Edition 01Sat, Nov 14, 2026Confirmed
Build Night 01
One-night build-a-thonDoors at 6, build until midnight, demo to judges. 100 to 150 students, free, UC Berkeley.
DetailsUC Berkeley · Student-runFirst event · Sat, Nov 14, 2026
The room where Berkeley builds.Est. 2026
Sweep · 37.87 N 122.26 W
Radar · Berkeley · live
A student-run community of builders and founders at UC Berkeley. Our first event is Build Night: one night, one project, one demo, on Saturday, November 14.
Build Night 01 · 100 to 150 students · Free
Next event
Build Night 01
T-minus to doors
T-minus to doors
Countdown · d : h : m : s
Doors
Sat, Nov 14 · 6:00 PM PST
Demos after midnight
Demos after midnight
Venue
UC Berkeley
Room announced to registrants
Room announced to registrants
Seats
150
$0 to attend
$0 to attend
[6:00 PM] doors open · check-in · dinner
[12:00 AM] hard stop · hands off keyboards
[12:15 AM] demos · 3 min per team
> awaiting registrants
- Build Night 01 Sat, Nov 14, 2026
- Doors 6:00 PM
- Demos 12:15 AM
- Seats 150
- Cost $0
- Supporter slots Open
- Track A Unsold
- Track B Unsold
- Presenting sponsor Open
- Sponsors wanted YC-backed and Berkeley-founded startups
- Run by Founder Square
A room for people who build.
Founder Square is a student-run community at UC Berkeley for people who would rather build the thing than talk about building it. Members, events, and a room on campus where it actually happens.
Our first event is Build Night. Most projects die in the planning stage, so a one-night build removes the planning stage: you start at 6 PM, and by midnight you have something that runs or you have learned why it doesn't.
Sponsors show up with credits, prizes and judges because a demo at 1 AM tells them more about a student than a resume does. You leave with a project, a few new collaborators, and the next event on your calendar.
Events01
Seats, Nov 14150
Founded2026
To attend$0
FormatOur first event
Small teams build one project from scratch in a single night, then demo it live to a panel of sponsor and student judges after midnight. It is the first thing Founder Square is putting on, and the shape of everything after it.
Tracks04
Track 01Open
Open
Build anything. Judged on whether it works, whether anyone would use it, and how far you got in one night.
Track 02Reserved
Best use of [Track Sponsor A]Placeholder
Reserved for a track sponsor. The strongest project built on their product, judged by someone from their team.
Track 03Reserved
Best use of [Track Sponsor B]Placeholder
Second sponsor track. Same deal: their product, their judge, their prize.
Track 04Reserved
[Presenting Sponsor] Grand PrizePlaceholder
Reserved for the presenting sponsor. Top overall project as chosen by the full panel.
Run sheetProvisional
6:00 PMDoors open. Check-in and dinner.
6:45 PMKickoff. Tracks, sponsors, rules.
7:00 PMTeam formation for anyone who came alone.
7:30 PMBuild begins.
9:30 PMSponsor workshop and office hours. Optional.
11:00 PMLate food.
12:00 AMHard stop. Hands off keyboards, submit your project.
12:15 AMDemos. Three minutes per team in front of the judges.
1:30 AMWinners, prizes, cleanup.
What to bring05 items
01A laptop and charger
02Your student ID for check-in
03An idea, or none. We post starter ideas at kickoff.
04Whatever you want at 1 AM: a hoodie, headphones, a water bottle
05Teammates if you have them. If not, you'll have some by 7:30.
RegisterForm link TBDFree. Any UC Berkeley student. Registration opens soon; email us to get notified.
03 — Events
Upcoming
2026 → 2027Scroll to move →
One confirmed night and a year of placeholders. Dates, rooms and formats after Edition 01 are proposals until we post them.
Confirmed Placeholder
Edition 02January 2027Placeholder
Build Night 02
One-night build-a-thonSame format as the first one, with whatever we learned from it. Doors at 6, build until midnight, demo to judges. Date and room to be confirmed.
Get notifiedSide 01February 2027Placeholder
Founder Fireside
Fireside, 90 minutesA Berkeley-founded startup founder, a room of students, and an hour of questions about how the first version actually got built. No slides.
Get notifiedEdition 03March 2027Placeholder
Build Night 03: Agents
Themed one-night build-a-thonThemed edition. Every project has to ship an agent that does something on its own. Sponsors bring the models and credits, you bring the use case.
Get notifiedEdition 04April 2027Placeholder
Build Night 04: Hardware
One-night hardware buildBoards, sensors, and solder on the tables. Build something physical in one night and show it running, not rendered. Parts provided; bring your own if you have them.
Get notifiedSide 02June 2027Placeholder
Ship Week
Five-day build, Friday demoOne night was not enough for some ideas. Five days, one project, and a public demo on Friday. Daily check-ins, sponsor office hours, and a real deadline.
Get notifiedOpen slot2027
Propose an event
A format you want to run with us, or a room you can get. Email the organizers.
The pitchFor startups
Build Night puts 100 to 150 Berkeley students in a room for one night, hands them your product, and asks them to ship something with it before midnight. You get to watch, judge, and talk to the ones you want to hire.
Tiers03
Tier 01Supporter
Supporter
Swag or credits, any amount
- Logo on the event page and socials
- Shoutout at kickoff
Tier 02Track
Track sponsor
Around $500 in credits or prizes
- A named track, e.g. Best use of [Your product]
- Time at kickoff to introduce the company
- A seat on the judging panel
Tier 03Presenting
Presenting sponsor
Around $1,000 in credits or prizes
- 5 minutes to present
- A recruiting table for the night
- A short workshop or demo
- A seat on the judging panel
Why sponsor04 reasons
01
Students who ship
Everyone in the room chose to spend a Saturday night building. The demos at 1 AM are the filter.
02
Hiring
Judges see a student's project, code and demo before they ever see a resume. Recruiters get a table and a reason to talk.
03
Product feedback
A hundred students hitting your API for six hours will find the rough edges your docs skipped. You get the notes.
04
Cost
Credits and prizes, not cash. Most tiers are covered by things you already give away.
EmailReplace before launch
sponsors@foundersquare.example
Sponsor
Sponsor Build Night
A student-run community of builders and founders at UC Berkeley. Build Night is our first event; the ones after it are listed above. If you build things, or want to, you are the audience.
Any UC Berkeley student. Undergrad, grad, any major. You register, we confirm, you show up with a laptop.
No. Come alone and we run team formation at 7 PM. Teams are usually two to four people. If you already have one, register together.
No. We post starter ideas at kickoff and sponsors bring problems they want solved. Picking something small enough to finish by midnight matters more than picking something clever.
Nothing. Food, space, prizes and credits are covered by sponsors.
Yes. Dinner when doors open and a second round around 11 PM. Tell us about dietary restrictions when you register.
Then this is the place to start. Teams need people who can test, design, write and present, not only people who can code. Organizers and sponsor engineers float around all night to unblock you.
Each team gets three minutes in front of the panel: demo first, slides optional. Judges score on whether it works, whether anyone would use it, and how far you got in one night. Track winners are chosen by the sponsor who owns the track.