At a gathering last month hosted by the venture capital firm August Capital on Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, Calif., about 1,000 entrepreneurs and investors mingled on a concrete patio over margaritas and deviled eggs to celebrate summer. Guests wore other shoes — New Balance, Top-Siders, Tevas and a rare dress shoe were spotted — but the furry-looking Allbird was by far the most common.

Serik Kaldykulov, the managing partner for Elefund, which finances early-stage start-ups, wore a pair as he waited to get into the party.

“Everyone’s wearing them. Sometimes it is awkward, especially if we’re wearing the same color — but then it’s an icebreaker,” said Mr. Kaldykulov, who owns four pairs in different colors.

“Anything with laces becomes less efficient,” said John Kim, chief executive of SendBird, a start-up that helps software engineers build chat features within their apps. He sported a pair of light gray Allbirds.

Mr. Kim said he wore Allbirds for “all reasons and purposes” — except to a recent barbecue, for fear that sauce could seep in. Allbirds, which are machine washable, are meant to be worn without socks. (Some have complained about how quickly the shoes wear out, though Allbirds has said in a statement that the latest line is more durable than earlier iterations.)

Yet today’s hot shoe may easily become tomorrow’s Google Glass in a drawer. So what to do except strike before the moment slips away? Joey Zwillinger, an Allbirds co-founder and former clean-tech entrepreneur, said the company planned to raise more money. “We have pretty big aspirations,” he said.