December Update: Momentum, builders, and a focused winter ahead

Reflections on momentum in Waterloo, and what we’re building this winter. This is a packed update so grab a coffee or tea or warm cup of water. Lets get things set up for 2026!

The Akatos fall showcase was a highlight of the term and a lot of fun in December! That was followed by the Socratica Express (their end of term event) just down the street at the Museum.

December always flies by — and this year was no exception.

As a month of reflection, December is also a good moment to look back further. I revisited our first monthly update from two years ago, and then the one in December from 2024, the growth is hard to miss. Over the past year alone, more than 1,400 people (unique emails) have attended events across the calendar. At this point, a traditional highlight reel doesn’t really work anymore, there’s simply too much happening.

For me, two moments this year signaled that Waterloo is awake again: The Socratica Symposium in March, and Waterloo Tech Week in September.

Both were student-led. Both were full of the intensity and curiosity Waterloo is known for. That energy matters. What also feeds that energy is depth of the experienced builders in the community that are there between the big moments. We saw the experience on display in October at the Techstars and Build Canada events.

The constant mixing of new student energy and proven experience building things is what makes Waterloo special.

Founders - you don’t want to miss this

Founder Dinner Series - Winter 2026
This winter, founders and investors actively building in Waterloo are joining us at the table for a small, focused dinner series.

Who’s joining us:

• Matt Stevens - Finite Robotics

• Humza Ahmed - Automax.ai (YC F25)

• Michael Litt - Garage VC/Vidyard (YC)

• Mike Kirkup - Elderella

• Brad Murray - Beeper (acquired by Automattic)

• Hongwei Liu - mappedin

• Jim Murphy - Elora Brewing Company, Boltmade (acquired by Shopify)

👉 Apply for the Winter 2026 Founder Dinner Series

Six Tuesday dinners. Small groups. Honest conversations with people who’ve actually built. Thanks to the support from Osler and TD Innovation Banking.

If you’re actively building and want momentum through the winter, this series is worth a close look.

Also, we are kicking off the winter with a Startupcamp… great place to try out that pitch and have some fun! You don’t need to have a pitch ready to attend.

Coming up in January

Expect more to be added to the calendar, so far we have:

• KWLUG Tech Meeting – Fedora Atomic Linux (+ 1 more, maybe) — Jan 5, 2026 — University of Waterloo Davis Centre Library

• Technical Wednesday — Jan 7, 2026 — Builders Club

• StartupCampWaterloo v2 — Jan 7, 2026 — Builders Club

• Accountability Club – January through March — Jan 13, 2026 — Online

• Non-Technical Wednesday — Jan 14, 2026 — Builders Club

• KWLUG Dinner Meetup — Jan 19, 2026 — Crabby Joe’s Bar & Grill

• GET together with Toast: Women Doing Cool $h!t (KW Edition) — Jan 21, 2026 — Builders Club

• DevHouse Waterloo – January — Jan 26, 2026 — Builders Club

• AI Tinkerers — Jan 28, 2026 — Builders Club

What happened in December

Akatos Fall Showcase

Akatos hosted their Fall Showcase with 16 builders pitching live, drawing a strong crowd and solid community energy. Always good to see builders putting work in the open and getting real reps.

👉 Read more and see photos from the event:

akatos.@akatoshouse

Huge thank you to everyone who came to our first-ever Fall 2025 Showcase, the incredible demoers that the audience LOVED (high praise post-event!), @jeffreythejin our concert pianist, and our showcase team who without whom this event wouldn't have been possible: @TheMingjie,

11:51 PM · Dec 3, 2025 · 3.52K Views

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3 Replies · 2 Reposts · 16 Likes

Catalyst Commons Holiday Block Party

Catalyst Commons hosted their biggest Holiday Block Party yet, with 35 member spaces opening their doors and roughly 300 people coming through. A great example of companies showing their work, celebrating community, and giving back — with over $7K raised for the Humane Society of KW & Stratford Perth.

👉 See photos and highlights from the event:

All the events for December:

• KWLUG Tech Meeting – Party Planning, Cycling Guide — Dec 1, 2025 — University of Waterloo Davis Centre Library

• Akatos Fall Showcase — Dec 2, 2025 — Builders Club

• ⁂ F25 End of Term: Socratica Express — Dec 2, 2025 — THEMUSEUM

• Technical Wednesday — Dec 3, 2025 — Builders Club

• Catalyst Commons Block Party — Dec 4, 2025 — Catalyst Commons

• ELC Happy Hour — Dec 5, 2025 — 57 Jubilee Dr, Victoria Park (Boathouse)

• Craft and Coach: Craft Your Tag and Master Your BRAG — Dec 7, 2025 — Builders Club

• Non-Technical Wednesday — Dec 10, 2025 — Builders Club

• The Waterloo Thesis: A Builders Conversation in San Francisco with Barn Ventures — Dec 10, 2025 — Schroeder’s (San Francisco)

• AI Tinkerers | Waterloo — Dec 15, 2025 — Builders Club

• Technical Wednesday — Dec 17, 2025 — Builders Club

• KWLUG Dinner Meetup — Dec 17, 2025 — J & B Family Restaurant

• Holiday Pancake Social at Builders Club — Dec 19, 2025 — Builders Club

• Game Plan 2026: Architect Your Year & AI Match Making with Like-Minded Visionaries — Dec 28, 2025 — Zoom

Looking ahead to January

January brings us back into a steady rhythm: Technical and Non-Technical Wednesdays, Civic Tech, DevHouse, and the start of the Winter Founder Dinner Series.

If December was about reflection, January is about momentum. Fewer distractions. More shipping. More time with people who are serious about the work.

We’ll keep the calendar full, the rooms warm, and the conversations honest.

Interested in joining the Winter Founder Dinner Series?

Apply here → https://tally.so/r/3qx4Zd

P.S.: If you are missed the news on the Groq exist, there is a Waterloo connection. Go see how it connects back to the Waterloo mafia.