Startup Battlefield

Auto Added by WPeMatico

Here are the five Startup Battlefield finalists at Disrupt Berlin

Published December 11, 2019

Fourteen startups presented onstage today at Disrupt Berlin, giving live demos and rapid-fire presentations on their origin stories and business models, then answering questions from our expert judges.

Now, with the help of those judges, we’ve narrowed the group down to five startups working on everything from productivity to air pollution.

These finalists will be presenting again tomorrow (at 2pm Berlin time, viewable on the TechCrunch website or in-person at Disrupt) in front of a new set of judges. The winner will receive $50,000 and custody of the storied Disrupt Cup.

Here are the finalists:

Gmelius

Gmelius is building a workspace platform that lives inside Gmail, allowing teams to get more bespoke tools without adding yet another piece of software to their repertoire. It slots into the Gmail workspace, adding a host of features like shared inboxes, a help desk, an account-management solution and automation tools.

Hawa Dawa

Hawa Dawa combines data sources like satellites and dedicated air monitoring stations to build a granular heat map of air pollutants, selling this map to cities and companies as a subscription API. While the company notes it’s hardware-agnostic, it does build its own IoT sensors for companies and cities that might not have existing air quality sensors in place.

Inovat

Inovat makes it much easier for travelers to get reimbursed for the value-added tax, through an app that employs optical character recognition and machine learning to interpret receipts, determine how much VAT you should be owed for your purchase and prepare the requisite forms for submission online or to a customs officer.

Scaled Robotics

Scaled Robotics has designed a robot that can produce 3D progress maps of construction sites in minutes, precise enough to detect that a beam is just a centimeter or two off. Supervisors can then use the software to check things like which pieces are in place on which floor, whether they have been placed within the required tolerances or if there are safety issues like too much detritus on the ground in work areas.

Stable

Stable offers a solution as simple as car insurance, designed to protect farmers around the world from pricing volatility. Through the startup, food buyers ranging from owners of a small smoothie shop to Coca-Cola employees can insure thousands of agricultural commodities, as well as packaging and energy products.

MyMilk Labs launches Mylee, a small sensor that analyzes breast milk at home

Published October 3, 2019

Many expectant mothers are told that breastfeeding will come naturally, but it is often a fraught and confusing experience, especially during the first few weeks after birth. Parents often worry about if their babies are getting enough nutrition or if they are producing enough milk. MyMilk Labs wants to give nursing mothers more information with Mylee, a sensor that scans a few drops of breast milk to get information about its composition and connects to a mobile app. The Israel-based company presented today at Disrupt Battlefield as one of two wild card competitors picked from Startup Alley.

The Mylee launched at Disrupt with a pre-order price of $249 (its regular retail price is $349). Based in Israel, MyMilk Labs was founded in 2014 by Ravid Schecter and Sharon Haramati, who met while working on PhDs in neuroimmunology and neurobiology, respectively, at the Weizmann Institute of Science.

During the company’s stage presentation, Schecter said the device is meant to give mothers and lactation consultants objective information about breast milk.

Breast milk changes in the first days and weeks after birth, progressing from colostrum to mature milk. Mylee scans the electrochemical properties of milk and then correlates that to data points based on MyMilk Labs’ research to calculate where the sample is on the continuum, then tells mothers if their milk is “delayed” or “advanced,” relative to the time that has passed since they gave birth.

The device’s first version is currently in a beta pilot with lactation consultants who have used them to scan milk samples from 500 mothers.

MyMilk Labs already has consumer breast milk testing kits that enable mothers to provide a small sample at home that is then sent to MyMilk Labs’ laboratories for analysis. One is a nutritional panel that gives information about the milk’s levels of vitamins B6, B12 and A, calories and fat percentage, along with dietary recommendations for the mother. Another panel focuses on what is causing breast pain, a frequent complaint for nursing mothers. It tests for bacterial or fungal infections and gives antibiotic suggestions depending on what strains are detected.

Though some doctors believe testing kits are unnecessary for the majority of nursing mothers, there is demand for more knowledge about breastfeeding, as demonstrated by the line-up of breast milk testing kits from MyMilk Labs and competitors like Lactation Labs, Everly Well and Happy Vitals. Haramati said on stage that MyMilk Labs plans to eventually transfer some of the tests’ capabilities to the Mylee.

