The LA Grind: Week of September 1st

Upcoming events, venture deals, opportunities, and more in Los Angeles this week.

Author

Justin Gordon
September 01, 2025

👋 I’m Justin. I run The LA Grind, host the Just Go Grind podcast, and scout for Headline. I’ve lived in LA since 2018, earned my MBA from USC (✌️), and I’m probably out running when I’m not writing this.

A few quick updates:

  • I’m working on a special project and looking for a designer with experience in print/magazine layouts who can deliver something clean, timeless, and collectible in a short amount of time.

  • I'm hosting two upcoming events at amazing venues, a Rooftop Sunset Soirée and LA Tech Week Founder and Investor Dinner and I'm looking for 1 or 2 more sponsors. Reply to this newsletter or fill out this form if interested!

  • Sitch is hosting an invite-only dinner tomorrow for SINGLE tech founders in partnership with m13 to kick off their LA launch week and I’m partnering with Sitch’s co-founder, Nandini Mullaji, on a coffee meetup this week!

Also, I’d love your input below for something else I’m working on:

Are you hiring right now?

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Let’s get to it.

Safeguard Your Startup’s IP Now.

I’ve gotten to know Marc Hankin from HPL Law in the past few months and can say he is one of the most genuine, supportive people you will meet. While I have not worked with him as my attorney yet, I have seen firsthand how much he cares about helping founders protect what they are building.

Marc and his team at HPL Law advise inventors, startups, and growth-stage companies on patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and licensing across California, the US, and beyond.

Their IP Check-Up helps you:

  • Confirm ownership is in your company’s name

  • Make sure assignments are signed and recorded

  • Stay on top of renewals and maintenance fees

  • Get one clear dashboard of assets, numbers, evidence, and owners

Before your next fundraise, launch, or M&A conversation, know exactly where you stand.

Email Marc E. Hankin at [email protected] to get started. Learn more at HPL’s website.

Upcoming Events

🎉 Featured Event 🎉 

Want your event featured here, at the top of this section, with a link and longer description? Fill out this form if interested in including your event in this new sponsored section.

🌴 Upcoming Events I’m Hosting 🌴 

🗓️ September 3: Coffee Meetup with Sitch’s co-founder, Nandini Mullaji. Sitch is an invite-only personalized matchmaker that gets to know you before introducing you to people you will actually vibe with. They recently raised $5M from M13 and a16z Speedrun and I’m co-hosting a coffee meetup with them as part of their LA launch!

🗓️ September 6: The LA Grind: Startup Community Basketball. 5 on 5, full court games at a great indoor gym.

🗓️ September 10: The LA Grind Dinner Club. Get matched with 5 people in the startup community for dinner. Meet up after dinner at a second venue with other groups from The LA Grind Dinner Club.

🗓️ September 11: Rooftop Sunset Soirée. ​Join us for sunset drinks on a Venice rooftop with a curated group of founders, CEOs, investors, and media. Co-hosting with CapV, sponsored by Howdy.

🗓️ September 16: The LA Grind: Curated Founder & Investor Dinner. More details still being finalized. This is a special dinner experience with a private chef and curated group. Looking for 1 or 2 sponsors.

🗓️ September 24: Startup Community Mixer. Early-bird pricing is available. Thanks to our sponsors HPL Intellectual Property Law and A.J. Dorn.

🗓️ October 14: Curated Beachfront Dinner. Join us during LA Tech Week for an intimate evening connecting top founders and investors at a stunning private beachfront residence in Santa Monica. Thanks to Polsinelli, AE Studio, and Relay Human Cloud for sponsoring!

👋 This Week 👋 

🗓️ September 2: Sitch LA Tech Founders Dinner. For single tech founders only 😊. Use code LAGRIND to skip the waitlist. Santa Monica. 7-10 pm.

🗓️ September 2-4: Glendale Tech Week. 22 events in 3 days.

🗓️ September 4: Sitch LA Launch Party! Use code LAGRIND to skip the waitlist. Highland Park. 7-10 pm.

🗓️ September 5: Deep Tech Brunch. Santa Monica. 9:30-11:30 am.

🗓️ September 5: INERTIA Dinner 01 ↗. Santa Monica. 6-8:15 pm.

🗓️ September 6: Let's Talk Shop & Hike. West Hollywood. 9-10:30 am.

Coming Soon

Want to submit an event for consideration in the next edition? Fill out this form.

Top 5 LA Startup & Investment Jobs

👋 Hiring? Message me about featuring your role in this newsletter.

💼 Looking for a job? Job board coming soon!

Co-Founder Opportunity

Tom Boinski, Founder of Lobby4, an AI assistant helping you get the most ROI from networking, is seeking a Co-Founder who is passionate about social networking (online/traditional) and AI!

Know a founder or investor in Los Angeles who is raising capital or searching for a co-founder? Reply to this email with more details that I could share in this newsletter for 4,000+ founders, investors, and operators.

Welcome Tech, a startup building a digital platform to help immigrant workers find jobs and access services, raised $7.5M in funding from TTV Capital, Mubadala Capital, Westbound Equity Partners, CityRock Ventures Partners, Next Legacy Partners, and BTN Ventures.

Payment Labs, a fintech startup providing APIs to simplify cross-border payments for industries like esports, creators, and entertainment, raised a $3.25M seed round led by Aperture Venture Capital.

Send any fundraising news for LA-based companies or funds, including your own, to [email protected].

Featured Location

Q’s Billiard Club. This is such a fun place to spend an evening. It has lots of tables, plenty of TVs, and a lively crowd that makes it great for casual meetups. Last time I went, I may or may not have destroyed a friend of mine (you know who you are 😜).

Fun Events

See you next week,

Justin

P.S. Want to connect?

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