Wall Street financial titan Goldman Sachs will host the largest gathering of small business owners in Washington, D.C. next month as part of its continuing effort to help small businesses be poised for growth. 

The Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Summit, which kicks off on Oct. 29 to Oct. 30, will include educational programming and networking opportunities, enabling thousands of entrepreneurs to connect with business leaders and advocate for small business priorities on Capitol Hill. The event also has a slate of influential speakers including Goldman's chief executive officer, David Solomon, who has long championed small businesses, recognizing them as a critical facet of the broader economy.

Kelly Loeffler, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Olympian Michael Phelps, former New York City Mayor and businessman Michael Bloomberg, AG1 CEO Kat Cole, financial organizer for Home Depot Ken Langone, Hess Corporation CEO John Hess, Briogeo CEO Nancy Twine, Anastasia Beverly Hills CEO Anastasia Soare, Chobani CEO Hamdi Ulukaya and Wharton professor Ethan Mollick will be among the list of keynote speakers alongside Solomon. 

The summit is designed to help business owners gain access to capital, strengthen their workforce competitiveness and equip them with the tools to successfully adopt artifical intelligence. Its education sessions will reinforce this mission by focusing on practical strategies for implementing artificial intelligence, securing capital, planning for exits and retaining employees.
 

Participants at the summit will also hold meetings on Capitol Hill, calling for a ‘seat at the table’ in shaping policies that affect their future and advocating for an agenda that empowers them to compete and grow, according to Goldman Sachs. 

Solomon highlighted how this event offers business owners a unique opportunity to connect and "get a seat at the table." 

"With more than 2,300 small business owners already committed to join us in Washington, D.C., this gathering of small businesses will be a celebration of the program’s 15 years of driving impact." Solomon said. 

This marks the third Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Summit, but it will be their largest gathering of small business owners to date. The Wall Street bank has long supported small businesses, launching its Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program 15 years ago. 

The philanthropic program, fully funded by Goldman, offers business owners 12 weeks of intensive learning, networking, mentorship and access to capital. 

Since its launch in 2010, Goldman Sachs has invested $750 million to support measurable small business growth across America. More than 14,000 businesses have graduated from the program, employing over 245,000 people and driving more than $17 billion in annual revenue, according to Goldman Sach's website. 

Within six months of leaving the program, 66% of alumni grow their revenue, 44% add new employees and 85% of alumni collaborate with one another.

The program has more than 17,000 alumni from all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., to help lend support to each other and the next generations of business owners. 

In 2023, Goldman Sachs announced a $100 million investment to expand its programs in rural states over a five-year period to give rural small businesses the ability to take part in Goldman's business education program and access the capital.

According to a Goldman Sachs survey, 86% of small businesses in rural communities have plans to grow their business, but only 7% believe that they are receiving sufficient private sector resources to support growth.

To date, the program has reached 12 rural states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and West Virginia.

Solomon has long championed small businesses, emphasizing at a 2022 summit how they continued to face significant challenges from inflation, even after the pandemic had already taken a heavy toll. 

It's a critical issue given that small businesses account for a large share of employment growth.

According to The Office of Advocacy's 2025 Small Business Profiles, there are 36.2 million small businesses in the U.S., which account for almost 46% of private sector employment. From March 2023 to March 2024, U.S. small businesses created approximately 9 out of every 10 net new jobs. They opened 1.1 million new establishments and created a net increase of 1.2 million new jobs, according to the data. 

These figures, according to Office of Advocacy Deputy Chief Counsel Chip Bishop, underscore how "small businesses continue to be the accelerator of the American economy."