Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

Invite-only Networking & Community for AI Leaders

GILD is a curated network of senior AI and engineering leaders, strategists, and technical operators. Join the network to be in our next AI Forum.
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Where leaders from these companies come to think and connect
Companies whose leadership is attending GILD events
GILD events are by far the best organized and most well-curated. The time is always incredibly well-spent. I highly recommend attending.
Kirsten Karchmer
GILD Member, and CEO of Conceivable
It was great to connect with other senior executives who are actively exploring and building new AI tools and products.
Don Spear
GILD Member, and CEO of Open Sesame
GILD brought together an incredible caliber of peers. It was refreshing to be in a room of fellow CEOs and founders who share the same high-level focus on organizational efficiency.
Alex Porter
GILD Member, and CEO of Mod Tech Labs
It was incredibly valuable to hear from industry leaders how they're practically thinking about deploying AI with intentional guardrails and metrics. Kama gave me a lot of food for thought and ideas on how to integrate into our own organization more intentionally.
Josiah Bryan
GILD Member, CTO & Lead AI Researcher at Precina Health
GILD is a great nework without any impliied marketing. It gives a great platform for C suite to come together and discuss the important topics that are impacting the business and technology.
Srini Katta
GILD Member, CTO at Qubit Guard
GILD brought together an incredible caliber of peers. It was refreshing to be in a room of fellow CEOs and founders who share the same high-level focus on organizational efficiency.
Durgesh S Sukhtankar
GILD Member, SVP of Engineering and VP of Engineering at Smartasset
Josiah Bryan
CTO Precina Health
"It was incredibly valuable to hear from industry leaders how they're practically thinking about deploying AI with intentional guardrails and metrics. Kama gave me a lot of food for thought and ideas on how to integrate into our own organization more intentionally."
Srini Katta
CTO of Qubit Guard
"GILD is a great nework without any impliied marketing. It gives a great platform for C suite to come together and discuss the important topics that are impacting the business and technology."
Adam Martinez
Principal Program Manager of JABIL
"What stood out immediately was the ability to move beyond theory and hype, and instead ground the conversation in measurable business value, operational efficiency, and long-term scalability"
Durgesh S Sukhtankar
VP of Engineering at Smartasset
"GILD brought together an incredible caliber of peers. It was refreshing to be in a room of fellow CEOs and founders who share the same high-level focus on organizational efficiency."
Kirsten Karchmer
CEO of Conceivable
"GILD events are by far the best organized and most well-curated. The time is always incredibly well-spent. I highly recommend attending"
Kris Chase
Founder PeptiQ
"Every GILD event I’ve attended has been excellent. The room is full of sharp operators and subject matter experts, which makes for real learning, great conversations, and strong networking opportunities."
Don Spear
CEO of Open Sesame
"It was great to connect with other senior executives who are actively exploring and building new AI tools and products."
Alex Porter
CEO of Mod Tech Labs
"GILD brought together an incredible caliber of peers. It was refreshing to be in a room of fellow CEOs and founders who share the same high-level focus on organizational efficiency."
Brandon Nutting
VP of MVP
"Events that prioritize networking and discussion are always going to be a hit with me. Having a terrific event and remembering the sponsor as being associated with a quality event will go much further."
Aakash Relan
Head of Workforce Reinvention at OpenSesame
"The ""Human in the Loop"" theme really resonated, particularly Doug Gray’s point on the necessity of human accountability in an automated world. I'm leaving with a much sharper lens on how to lead that balance"
Yaniv Blum
Product Manager at Reco
"Very interesting people. There’s a strong mix of curiosity, technical depth, and intentionality behind the conversations, which makes the environment feel genuinely valuable and intellectually stimulating."
Sreenivasa Reddy Pitchala
Data and AI Architecture at NTT DATA
"Interaction through real cases is quite helpful because it turns the conversation into something practical and applicable. It gives much more context around how people actually think, decide, and operate in real scenarios."
Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

Built around the best

A curated network of senior AI and engineering leaders, strategists, and operators serious about what they're building.

Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

Curated rooms, not crowded events

Intentionally small. Off-the-record. Designed for substantive peer exchange, not transactional networking

Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

Where we're operating

Austin, Dallas, and Miami. We're starting in these cities and growing from here.

Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

High-signal by design

No selling. No demos. Just real peer-to-peer exchange and conversation between people building the future of AI.

Upcoming GILD Events

GILD events are where the network gathers. Curated rooms for senior AI and engineering leaders. Invite-only and intentionally small.

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Apply To The GILD Network

If you're a senior AI or engineering leader, we'd like to meet you. We review every application personally. Tell us who you are, what you're working on, and what would be most valuable to you. We'll do the rest.

Apply Now

What you get as a member of GILD.

GILD is more than dinners. The network is built to make every member more connected, more informed, and more effective.

ACCESS TO THE DINNERS

Curated, in-person AI Forums in Austin, Dallas, and Miami, with more tech hubs launching across the country. Senior leaders only. Off-the-record. Themed around the problems members are actually working through.

AI-POWERED MATCHMAKING

Coming soon. Tell us who you want to meet, what you're working on, and what you need help with. Our system, supported by AI, finds the right peers and partners across the network and brokers double-opt-in introductions. You don't have to chase anyone. We do the work.

THE GILD COMMUNITY

Coming soon. A private virtual space for members to stay connected between dinners. Share what you're building, ask the network for advice, and keep the conversations going.

INSIGHTS AND INTELLIGENCE

The AI Builder Brief newsletter, the GILD podcast, and quarterly intelligence from across the network. The trends, challenges, and decisions senior AI and engineering leaders are navigating, delivered to you.

Join the Network

Partner With GILD

GILD partners with a small number of aligned companies that want direct, high-trust access to Texas’s most respected founders and senior operators.

Our partners co-create curated rooms, build real relationships, and grow their presence through thoughtful, long-term engagement.

If you’re focused on awareness, strategic relationships, or high-quality pipeline, and you respect the integrity of the room, let’s talk.

Explore Partnerships
Group of startup founders networking during a Gild event

Frequently Asked Questions

What is GILD?

GILD is a curated network of senior AI and engineering leaders, strategists, and technical operators. We host intimate, off-the-record dinners themed around the challenges our members are actually working through, and we connect members to peers and partners across the network. We are not an events company. We are a community built around the people doing the most interesting work in AI.

Who attends GILD events?

CTOs, VPs of Engineering, Heads of AI, AI Transformation Leaders, senior technical operators, and technical founders building AI-native companies. Every attendee is reviewed and invited based on their role, experience, and fit with the room.

How many people are in the room?

20 to 25 senior leaders per dinner. Intentionally small. Designed for substantive conversation, not networking volume.

Are events open to the public?

No. GILD events are invite-only. Members of the GILD Network are invited to attend events in their city. Non-members can request an invite, but every attendee is reviewed individually.

What does it cost to be in the network?

Membership in the GILD Network is free for qualifying senior AI and engineering leaders. We invest in the network because the network is the product.

How do I apply to the GILD Network?

Use the apply form on this page. We review every application personally and respond within two weeks.

How does the matchmaking work?

Coming soon. When you join the network, we ask you about what you're working on, what challenges you're navigating, and who you want to meet. Our team, supported by AI tooling, surfaces relevant peers and partners across the network and brokers double-opt-in introductions. You only meet people who have agreed to meet you, and you stay in control of which introductions happen.

Where are events held?

Austin, Dallas, and Miami, with more tech hubs launching across the country. We host events roughly monthly across our active cities. Specific venues are shared with confirmed attendees.

An exclusive space where senior leaders come together to connect.

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