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More tickets available to the 14th Annual TechCrunch Summer Party
Get ready for summer in the city, TechCrunch -style. We just released a fresh batch of tickets to the 14th Annual TechCrunch Summer Party. Available on a first-come, first-served basis, tickets to our popular event sell out quickly, and they’ll be gone before you know it. Don’t wait — buy your ticket today.
Join us for TechCrunch’s fabulous summer fete at Park Chalet — San Francisco’s coastal beer garden — where you can enjoy ocean views, refreshing drinks and delicious appetizers. It’s a wonderful way to relax and celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit with more than 1,000 members of the startup community.
It’s also a wonderful way to meet your next investor, co-founder or — who knows? You’ll find startup magic in between the drinks, the games, the food and the fun. Opportunity happens at TechCrunch parties.
Check out the party particulars:
- When: July 25 from 5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
- Where: Park Chalet in San Francisco
- How much: $95
Come and join the summer fun. Connect with community and opportunity. As always, you’ll have a chance to win great door prizes — like TechCrunch swag, Amazon Echos and tickets to Disrupt San Francisco 2019.
Tickets sell out quickly, so don’t wait. Buy your 14th Annual Summer Party ticket today.
Did you try to buy a ticket and come up empty? We release tickets to the Summer Party on a rolling basis. Sign up here, and we’ll let you know when the next batch goes on sale.
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at the TechCrunch 14th Annual Summer Party? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
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Annie Kadavy, Russ Heddleston and Charles Hudson will tell us how to raise seed money at Disrupt SF
Just about anyone can come up with a good idea. Fewer people can execute on that idea and turn it into a prototype or MVP. But there is still one final challenge for most entrepreneurs that can prove challenging.
How do you secure that initial seed capital and take your idea to the next level?
At Disrupt SF in October, Redpoint’s Annie Kadavy, DocSend’s Russ Heddleston and Precursor’s Charles Hudson will sit down together and chat it out on the Extra Crunch stage.
Kadavy, Heddleston and Hudson can offer a unique perspective on the process of early-stage fundraising.
Kadavy joined Redpoint in 2018 after a four-year stint at Charles River Ventures, where she sourced or led deals with ClassPass, Cratejoy, DoorDash, Lauren & Wolf and Patreon. She’s also spent time within firms like Bain & Company, Warby Parker and Uber Freight. She understands the importance of operational experience, and knows better than most how to take a company from point A to point B.
Heddleston, co-founder and CEO of DocSend, has a completely different perspective. DocSend is used to securely send and track documents, and one of the most prevalent documents on the platform happens to be pitch decks. Heddleston can tell us about what characteristics get (and keep) the attention of investors, as well as what turns them off.
Hudson, managing partner at Precursor Ventures, has been on both sides of the conference room table. He founded Bionic Panda Games, which was acquired by Zynga in 2010. He moved on to SoftTech VC (now Uncork Capital), where he spent eight years working on seed-stage investments in the consumer internet space. At Precursor Ventures, he’s continuing to invest in early-stage companies that are tackling problems in new markets.
These three each have their own perspective on how to get the attention of investors and how to turn a conversation into a cap table.
“How to Raise Your First Dollars” is but one of many panels that will take place on the Extra Crunch stage at Disrupt SF. The Extra Crunch stage, much like Extra Crunch on the web, is meant to serve as a resource for aspiring entrepreneurs and VCs, offering practical, step-by-step advice on how to get to where you’re going.
We’re thrilled to have Kadavy, Heddleston and Hudson join us at the show.
Disrupt SF runs October 2 – October 4 at the Moscone Center in SF. Tickets to Disrupt SF are available here.
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Only 5 days left for super savings on passes to Disrupt SF 2019
We know you’re hard at work bringing your early-stage startup dreams to fruition, but allow us to offer this hot tip. Super-early-bird-pass pricing for Disrupt San Francisco 2019 pulls a disappearing act on June 21 at 11:59 p.m. (PT).
