TECH AFTER DARK
The go-to tech & startup community for tech professionals, startup founders, venture capitalists, and thought leaders in Vietnam and Southeast Asia to build high-quality connections and create opportunities in the tech & startup scene.
A NEED FOR COMMUNITY IN THE TECH & STARTUP SCENE
In the last decade, Vietnam’s tech and startup ecosystem has grown at an explosive rate. While this is an exhilarating time for ambitious entrepreneurs looking to start their own ventures, there were little to no avenues to meet other people in the tech & startup scene, and as a result, fewer opportunities for collaboration and investment. Many existing or potential founders perceived that access to investors was only for the well-connected, and at the same time, struggled with finding and retaining great talent. The few events that brought professionals together were infrequent and of poor quality, not allowing for the attendees to make new and valuable connections in their industry.
TECH AFTER DARK – NOT YOUR TRADITIONAL NETWORKING EVENT
To address these needs, Ascend Vietnam Ventures (AVV), Young Entrepreneurs Saigon (YES), and Ivy+Partners co-founded Tech After Dark in late 2022.
Tech After Dark’s three co-founders (from left to right): Clemens Levert, Co-Founder of YES; Ivy Nhi Chau, Founder & CEO at Ivy+Partners; Sohun Bae, Senior Investment Manager at AVV
More than just networking, Tech After Dark was designed to be a community space to connect young tech talent, current & future startup founders, venture capitalists, industry titans, and thought leaders through fun and engaging events. Curating the guest list through VIP invitations to key players in the tech, startup and investment scene allows for networking to be more productive and valuable to attendees. Each attendee is also given a different colored wristband to designate them as a founder, investor, working professional, or someone looking for new opportunities, to facilitate easier networking. Each event also brings different activities and programming to the table through a diverse range of partners and sponsors supporting the effort. Tech After Dark’s partners provide unique lucky draw prizes, delicious food & drink, booths for attendees to experience and learn more about new products and services, and more.
Tech After Dark attendees enjoying the event and building valuable connections
THE EVENTS
As of the end of 2023, Tech After Dark has hosted 4 networking events in Ho Chi Minh City and 1 pilot event in Hanoi, Vietnam, each one attracting about 150 to 200 attendees.
The first Tech After Dark event in November 2022 served as a pilot and attracted almost 200 professionals, confirming the founders’ beliefs about the challenges in Vietnam’s tech & startup ecosystems and just how many people were seeking to make connections.
With the second and third events, the team worked to deliver a better participant experience through providing a diverse range of sponsor offerings and experimenting with different event spaces.
For the fourth Tech After Dark event in October 2023, the team experimented with thematic programming to celebrate Halloween at The Sentry’s newest location in Thao Dien.
The team took the event on the road for its fifth event, bringing Tech After Dark for the first time ever to Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi. The night was a successful pilot with almost 100 participants from over 60 companies – quite an achievement for a city that rarely participants in networking events.
Overall, Tech After Dark’s five networking events in 2022 and 2023 brought together:
- Over 735 attendees in tech, venture capital, and startups
- Over 400 companies in attendance
- Nearly 30 unique sponsors offering amazing venues, food & drink, promotions, news features & lucky draw prizes. Sponsors have included Dreamplex, Qapita, Vietcetera, The Sentry, Alibaba Cloud, Gojek, Heineken, and SiliconZ.
JOIN US
Tech After Dark will continue to hold its premier networking event every quarter in HCMC and every six months in Hanoi, with plans to take Tech After Dark overseas to the Philippines or Indonesia. The vision is to ultimately build stronger, ever-more connected tech & startup ecosystems both in Vietnam and throughout Southeast Asia.
- Participate: Whether you’ve been with us since the beginning or you’re new to the scene, please join us! We welcome young professionals, startup founders, thought leaders, industry titans, and everyone in between, as long as you’re in the tech industry and startup scene.
- Become a sponsor: As our partner, you help make our events possible. Support us while getting your brand in front of hundreds of professionals, both on our social media and at our events! Contact us at hello@ivynpartners.com to learn more.
Make sure to ‘Like’ and ‘Follow’ us on social media to stay up to date on the next Tech After Dark:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/techafterdark
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/techafterdark/
TAD Community: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14384282/
