Oct 8 · Networking & conversation
Meet. Talk. Connect.
A relaxed gathering during SF Tech Week to meet people interested in games, AI, and learning, exchange ideas, and make new connections.
San Francisco / Tech Week 2026
PLAY IT
FORWARD
A community for games and learning
in the age of AI.
October 8: networking & conversation.Join us for a relaxed gathering during SF Tech Week. A showcase and panel, plus an AI game jam, are planned for later.
Help shape future events, offer support, or make an introduction.
Dates
Gathering: Oct 8, 2026 RSVP
Showcase + panel: TBD
Game jam: TBD
Location
San Francisco
Venue to be announced
October 8
Networking &
conversation
Community
Creators, educators,
learners & enablers
Great games.
Meaningful learning.
AI is expanding who can build educational games and accelerating how quickly an idea can become playable.
We’re bringing creators together with educators, families, and the people who choose learning tools. Together, we can explore what learners need—and build a community that keeps creating long after each event.
Date TBD · Showcase + panel
Play. Share. Explore.
A future event with playable learning games and a panel conversation with creators and learning experts. We’re seeking a venue and sponsors.
Dates TBD · Game jam
Imagine. Build. Learn.
Turn learning challenges shared by educators and families into playable ideas, with AI and creative tools, expert guidance, and collaboration.
Gathering · October 8, 2026 at 6:00 pm
Meet. Talk.
Connect.
Join a relaxed evening of networking and conversation about games, AI, and learning during SF Tech Week. Meet fellow creators, educators, founders, and curious people, exchange ideas, and see where the conversation takes you.
Meet the community
Connect with people interested in learning through play, from game makers and educators to founders and supporters.
Swap ideas
Talk about what you’re building, what you’re learning, and the possibilities you’re curious to explore.
Find common ground
Share a learning challenge, discover a new perspective, or start a conversation that continues beyond the evening.
Help shape what
comes next.
What learning games do you wish existed? What challenges are you excited to tackle? Bring your ideas for the future showcase and panel, or the AI game jam.
San Francisco · Venue to be announced. RSVP using the October 8 link above.
Showcase + Panel · Date TBD
Play, explore,
and learn together.
A future event bringing creators, educators, families, and the people who choose learning tools together for playable demos and a panel conversation about learning through play.
Play demos
Try learning games, creative tools, and platforms, and see how they work in practice.
Meet creators
Go behind the build with game makers and tool builders. Discover the design choices, technology, and ideas behind their work.
Join the panel conversation
Explore game design, AI, and what learners need with creators and learning experts.
Test ideas together
Give feedback on playable experiences and meet people who could help shape the next version.
Date and venue: TBD. We’re seeking a venue and sponsors before announcing the date.
No fee to showcase.
Your presence supports the community and we welcome any additional support you can provide, whether it be time, expertise, community connections, discounts, or sponsorship for future events. See below for ways that you can help.
Game Jam · Dates TBD
Imagine.
Build. Learn.
The AI game jam will bring creators and learning experts together to turn learning challenges into engaging, enriching, and immersive learning experiences, catalyzed by AI.
01
Choose a challenge
Start with a learning need shared by educators and families, and explore how a game could help.
02
Build a prototype
Experiment with AI and game-development tools, with input from advisors and mentors.
03
Playtest and share
Try each other’s games, share feedback, and identify ideas worth developing further.
Dates and venue: TBD. We’re seeking venue and sponsor support. Format and participation details will be announced.
Play a part in what comes next.
Help bring two future events to life: a showcase and panel, and an AI game jam. We’re looking for venues, sponsors, and community partners. Showcasing is free; sponsorships and donations are welcome and entirely optional.
What your support can do
Meaningful impact
Expand access to learning games.
Product adoption
Put your tools to work on real learning challenges.
Brand visibility
Reach an engaged audience.
New connections
Meet talent, potential partners, and customers.
Support path 01
Host
Future events · Dates TBD
Help secure venues and cover food and beverages for our future events.
Contribute
- Venue space or rental costs
- Food and Beverage
- Community outreach
Potential benefits
Support path 02
Share
Showcase + panel · Date TBD
Bring a learning game, creative tool, or platform for people to try at the future showcase.
Contribute
- A playable demo
- Product tutorials
- Impact stories
Potential benefits
Support path 03
Guide
Future events · Dates TBD
Share expertise on game design, learning, and AI, including emerging trends, opportunities, and risks.
Contribute
- Panel experts + advice
- Game jam mentoring
- Judging + thoughtful feedback
Potential benefits
Support path 04
Equip
Game jam · Dates TBD
Give game jam teams access to AI, creative, and game development tools.
Contribute
- AI + cloud credits
- Game development credits + tools
- Software licenses + support
Potential benefits
Support path 05
Award
Game jam · Dates TBD
Fund game jam prizes and help standout teams continue building.
Contribute
- Prize money
- In-kind prizes
- Opportunities for participants
Potential benefits
Help us connect
the dots.
We’d love to connect with creators, tool builders, investors, and education and community organizations. They could showcase, contribute funding or resources, offer space, or connect us with advisors, mentors, judges, and playtesters.
We have a partial outreach list below with example organizations that might be a great fit. We’d also appreciate introductions to any other organizations with similar goals.
Potential Partners & Supporters
EdTech / Games
- Age of Learning
- Prodigy
- Legends of Learning
- Teach Your Monster
- Dragonbox
- Dojo / Dojo Islands
- Kahoot
- MSFT / Minecraft Education
- Roblox Education
- Cool Math Games
- Modlab
- MIT Scheller Education Arcade
- Duolingo
AI / Vibe-coding companies
- Cursor
- OpenAI
- Anthropic
- Meshy
- Tripo AI
- Lovable
- Replit
- Vercel / v0
- Bolt.new
- Hugging Face
- ElevenLabs
- World Labs (Marble)
Cloud, hosting & backend
- Supabase
- Firebase
- PlayFab
- Convex
- Cloudflare
- AWS
- MongoDB
Game-dev platforms
- Unity
- Unreal
- Blender
- Godot
- GitHub
- Scratch
- Discord
- Twitch
- Itch
- Valve / Steam
- Netflix
- YouTube
Serious Game Studios
- Filament
- FableVision Studios
- Schell Games
- Field Day
- Endless Studios
Investors and accelerators
- Owl
- Reach
- GSV
- Bitkraft
- Pearson
- Supercell AI Innovation Lab
- a16z Speedrun
- Konvoy
- Play Ventures
- Learn Capital
- Kapor Capital
Education & community organizations
Know someone who could help? We’d love an introduction!
Meet the organizers
Max Giang Cofounder + CEO
Turn any curriculum into games.
Bobby Borges Cofounder + CEO
Unlock literacy with game-native, evidence-based learning experiences