Buy your pass now and depending on the pass you buy you can save up to $1,800. You can even select the payment plan option during checkout and pay for your pass over time. Viva la budget!
If you’re serious about realizing your startup dreams, and we’ve never met a startupper who wasn’t, Disrupt SF is a giant incubator for opportunity and success. More than 10,000 people from around the world will converge in San Francisco on October 2-4 for three programming-packed days focused on the early-stage startup community.
Some of the tech and investment world’s top names, minds and makers will join us onstage. With a mind-blowing line-up, and more announced every week, make sure to keep an eye on the growing list of speakers.
Here’s a prime example. David Krane, the CEO and managing partner of investing powerhouse GV (Google Ventures), will join us for an in-depth conversation. His fund has invested in hundreds of tech companies, including Uber, Nest and Blue Bottle Coffee. Learn more about GV, its processes and what might be on Krane’s shopping list. You won’t want to miss this rare public appearance.
Be sure to bear witness to Startup Battlefield, TechCrunch’s epic pitch competition. Or better yet, why not apply to Startup Battlefield? It’s one heck of a launching pad, with a grand prize of $100,000. If you’re ready to show your startup to the world, don’t wait — the application deadline expires on June 25th at 11:59 p.m. (PT).
Dive into Startup Alley, the expo floor, where you’ll find hundreds of early-stage startups displaying their talent, products, platforms and services. It’s networking at its best, and connecting with the right people is easier than ever. Yes, there’s an app for that. It’s CrunchMatch, the free business connecting service. Disrupt that pesky needle-in-a-haystack scenario and easily find and connect with the people you want to meet.
Speaking of the people everyone wants to meet… TechCrunch is searching for outstanding startups to apply to the TC Top Picks program at Disrupt SF. If selected, you get a free Startup Alley Exhibition package, a VIP experience and tons of investor and media attention. You’ll also be interviewed by a TechCrunch editor live on the Showcase Stage, and we promote that interview across all TechCrunch’s social media platforms.
On top of all of the above, there’ll be a slew of workshops, Q&A Sessions, demos and the Disrupt Hackathon. There’s so much opportunity to grow, connect and create. Join us at Disrupt SF 2019. Save your hard-earned money and buy a super early-bird pass before June 21 at 11:59 p.m. (PT).
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Disrupt San Francisco 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
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Early-bird pricing extended one week for TC Sessions: Mobility 2019
Procrastinate much? Then give thanks to Saint Expeditus, the patron saint of speedy causes, because now you have an extra week to save $100 on your pass to TC Sessions: Mobility 2019 on July 10, in San Jose, Calif.
Do not shillyshally, dillydally or otherwise drag your feet on this last-chance opportunity. Buy your ticket right now before the early-bird clock runs out at 11:59 p.m. (PT) on Friday, June 21.
TC Sessions: Mobility, a day-long intensive experience, explores the current and future states of mobility and transportation. More than 1,000 attendees — founders, technologists, thinkers, makers and investors — will explore the potential gains and the growing pains inherent with revolutionary technology and rapidly evolving industries.
Check out just some of the presentations and demos we have waiting for you. Don’t forget to check out the day’s jam-packed agenda:
- Demo with Jay Giraud: Damon Motorcycles CEO and founder Jay Giraud will bring a motorcycle onstage to demonstrate the company’s rider protection system that combines radar, camera and other sensors to track the speed, direction and velocity of up to 64 objects at a time.
- Will Venture Capital Drive the Future of Mobility? Leading early-stage investors, Michael Granoff, Ted Serbinski and Sarah Smith will debate the uncertain future of mobility tech and whether VC dollars are enough to push the industry forward.
- Building Mobility-First Cities: What does moving around the city of the future look like? We’ll talk with Avery Ash, head of autonomous mobility at INRIX and Seleta Reynolds, GM of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation to figure it out.
