How do I make myself valuable to startups, I will not promote

I just got into uni and have been to a bunch of founders/cyber/software events to network, i've even met people through parties and I think i've done a decent job connecting with people. I have a decent amount of knowledge in the AI space but I don't really have anything to show for it, empty linkedin/resume. Should I start with projects, competitions/hackathons, make something open source. It's always been hard for me to move forward without a specific plan in mind.