One day left to get featured at TechCrunch Disrupt Berlin’s Startup Battlefield

Published September 27, 2019

Founders. The clock is ticking. Applications for Startup Battlefield at Disrupt Berlin 2019 are closing in just about 24 hours.

On December 11-12, TechCrunch will feature the top early-stage startups from around the world in the most renowned onstage pitch competition in the world — Startup Battlefield. Companies are battling for $50,000 in equity-free prize money, the infamous Disrupt Cup and the attention of press and investors from around the world.

You’ll join a group of highly successful Startup Battlefield alumni, including N26, JukeDeck, Dropbox, Getaround, Mint.com and more. Altogether, the 857 companies that have launched with Startup Battlefield have raised over $8.9 billion in funding, with 113 successful exits (IPOs and acquisitions).

It’s simple. Startups from any part of the world and any industry can apply. Companies must be early-stage, pre-major publicity and have a minimally viable product to demo live on stage. TechCrunch editors review the applications and select the top 3-5% of companies that apply — more competitive than college!

After being selected, founders will go through a mini-accelerator with the Startup Battlefield team, where we will train you on your pitch, go-to-market strategy and onstage talent, and set you up for the biggest, most public launch on the largest tech stage in the world. Teams pitch for six minutes, including a live demo, followed by a six-minute Q&A with our esteemed judges — VCs, angels and heads of major companies.

If you make it to the final round, you simply pitch onstage again with the same pitch in front of a brand new set of judges. These judges debate and decide the final winner of the competition and the startup that gets to bring home $50,000 and the Disrupt Cup.

Participating in Startup Battlefield gets you a whole suite of perks. We’re talking free exhibition space in Startup Alley for both days of Disrupt, invitations to private events, backstage access, CrunchMatch — our free business-matching platform — free subscriptions to Extra Crunch and a ticket to all future TechCrunch events. That’s some major value right there.

There’s nothing to lose, and everything to gain. Stop procrastinating — apply to Startup Battlefield today. We want to see you in Berlin!

Marissa Mayer and Alfred Lin are coming to Disrupt SF 2019

Published September 19, 2019

Twenty+ startups, each with six minutes to tell the world what they’re about. If they can prove to our panel of judges that they’re the best of the best, they’ll walk away with $100,000 and their name forever etched on the Disrupt Cup.

That’s the core idea behind the Startup Battlefield, a pillar of TechCrunch Disrupt SF — which, as you might know, is just weeks away. As the event approaches, the list of incredible speakers and world-renowned judges only grows.

We’re thrilled to announce that Alfred Lin and Marissa Mayer will be joining us as Battlefield finals judges.

Alfred Lin is a partner at Sequoia Capital, and by no means a stranger to the startup world. He helped to helm LinkExchange as VP of Finance leading into its $265 million acquisition by Microsoft in 1998, and was COO at Zappos, leading into its billion-dollar acquisition by Amazon. He now sits on the board of companies like Airbnb, Dia&Co, Houzz and DoorDash.

Marissa Mayer was one of the earliest employees at Google, where she’d go on to lead the company’s search and mapping divisions. She led Yahoo! as president and CEO from 2012 to 2017, including through its acquisition by Verizon (disclosure: TechCrunch’s parent company) for nearly $5 billion in 2016. She’s now the co-founder of Lumi Labs, a stealthy incubator/lab in Palo Alto, the website of which says is “focused on building consumer applications enabled by artificial intelligence.”

Lin and Mayer join an outright amazing list of speakers, panelists and judges coming to Disrupt, including the likes of Marc Benioff, Marillyn Hewson, Cyan Banister, Will Smith, Ashton Kutcher, Michael Seibel, Ellen Pao, James Park, Aaron Levie, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Aileen Lee and many, many (seriously, many) more.

Disrupt SF runs from October 2nd to 4th at the Moscone Center. Need tickets? You can find those right here.

Ashton Kutcher, Ann Miura-Ko and Mamoon Hamid are coming to Disrupt!

Published September 4, 2019

The Disrupt Battlefield is one of the best parts of the conference. Twenty+ startups step on to the Disrupt Main Stage with a product, a pitch and a dream. They have six minutes to convey how they’re going to fundamentally disrupt their industry, and six minutes of Q&A with world-renowned judges from the VC world.

Pride. Anxiety. Despair. Glory. Anything could happen on that stage, particularly with judges that are at the top of their game and can smell bullshit from a mile away.

