
More Ways to Disrupt: New 2026 Side Events from KOTRA, WayFounder, Enterprise Ireland, SafetyWing + Descope
THE SO WHAT
Disrupt Week’s sprawl of side events is another data point that the real deal flow and founder matching often happens off the main stage. If you’re attending, treat the official conference as table stakes and invest your energy in curated dinners, small meetups, and repeat touchpoints.
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