plus workshops and author signings

🗓️ Apr. 26-27: RiverHacks: A 36-hour hackathon, Led by Afaq Ahmad, and open to participants and mentors from the ATX startup scene (150+ so far)

🗓️ Apr. 28: Negotiation Tips & Tricks (Online): Austin Women in Tech is hosting Amber Gunst, founder of FundLyst and former CEO of the Austin Tech Council

🗓️ Apr. 29: Turbulent Times DTC Brand Panel: Featuring author Taylor Pearson, and kick-ass DTC founders Jake Chambers of Pupsentials, and Shaz Rajashekar of SHAZ & KIKS

🗓️ Apr. 29: Business After Hours: For those of you out west, tired of going downtown for events, the West Austin Chamber is hosting their monthly happy hour

🗓️ Apr. 29: Coffee Tasting & Founder Story: Richard Pennock, co-founder of IndigoFire Coffee, is hosting a tasting down at Red Fridge Society, and sharing his story

🗓️ Apr. 30: Black Mirror Reality Check: Watch two episodes live, then listen in on this panel discussion with Numa Dhamani and other AI founders and developers

🗓️ May 1: Elevated Interactions: Investor Cody Todd is gathering people at Cosmic Pickle for laid back drinks. Fun fact: He’s an investor in Cosmic too 🍻 Ask him about it

🗓️ May 1: The Happiest Hour: Swing by the Antler office downtown for drinks with Allie Mullen, Nick Tippman, and other investors around town.

🗓️ May 2: TVL Pitch Day: Grad student founders from UT will compete for $50k in prizes. Swing by to scout new talent

🗓️ May 2: Founder Fridays: Hosted every month by founder Georges Colbert in partnership with LAUNCH, the VC firm founded by Jason Calacanis

🗓️ May 3: Sourdough Starter Party: Texas Women in Business is hosting this event as a fun way to make connections, learn new skills, and support their philanthropy fund

🗓️ May 3: Conquering Crisis: Admiral William H. McRaven, No. 1 NYT bestselling author of Make Your Bed is coming to Book People to discuss his latest release

One More Thing… TEDx South Congress is happening May 3rd. Led by Dr. Ronke Komolafe, this year’s theme is, “Innovative Pulse: What Does the Future Hold?” — and speakers include:

See the full lineup and snag tickets here.

Fun Stuff Coming Up

…because if you’re anything like me, you work too much already. So here’s some fun stuff to do around town that’s not necessarily related to business.

One Last Thing… NYT Bestselling author and comedian Mamrie Hart is joining Book People on May 2 for a live book signing and discussion of her new cookbook, All I Think About Is Food.

Word On The Street

A roundup of cool local opportunities to grow your business, wealth, or personal brand

Insights

Thought-provoking ideas and stories published by founders in ATX

Typically, this is a roundup… But there’s only one thing that’s really fascinated me this week – this live recording of the All-In pod, taped here in Austin a while back. It’s excellent.

The whole thing is about new media, and local boy Jason Calacanis dives deep with co-host David Friedberg, Colin and Samir, and (fellow Austinite) Chris Williamson on:

If you’re running a media company, or investing seriously in your brand’s content creation, check it out. And if you’re passionate about this kind of thing, we’ve still got a couple seats left at our upcoming roundtable, all about making money and art.

You can find info and tickets for that here.

Local Artist of the Week

Looking at art is cool. But what I really love is stumbling on unexpected art. Art for its own sake.

That’s how I felt when I found that secret 30,000 sq foot mural on the roof last year. And it’s how I felt last week at Houndstooth when I noticed this – a miniature version of the shop (right down to the light-up interior and latte art), reimagined as a standalone building.

“One of our customers made that for us,” I was told.

That customer goes by Rizzy, and tags her work under the moniker Danger Peligro Studio. A microbiologist by day, she spends her nights making cool creative stuff, including a lot of lazer-cut wood projects and incredibly detailed models of the places she loves.

Aside from Houndstooth, she’s done miniatures of the Seaholm Power Plant downtown, the old Vulcan video store (lost during covid), and other cool spots. She also made the baby-Yoda there.

You can see a roundup on her Instagram page.

The thing that grabbed me wasn’t just the model, but the care with which the whole thing was displayed.

There was a nicely built case, a custom-engraved plaque, and even a professionally printed and bound hardcover book, with photos of the entire process.

I love stuff like this.

That’s all for this week!

Email me here if you want to share any feedback, or let me know about an event you’re hosting.

Until next week,

-Ethan