This year, at Disrupt SF 2019, we’ll be joined by Ashton Kutcher, Ann Miura-Ko and Mamoon Hamid in the final round of the Battlefield. And we couldn’t be more excited!

This won’t be Kutcher’s first time at Disrupt. He’s hung out with us a couple of times to discuss his investment strategy for Sound Ventures, and previously, A-Grade investments. This will be his first time as a Finals Judge for the Battlefield, however, and it’ll be fascinating to see the superstar investor work in real time on the Main Stage.

Ann Miura-Ko, co-founding partner at Floodgate, will be returning as a Battlefield judge. Miura-Ko is a repeat member of the Forbes Midas List, The New York Times Top 20 Venture Capitalists Worldwide, and has been called the most powerful woman in startups. Her portfolio includes Lyft, which went public this year, as well as Refinery29, Xamarin and Thinkful.

Kleiner Perkins partner Mamoon Hamid will also be judging the Battlefield Finals. Hamid was a co-founder at Social Capital and a partner at US Venture Partners before joining Kleiner Perkins, and has invested in companies like Slack, Yammer, Box and Figma.

We’re amped to have such amazing VCs join us for the final round of the Startup Battlefield competition. Join us at Disrupt SF, which runs October 2 to 4 at the Moscone Center. Tickets are still available at an early-bird rate, but that ends this week.

See you there!

We want you: Apply to Startup Battlefield at Disrupt Berlin 2019

Published September 2, 2019

You’ve worked hard to build your dream to this point, and now it’s time to launch your early-stage startup on a world-class stage and shift your momentum into high gear. If that description fits, we want you to apply to compete in the Startup Battlefield at Disrupt Berlin 2019.

Our early-stage startup pitch competition is the most effective way to place your startup in front of the investors, tech leaders and media outlets that can change the trajectory of your business in the best way possible. Oh, and the winning founders also receive $50,000. Sweet!

What’s more, applying to and participating in Startup Battlefield is absolutely free — no fees, no equity, no nothing.

Applying is easy, but the selection process is extremely competitive. TechCrunch editors with a keen eye for potential will vet every application and then select 15-20 companies to compete. Founders of those startups will receive six rigorous weeks of pitch coaching — you’ll work hard to craft your pitch, prepare your demo and be ready to strut your stuff with confidence.

When the big day finally arrives, each team will have six minutes to pitch to a world-class panel of judges — followed by a six-minute Q&A session. The founders who make it through to the second round will present again to a fresh set of judges. It’s a lather, rinse, repeat scenario.

One startup will emerge victorious, raise the Disrupt Cup and take home the $50,000 prize. The event takes place in front of a huge audience filled with investors, media and tech icons — and we record and live-stream the whole shooting match around the world.

Not only that, all Startup Battlefield competitors get to exhibit in Startup Alley for the entire show. Even if you don’t win the top prize, you still benefit from the exposure. Plus, you’ll join the ranks of the Startup Battlefield alumni community — now there’s an impressive group.

Since 2007, 857 startups have launched their dreams on the Startup Battlefield stage and gone on to collectively raise $8.9 billion while producing 112 exits. This alumni community includes companies like Vurb, Dropbox, Mint, Yammer and many more. You’ll be among their ranks…let the networking begin!

The Startup Battlefield takes place at Disrupt Berlin 2019 on 11-12 December. You’ve worked hard to build your dream — now take it to the next level. Apply to Startup Battlefield today.

Pro Tip: If you’re not quite ready to compete in the Battlefield, there’s more than one way to receive the VIP treatment at Disrupt. Use the same application and apply for the TC Top Picks program. If you make the cut, you’ll receive a free Startup Alley Exhibitor Package and stand in a bright spotlight of media and investor attention.

Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Disrupt Berlin 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

Calling all hardware startups! Apply to Hardware Battlefield @ TC Shenzhen

Published August 1, 2019

Got hardware? Well then, listen up, because our search continues for boundary-pushing, early-stage hardware startups to join us in Shenzhen, China for an epic opportunity; launch your startup on a global stage and compete in Hardware Battlefield at TC Shenzhen on November 11-12.

Apply here to compete in TC Hardware Battlefield 2019. Why? It’s your chance to demo your product to the top investors and technologists in the world. Hardware Battlefield, cousin to Startup Battlefield, focuses exclusively on innovative hardware because, let’s face it, it’s the backbone of technology. From enterprise solutions to agtech advancements, medical devices to consumer product goods — hardware startups are in the international spotlight.

