Howdy Austin.
‘Tis the season to be jolly.
By now you know, Austin Founders Feed is the weekly newsletter that answers the question, “What’s happening behind the scenes in Austin’s founder community?”
And there’s a lot going on this week:
13 founder events
Austin’s breathing life back into the nuclear energy industry
A must try super secret holiday sweets spot in someone’s garage
Let’s dive in!
-Warren
Networking / Events
Monday, Dec. 22:
Central Austin Toastmasters - Toastmasters International - 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM - 2008 Justin Lane - Improve your public speaking and leadership skills (Free).
Tuesday, Dec. 23:
Bitcoin & Coffee - Bitcoin Park Austin - 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM - 2110 S Congress Ave - Grab coffee, breakfast tacos, and enjoy conversations around the topic of Bitcoin (Free).
Startup Pitch & Networking Austin - Startup Valley - 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM - 720 Brazos Street #Ste B-710 - Meet founders & investors, share your year, and map out your plan for the next one (Paid).
Wednesday, Dec. 24:
Kyle, Buda, San Marcos - Real Estate Investor Group - 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM - 370 Old San Antonio Rd · Buda, TX - An event that connects individuals and business together through the common interest of Real Estate (Free).
Cedar Park / Leander / Liberty Hill "Coffee Hour" by Networking Local™ - 8:30 AM to 9:30 AM - 1615 Scottsdale Dr Building 1 Suite 110 · Leander - A mingle-style networking event over coffee (Free).
Dinner with Entrepreneurs | Austin (Gold Tier Edition) - Ermantourage - 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM - East 6th Street - A cozy dinner with entrepreneurs to network + share experiences! This is for more established entrepreneurs (Paid).
Free Networking & Flexible Career Opportunity – Soroush Nasirzadeh - 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM - 7600 N Capital of Texas Hwy building c suite 150 - A powerful live event that includes professional networking, a clear overview of the financial services career path, and how to get started with state licensing in Life & Health Insurance (Free).
Thursday, Dec. 25:
CO-WORKING SPACE IN DOWNTOWN AUSTIN (TOUR) - Spaces 111 Congress - 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM - 111 Congress Ave. - Whether you’re a freelancer, startup founder, or remote worker, this is the perfect chance to see how this space can support your productivity and growth. Try the co-working space free for one day (Free).
Saturday, Dec. 27:
Founders Running Club :: Austin - 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM - 1601-1999 Nash Hernandez Senior Road - Brings founders, investors, tech, creative people and startup enthusiasts together for weekly easy runs and networking (Free).
Dinner with Entrepreneurs | Austin (Gold Tier Edition) - Ermantourage - 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM - East 6th Street - A cozy dinner with entrepreneurs to network + share experiences! This is for more established entrepreneurs (Paid).
Sunday, Dec. 28:
The Online Income Accelerator | 14 Days to Profit - Location Independent Travelers Work Network - ****2:00 PM to 3:00 PM - 1111 Wild Basin Ledge - Learn how to build your remote career in 14 days. Expect to learn about creating multiple income streams, remote workflows, and join a global go-getter community (Free).
Meet other Algorithmic Traders, Quants and Long Term Investors - Algorithmic Trading and Investing - 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM - 11920 Domain Dr. - Discuss trading and investing strategies, as well as the skills needed to start (Free).
HIIT FIT SUNDAY FUNDAY - The Rise: Free Outdoor Fitness in ATX - 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM - 1510 Toomey Road - Expect to run, jump, burpee, push up, sit up, pull up, squat, lunge, swang (not a typo! come find out), and more. It's a full body workout (Free).
Local News
📰 Last Energy Looks To Power Big Tech’s Data Centers
Since the 1970s nuclear energy has stagnated in the US.
The reason being that the nuclear energy industry pivoted to selling fear of nuclear power (safety equipment), and away from nuclear power itself. On top of that, regulatory requirements in the US made nuclear power plants 10x more expensive to build.