Things get even more interesting when you demo your early-stage startup at TC Sessions: Mobility 2019. Display your genius in front of the most targeted, influential audience you could possibly hope to find — mobility-minded founders, investors, technologists and media.
TC Sessions: Mobility 2019 takes place on July 10 in San Jose, Calif. Don’t disappoint Saint Expeditus. Act now and buy your ticket. Your chance to save $100 ends on Friday, June 21 at 11:59 p.m. (PT).
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at TC Sessions: Mobility? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
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Apply to the TechCrunch Hackathon at Disrupt SF 2019
The TechCrunch Hackathon is shaping up to be a huge battle royale, but we still have room for a few more creative coders, hackers and outright webmonsters to join us at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 on October 2-4 for a chance to win $10,000.
It won’t cost you a thing to come and play in the hackathon sandbox. If you have the vision, the chops and the stamina to face off against some of the world’s best devs, then stop what you’re doing and apply to compete right here.
Here’s what you need to know about the Disrupt SF 2019 Hackathon. Teams can consist of a maximum of 6 people. Don’t have a team? No problem, you can find a team member on our Devpost host site prior to the event.
Besides the $10,000 grand prize, sponsors will also offer prizes (including cold, hard cash, people) to the teams that build a great product using their platform. It won’t be easy. You’ll have roughly 24 high-pressure hours to deliver the goods using their APIs, data sets and other tools.
We’ll announce this year’s sponsors and challenges over the next few weeks, but the sponsored contests, prizes and winners from last year’s hackathon can give you an idea of what to expect.
When the dev clock runs out, it’s pencils down and time to submit your work. On the afternoon of day two, judges review all completed projects — kind of like a flashback to your science fair days. They’ll pick 10 finalists to deliver a two-minute project pitch on the Extra Crunch Stage.
The sponsors will announce their winners, and then TechCrunch will announce one grand prize winner for the best overall hack — and that team will take home a cool, $10,000 cash prize. Check out all the details and the agenda on the Hackathon website.
We’ll keep you fed, watered and highly caffeinated throughout the event — at no cost to you. Plus, you receive free Expo Only passes for the first two days of Disrupt. And if you have any energy left, you can enjoy your free Innovator pass to catch all of the content during day three of Disrupt SF. Sweet!
The entire experience is exhausting and exhilarating, grueling and gratifying. You’ll flex your mighty skills in front of influential people and build something awesome that can make a difference in this world.
The TC Hackathon takes place at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 on October 2-4. Join the battle royale and show us what you can do. Apply to the Hackathon right here.
Is your company interested in sponsoring the Hackathon at Disrupt San Francisco 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
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Last day to save $100 on tickets to TC Sessions: Mobility 2019
This is it. The final call for all the mobility and transportation startuppers who want to save a solid Benjamin on their ticket to the TC Sessions: Mobility 2019 conference in San Jose, Calif. on July 10. The early-bird ticket price disappears tonight, June 14 at 11:59 p.m. (PT). Beat that deadline and buy a ticket — or pay full freight.
Get ready to experience a full day devoted to the revolution that’s taking place within the mobility and transportation industries. More than 1,000 people — the greatest minds, biggest names and influential thinkers, makers and investors — will attend a day packed with interviews, panel discussions, fireside chats, demos and workshops.
Along with TechCrunch editors, speakers will question assumptions and examine complex technological and regulatory issues. They’ll discuss capital investment concerns and look at the ethics and human factors in a future of autonomous cars, delivery robots and flying taxis.
Here’s a small sample of the programming that’s on tap. The event agenda can help you plan your day, although you may have to clone yourself to catch it all.
Building Business and Autonomy: Co-founder and CTO Jesse Levinson will be on hand to talk about Zoox, an independent autonomous vehicle company. Its cars can navigate tricky San Francisco streets — including the notoriously iconic Lombard Street. We’ll hear how Zoox plans to navigate the challenging road to business success.
