Buda Joins Statewide Texas Venture Fest to Spotlight Local Entrepreneurs

The Buda Economic Development Corporation will host Texas Venture Fest: Buda 2026 on Thursday, October 1, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Buda HIVE, 307 N. San Marcos St. The event is part of the 4th Annual Texas Venture Fest, a statewide, simultaneous celebration of entrepreneurship that will take place in more than 10 Texas cities on the same day. Powered by over 20 co-host organizations, the initiative is expected to convene more than 3,500 Texans and serves as the anchor of Texas Startup & Tech Week, running September 28 through October 2.

The Buda gathering will highlight the newest graduates of the Buda HIVE Incubator Program, Cohort 5, who completed an eight-week program of weekly guidance, one-on-one coaching, and collaborative networking. The evening will feature a Small Business Expo with Cohort 5 graduates, a live Pitch Competition, and Investor Insights from early-stage funders. Attendees can also network with founders, business owners, investors, and community leaders while enjoying drinks from Proof, music from DJ Steve, and coffee from Travelin' Tom's. The event is free with registration, available at luma.com/texas-venture-fest-buda-2026.

Jacquie Martinez, Assistant Director of Small Business Initiatives at the Buda EDC, said, "Bringing the Texas Venture Fest momentum to Buda allows us to give our local entrepreneurs the community support and network opportunities they deserve. This year, we are proud to highlight the graduates of our Buda HIVE (Home for Innovators, Visionaries, and Entrepreneurs) Cohort 5. With investor insights, a pitch competition, and a dynamic small business expo, 'Buda-ful Fest 2026' demonstrates that major innovation and talent thrive just south of Austin. We look forward to welcoming everyone to support our local founders and witness Buda's economic drive firsthand."

Texas Venture Fest began in 2022 as the Austin Venture Crawl with about 700 attendees. It grew to 10 cities and roughly 2,000 participants in 2023, passed 3,000 in 2024, and reached 3,500 Texans across 25 venues in 2025. This year's theme, "Innovation is Statecraft," frames innovation as a strategic capability that strengthens the Texas economy. Organizer CS Freeland said, "We bring together as a statewide coalition this shared purpose: amplifying the ecosystem of entrepreneur support. When each cohost showcases their own regional perspective and expertise, together, our work connects local strengths into a statewide network. The Fest puts that vision into practice through locally led gatherings across Texas. Not only is this a statewide celebration, it's an opportunity to craft what Texas builds next."

While Buda celebrates at the HIVE, other Texas cities will host their own events. In Austin, the Austin Venture Crawl will run across downtown venues, with Silverton Partners hosting an Oktoberfest-themed Founders' Bags & Brews and S3 Ventures, LiveOak Ventures, 512 Financial, and KPMG hosting the Founders' Outpost at Star Bar. Georgetown will feature a "Thinking Like an Angel" workshop with Gary Forni of Central Texas Angel Network. Round Rock will host a fireside chat on building a company, and Pflugerville will connect kitchen-table founders with tools and a Women's Summit. San Antonio, North Texas, the Hill Country, and El Paso will also host events, with rural students pitching ideas at Mason's historic Odeon Theater and Pioneers 21 partnering with UTEP's Hunt G.O. Foundry in El Paso.

The Buda HIVE is the Buda EDC's incubator and accelerator, created to give entrepreneurs mentorship, funding connections, training, and a peer network so they can launch, build, and scale in Buda. The program aligns with the EDC's Business Retention & Expansion strategy and complements The Depot on Main, a retail incubator and collective marketplace in a revitalized historic train depot scheduled to open in downtown Buda in early 2027. Taking part in Texas Venture Fest puts Buda's founders on the same day and in the same statewide network as investors, accelerators, universities, chambers, and economic development organizations from El Paso to Dallas, and gives the community a chance to see what is next for Buda's growing business ecosystem.

Justin McKenzie, host of The Building Texas Show, a YouTube podcast, said, "The Building Texas Show exists to put a microphone in front of the people doing the work in cities like Buda, not just the big metros. I have watched the Buda EDC back its entrepreneurs, from small business support to the HIVE, and Texas Venture Fest is that work on display. Collaboration and ambition are building this state, this is the story, and we are proud to tell it on The Building Texas Show."

For more information on the statewide event, visit https://www.texasventurefest.com. Media inquiries can be directed to the Buda EDC via Email Contact.