If you make the cut, you’ll compete against 15 of the world’s most innovative hardware makers for bragging rights, plenty of investor love, media exposure and $25,000 in equity-free cash. Just participating in a Battlefield can change the whole trajectory of your business in the best way possible.

We chose to bring our fifth Hardware Battlefield to Shenzhen because of its outstanding track record of supporting hardware startups. The city achieves this through a combination of accelerators, rapid prototyping and world-class manufacturing. What’s more, TC Hardware Battlefield 2019 takes place as part of the larger TechCrunch Shenzhen that runs November 9-12.

Creativity and innovation no know boundaries, and that’s why we’re opening this competition to any early-stage hardware startup from any country. While we’ve seen amazing hardware in previous Battlefields — like robotic arms, food testing devices, malaria diagnostic tools, smart socks for diabetics and e-motorcycles, we can’t wait to see the next generation of hardware, so bring it on!

Meet the minimum requirements listed below, and we’ll consider your startup:

Submit your application to TC Hardware Battlefield 2019 by August 14th
You must have a minimally viable product to demo onstage
Your product has received little if any, press coverage to date
Your product must have a hardware device or component

Here’s how Hardware Battlefield works. TechCrunch editors vet every qualified application and pick 15 startups to compete. Those startups receive six rigorous weeks of free coaching. Forget stage fright. You’ll be prepped and ready to step into the spotlight.

Teams have six minutes to pitch and demo their products, which is immediately followed by an in-depth Q&A with the judges. If you make it to the final round, you’ll repeat the process in front of a new set of judges.

The judges will name one outstanding startup the Hardware Battlefield champion. Hoist the Battlefield Cup, claim those bragging rights and the $25,000. This nerve-wracking thrill-ride takes place in front of a live audience, and we capture the entire event on video and post it to our global audience on TechCrunch.

Hardware Battlefield at TC Shenzhen takes place on November 11-12. Don’t hide your hardware or miss your chance to show us — and the entire tech world — your startup magic. Apply to compete in TC Hardware Battlefield 2019, and join us in Shenzhen!

Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Hardware Battlefield at TC Shenzhen? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

Apply to Startup Battlefield for a shot at TC fame and fortune

Published June 21, 2019

What would a $100,000 cash infusion do for your early-stage startup? Don’t just imagine it. Apply to compete in Startup Battlefield at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 on October 2-4.

Our premier pitch competition has launched hundreds of startups on an exponential success trajectory, attracts massive media and investor attention and, yeah, it offers a fat $100K prize — equity free. But listen up founders, the application deadline expires on June 25th at 11:59 p.m. (PT). Don’t miss your shot at TC fame and fortune. Fill out an application to Startup Battlefield today.

You literally have nothing to lose. Any early-stage startup — from any country, in any vertical — is eligible, and it doesn’t cost anything to apply or to compete. TechCrunch doesn’t charge any fees or take any equity, either. We’re nice that way.

You’ll have plenty of time to prepare and plenty of sage advice from expert TechCrunch editors. Yup, all competing teams receive extensive, free pitch coaching. You’ll be rarin’ to go when you step on the Disrupt Main stage to deliver your six-minute pitch and live demo to a panel of top VC and tech judges.

We expect more than 10,000 attendees at our flagship Disrupt SF event, and the wildly popular Startup Battlefield always draws a huge audience. We’re talking thousands of spectators, including hundreds of media outlets, investors and tech influencers. These are the very people who could potentially take your company — whether you win the Battle or not — to the next level and beyond. Not to mention the international live stream to get the entire world’s attention.

Want more perks? We’ve got ’em. Battlefield startups get up to four free conference passes, access to TC’s investor-startup matching program and can exhibit for free in Startup Alley for all three days of Disrupt. Plus, you receive backstage access, invitations to VIP events and free passes to all future TechCrunch events.

Then there’s the Startup Battlefield alumni community — 857 companies strong and counting. Your startup will join an awesome group that includes Fitbit, Vurb, Dropbox, Get Around, Cloudflare, Mint and more. Alumni companies have collectively raised $8.9 billion and produced 110 successful IPOs or acquisitions.

Startup Battlefield takes place at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 on October 2-4, and your shot at $100,000 ends when the application deadline expires on June 25th at 11:59 p.m. (PT). Don’t miss all the opportunity. Apply right here, and we’ll see you in San Francisco!