The Future of Freight: The trucking industry is in serious trouble, and startups and OEMs are scrambling to come up with a solution. Volvo’s Jenny Elfsberg and Stefan Seltz-Axmacher of Starsky Robotics will join us to debate whether autonomous trucks are the fix we need or if another near-term technology can pave the way to a more efficient and profitable industry.
Will Venture Capital Drive the Future of Mobility? Michael Granoff of Maniv Mobility, Ted Serbinski of Techstars and Bain Capital’s Sarah Smith will debate the uncertain future of mobility tech and whether VC dollars are enough to push the industry forward.
Today’s the last day you can save $100 on your pass to the TC Sessions: Mobility 2019 conference in San Jose, Calif. on July 10. Buy your ticket by 11:59 p.m. (PT) tonight, June 14 or kiss that early bird — and $100 — goodbye.
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at TC Sessions: Mobility? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
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What do subscription services and streaming mean for the future of gaming?
The future of gaming is streaming. If that wasn’t painfully obvious to you a week ago, it certainly ought to be now. Google got ahead of E3 late last week by finally shedding light on Stadia, a streaming service that promises a hardware agnostic gaming future.
It’s still very early days, of course. We got a demo of the platform right around the time of its original announcement. But it was a controlled one — about all we can hope for at the moment. There are still plenty of moving parts to contend with here, including, perhaps most consequentially, broadband caps.
But this much is certainly clear: Google’s not the only company committed to the idea of remote game streaming. Microsoft didn’t devote a lot of time to Project xCloud on stage the other day — on fact, the pass with which the company blew threw that announcement was almost news in and of itself.
It did, however, promise an October arrival for the service — beating out Stadia by a full month. The other big piece of the announcement was the ability for Xbox One owners to use their console as a streaming source for their own remote game play. Though how that works and what, precisely, the advantage remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is that Microsoft is hanging its hat on the Xbox as a point of distinction from Google’s offering.
It’s clear too, of course, that Microsoft is still invested in console hardware as a key driver of its gaming future. Just after rushing through all of that Project xCloud noise, it took the wraps off of Project Scarlett, its next-gen console. We know it will feature 8K content, some crazy fast frame rates and a new Halo title. Oh, and there’s an optical drive, too, because Microsoft’s not quite ready to give up on physical media just yet.
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What to expect from E3 2019
E3 2019 is shaping up to be a bit of an in-between year. Nintendo Switch sales have finally started slowing, but the company’s a ways off from its next-generation console. Microsoft and Sony will be offering info on theirs soon, but we likely won’t be seeing much — especially from the latter, which has opted to sit out this show altogether.
Still, there will be plenty to see next week in Los Angeles. Here’s what we expect so far.
Microsoft: Google, of all companies, made the biggest splash at GDC back in March, announcing Stadia, its live-streaming gaming service. Look for Microsoft to hit back this week, with a lot more information surrounding its competitor, Project xCloud. We have even fewer details about Microsoft’s offering, though the company has compared it to music streaming services like Spotify.
We could get a glimpse of some next-generation hardware at the event, as well, though that’s likely to amount to little more than a brief sneak peek. We will, however, be getting a good look at Gears 5, the latest entry in one of the console’s most beloved franchises. The new title, which debuted onstage this time last year, is expected to be a major departure for the series.
Speaking of beloved franchises, look for some gameplay time with Halo: Infinite. So far, we’ve got little info on the Xbox/Windows 10 title beyond a mysterious trailer. Look for more than a dozen titles in all, including Age of Empires and a new Fable.
Nintendo: With a June 28 release date, there won’t be many surprises left for Super Mario Maker 2 by the time E3 rolls around. Pokémon Sword / Shield, too, will also be pretty well-highlighted ahead of the show. The upcoming Animal Crossing Switch title seems like a pretty good bet. Also be on the lookout for Luigi’s Mansion 3, Fire Emblem Three Houses and the Switch version of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.
Sony: Nothing.
Seriously, nothing.
