AI Startup Rodeo Oct 30 2026One day · Edition 02: Machine-to-machine payments

Roberto Fuentes, co-founder of AI Startup Rodeo, founder of Synapto and organizer of React ATX, and Car Gonzalez, co-founder and CEO of PlebLab.

18 speakers, including speakers from Chaincode Labs and contributors to Bitcoin Core. Watch the talks from the first Rodeo ↗

AI Startup Rodeo is a one-day builder event in downtown Austin. Talks and live demos on AI agents, developer tools, security, open-source infrastructure and startups. Edition 02 focuses on machine-to-machine payments: how software pays and gets paid. One room, one stage, breakfast and lunch included. It takes place Friday, October 30, 2026 at Q Branch, The Texas Embassy, during Austin Tech Week.

The event is at Q Branch, The Texas Embassy, 200 E 6th Street, Suite 300, on Historic 6th Street in downtown Austin, TX 78701. It’s walkable from downtown hotels, with public parking garages and rideshare drop-off nearby.

Doors open at 8:00 AM on Friday, October 30, 2026, with breakfast and coffee, and the day wraps at 5:00 PM. Come early. The morning kickoff sets up a full day of talks and live demos.

Builders, developers, founders, and hackers working on AI agents, developer tools, security and payments between machines, including teams of one. If you are building something, or experimenting with something strange, you’re invited.

Read the CFP for session formats, topic areas, and what to include, then email your proposal to program@aistartuprodeo.com.

Tickets are $25 and include breakfast, coffee, beverages, and lunch. Every ticket includes a free pass for one builder you bring. Register on Luma or pay via Zaprite to lock in your spot.

Registration is open on Luma, with Zaprite available as an alternate checkout. Every ticket includes all meals. Spots are limited, so register early.

Every ticket includes a free pass for one builder you bring. You get one free guest pass per paid ticket. Your guest registers with their own name and email. A guest pass does not include another guest pass.

Yes — breakfast and lunch by Chef Johnny Ochoa are part of the ticket, with drinks, water, and coffee all day.

Ben Carman builds the Lightning Development Kit at Spiral. His LDK Server ships with an MCP server, so AI agents can run a payment node as a tool. Robert Willis (rej_ex) is a white-hat hacker with Sakura Samurai and a co-author of Tribe of Hackers. Benjamin Morrow is a builder operating at the intersection of AI development and freedom tech via Megistus.xyz. He is currently building Brainstorm in collaboration with NosFabrica. With over two decades of experience spanning web development, SaaS healthcare, and UI/UX consulting, his recent shipments include Relay Outpost, a privacy-first communications solution for the next phase of the web, and Wellness Ally, which tied for 3rd place at the NosFabrica Spring 2025 Health Hackathon. Christopher Scott has 12 years in Bitcoin and 15 in security architecture. He builds multi-signature and threshold signing. Roberto Fuentes is the founder of Synapto. Car Gonzalez is co-founder and CEO of PlebLab. More speakers are announced as they confirm.

Yes. Ticket holders get a happy hour afterparty at Upstairs at Caroline, 621 Congress Ave, from 5:00 PM when the day ends. Your check-in wristband is your drink access.

There’s no dedicated event lot, but several public parking garages sit within a couple of blocks of 200 E 6th Street in downtown Austin. Rideshare drop-off is the easiest option, right at the door.

The venue is on Historic 6th Street, so a range of downtown Austin hotels are within walking distance. Book early. Downtown Austin fills up fast around major events.

Email program@aistartuprodeo.com with the subject “Volunteer” and we’ll get you on the list — setup, check-in, and room support on Friday, October 30.

We’d love to have you. Email us about sponsorship and we’ll send details on putting your brand in front of Austin’s AI builders, founders, and investors.