Launch your startup onstage at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2019

Published June 19, 2019

Early-stage startup founders, we’re looking at you. Are you ready to launch your company and show the world what you’ve got? There’s no better launching pad than Startup Battlefield, and the next battle goes down at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 — in the city that gave birth to startup dreams.

There’s no time to waste. The application deadline expires on June 25th at 11:59 p.m. (PT). Apply to compete in the Startup Battlefield today.

Because Disrupt San Francisco 2019 is our flagship event, it’s appropriate that Startup Battlefield comes with a flagship prize. We’re talking a $100,000 equity-free cash infusion to the winner’s bottom line. But there’s more on the line than a wad of cash. Here’s how Startup Battlefield works and the benefits all participants receive.

First off, applying to and participating in Startup Battlefield is free. However, the selection process is extremely competitive. Discerning TechCrunch editors vet every application and choose approximately 15-20 startups to compete. All participating teams receive free, extensive pitch coaching from our Battlefield-tested editorial team.

When you step onto the Disrupt Main Stage, you’ll have six minutes to pitch and present a live demo to a panel of expert VCs and tech leaders — and then respond to their questions.

Teams that make it through to the final round repeat the process to a second set of judges, and it’s from that elite cohort that one standout startup will earn the title, hoist the Disrupt Cup and claim the $100,000 prize.

It all goes down live in front of an audience of thousands, and we live-stream the entire event to the world on TechCrunch.com, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter — and make it available later on-demand.

Whether you win the whole shebang or not, you still win. All competing teams receive intense media and investor attention and exhibit for free in Startup Alley for all three days of the show. You also receive invitations to VIP events, free passes to future TechCrunch events and complimentary subscriptions to our new editorial offering, Extra Crunch.

It’s time. You’re ready to launch. Apply to the Startup Battlefield, and join us at Disrupt San Francisco 2019 on October 2-4. And remember, the application deadline expires on June 25th at 11:59 p.m. (PT).

Not quite ready to battle it out on the Main Stage? Why not apply for our TC Top Picks program? It’s a select group, and if we pick your startup, you’ll receive a free Startup Alley Exhibitor Package, VIP treatment and plenty of media and investor exposure.

Applications are open for Startup Battlefield at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2019

Published February 28, 2019

Founders. This is your shot. TechCrunch is officially in the hunt for the most disruptive startups for this year’s Startup Battlefield at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco 2019. Startups can apply here to compete on our world-famous stage for a $100,000 equity-free prize and the coveted Disrupt Cup. With more than 10,000 attendees, hundreds of press outlets and top investors from around the world, your company will launch to the most influential players in tech.

The application. Simple. Fill out your app here. There is no cost to apply or participate. TechCrunch does not take any fees or equity. Early-stage startups from any country and any vertical are eligible. TechCrunch’s editors will review the applications and select the most promising startups to pitch the world’s top VCs on the main stage at Disrupt SF (October 2-4) — set to be the biggest event in TechCrunch’s history.

The training. The Startup Battlefield team will work intensively over many weeks with the Startup Battlefield contestants to hone pitches, sharpen business models and perfect demos.

The conference. At TechCrunch Disrupt SF, Startup Battlefield contestants are welcome at VIP events, backstage and more. The Battlefield startups receive complimentary exhibition space on the show floor for all three days, as well as access to CrunchMatch, TechCrunch’s investor-founder matching system. Battlefield startups also receive complimentary tickets to all future TechCrunch events, access to alumni events and free subscriptions to Extra Crunch.

The competition. The Startup Battlefield contestants, approximately 20 in number, pitch for six minutes each, including a live demo, followed by a six-minute Q&A with our elite judges — investors like Roelof Botha, Jeff Clavier, Cyan Banister, Kirsten Green and Aileen Lee. After the initial round, 4-6 companies will be selected to pitch again on the final day of the conference in front of a new panel of judges. They will choose the winner, who will receive the Disrupt Cup, a check for $100,000 and a post in TechCrunch, as well as the attention of media and investors around the world. All Startup Battlefield sessions are streamed live on TechCrunch to a global audience in the millions.

The Startup Battlefield Alumni Community. Join the ranks of alumni like Vurb, Dropbox, Get Around, Cloudflare, Mint.com and more. Don’t just take our word for it! Our Startup Battlefield Alumni metrics speak for themselves — 857 contestants have raised about $8.8 billion and produced 108 successful exits (IPOs or acquisitions).

So what are you waiting for? Apply now.