We know the PlayStation 5 is just around the corner. E3 would be a great time to offer some insight into the company’s next-generation console, but Sony has opted to sit this one out instead. The gaming giant’s absence will loom large over the event, leaving Microsoft as the only member of the big three with an actual in-person press conference, after years of Nintendo Treehouses.
E3 has traditionally been a show that’s ebbed and flowed more than most, but the gaming giant’s decision will no doubt leave many wondering whether the event has lost some of its relevance in the age of doing everything online.
Publishers: Marvel’s Avengers is going to be a huge one from RPG stalwarts Square Enix. We’ve heard very little about the eagerly awaited title. A since-removed event synopsis described the Marvel game as, “an epic action-adventure that combines cinematic storytelling with continuous single-player and co-operative gameplay.” The game will be sharing a stage with the upcoming Final Fantasy VII remake.
As for Ubisoft, Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Rainbow Six Siege and Tom Clancy’s The Division are all on tap. Doom Eternal and Wolfenstein: Youngblood are the big titles for Bethesda this year, plus Elder Scrolls Online and Fallout 76 updates.
The show kicks off Sunday with Microsoft’s press conference. TechCrunch will be there all week.
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Is your event strategy paying off? How to calculate your event ROI
Sarah Shewey is the Founder & CEO of Happily, a platform that rapidly assembles experiences for the fastest growing brands in the world with the largest network of freelance event producers. She is also the co-founder of TEDActive, the founder of EXP, a co-founder of The Margin, and the board president of dublab.
Events have increasingly become an important channel in the marketing mix, despite how notoriously “impossible” it is to measure the ROI, or return on investment. When people show up to your event, they are willingly giving you their attention for hours on end – not trying to avoid attention-grabbing ads.
A well produced experience provides a great way to reach outside of your existing networks, build a pipeline of new customers, transform existing customers into superfans, and position your brand as a thought leader. In 2017, only 7% of marketers said that events were their most important marketing channel. Last year, that number rose to 41% according to a survey done by Bizzabo.
As the founder of Happily, the largest network of event producers in the United States, I’ve had backstage access to thousands of events – some wildly successful like TED and others that didn’t ever get traction in building an engaged community.
What has defined the successful ones?
The experiential marketing industry has long struggled to measure success in a meaningful way. They propose all the same KPIs (key performance indicators), but rarely do those KPIs provide a benchmark to determine if an event is successful or give marketers the ability to tell what worked and what didn’t. They especially fall down when customers aren’t won until months after an event.
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Takeaways from KubeCon; the latest on Kubernetes and cloud native development
Extra Crunch offers members the opportunity to tune into conference calls led and moderated by the TechCrunch writers you read every day. This week, TechCrunch’s Frederic Lardinois and Ron Miller discuss major announcements that came out of the Linux Foundation’s European KubeCon/CloudNativeCon conference and discuss the future of Kubernetes and cloud-native technologies.
Nearly doubling in size year-over-year, this year’s KubeCon conference brought big news and big players, with major announcements coming from some of the world’s largest software vendors including Google, AWS, Microsoft, Red Hat, and more. Frederic and Ron discuss how the Kubernetes project grew to such significant scale and which new initiatives in cloud-native development show the most promise from both a developer and enterprise perspective.
“This ecosystem starts sprawling, and we’ve got everything from security companies to service mesh companies to storage companies. Everybody is here. The whole hall is full of them. Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between them because there are so many competing start-ups at this point.
I’m pretty sure we’re going to see a consolidation in the next six months or so where some of the bigger players, maybe Oracle, maybe VMware, will start buying some of these smaller companies. And I’m sure the show floor will look quite different about a year from now. All the big guys are here because they’re all trying to figure out what’s next.”
Frederic and Ron also dive deeper into the startup ecosystem rapidly developing around Kubernetes and other cloud-native technologies and offer their take on what areas of opportunity may prove to be most promising for new startups and founders down the road.
For access to the full transcription and the call audio, and for the opportunity to participate in future conference calls, become a member of Extra Crunch. Learn more and try it for free.
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