Nuclear energy looked to be on its way out.
But with the sudden advancements in AI, the need for massive amounts of energy seems to be bringing the nuclear energy industry back to life.
Austin is home to that revival with the recent $100M series C funding round of the nuclear energy startup, Last Energy.
Known as “the least innovative nuclear energy company out there”, their focus isn’t on improving nuclear energy technology itself, but rather mass manufacturing it.
Led by Bret Kuglemass, they aim to build smaller with their 20MW electric standard PWR.
They get around the high regulation costs by prototyping in the US, but building in the UK — or whomever the highest bidder ends up being.
Pulling techniques from:
offshore oil & gas
airplane manufacturing
automative manufacturing
to drive the price per mega watt hour to $2 for heat and $5 for electricity within the next 15 years.
If AI is the gold rush, Last Energy is trying to build the nuclear shovels.
With customers like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, all looking for cost efficient ways to power their data centers, the signal is clear for Austin founders: the city is looking to build the physical infrastructure needed to power the next wave of compute.
Local News
📰 Mi Ranchito Buys Their Own Space
There’s nothing better than warm tamales on a Christmas eve.
Mi Ranchito is known for their 7 varieties of delightful tamales (which usually sell out around this time).
And they have big news!
Recently, the family owned restaurant fulfilled their lifelong dream of buying their very own space.
They moved a few hundred yards to a new building at FM 1626 and Twin Creek.
A story like this proves that the American dream is still alive and well: work hard, stay consistent, and you can make a good living as a small business owner in Austin.
Economic Outlook / From City Hall
Last Minute Stocking Stuffers
Support Austin Local CPG’s
Jaspr Air Purifier (Code AHLETEX for 20% off)
Yellowbird
Tito’s Vodka
SkinnyPop
CLEAN Cause
Stub’s BBQ Sauce
EPIC Provisions
Serenity Kids
Chameleon Cold-Brew
Better Bites Bakery
MAYAWELL
Siete Foods
Force of Nature Meats
Wonderbelly
High Brew Coffee
Austin Eastciders
Chinook Seedery
Vital Farms
Kettle & Fire
Waterloo Sparkling Water
Nada Moo!
From City Hall - 12/18/2025 (What Actually Matters for Founders)
The city’s budget team reminded council that expenses are projected to grow faster than revenues in coming years (about 3.9% vs. 3.3% annually), largely because of the 3.5% state cap on property tax growth and heavy reliance on more volatile sales tax. That math creates recurring gaps of $30–40M in the forecast as Austin also tries to rebuild financial reserves. Austin needs more high-value employers, sales tax, and new investment to keep its services funded.
Several council members called out the recent Southwest Airlines crew base + training facility deal as the template for closing those budget gaps: about 2,000 good (often union) jobs and “many millions” in new tax revenue from one project alone. The message from the dais was clear: in a post–tax-rate-cap world, Austin has to get more “creative and aggressive” about bringing in employers and supporting local businesses to keep the whole system afloat.
City Council approved a new four-year collective bargaining agreement with the Austin Firefighters Association, locking in higher wages, a new schedule that gives firefighters more rest, and preserving four-person staffing on trucks through 2029. The total cost is projected at about $63M over four years, and the deal is being framed as “trailblazing” and key to keeping public safety reliable.
The Feed
My Secret Holiday Sweets Spot
These pastries are possibly the best in the world that and you’ll never guess that they’re made… in someone's garage.
Matok Artisan Bakery & Patisserie makes made to order desserts which are guaranteed to impress at any holiday function. Order online 2 days before you want them, and you’ll do your mouth a huge favor.
The Pistachio Cherry Croissant quite literally changed my life.
It will feel weird picking up your food at someone's house until you take that first bite.
Trust me.
-Ken
Poll
What’s your #1 bottleneck as a founder in Austin right now?
Merry Christmas!
Until next week,
Austin Founders Feed
