Knowledge Trend Report: Tech Conference [TechCrunch Disrupt]

 There were many booths from AI startups and sustainability related tech companies. Of course, the main stage was collecting the most eyes with the presence of Shaquille O’Neal, however, there were many other presentations that caught people’s attention. There were presentations from a16z, which focuses on funding the Web3 industries, industry forecast from a Crypto fund manager, and the CEO of Cruise, which is a startup company that runs automatic taxi service in San Francisco area.

 At exhibition, there were over 180 companies present, as well as startups backed up by many organizations such as Japanese External Trade Organization. They had meeting areas and events where attendees could meet with investors that kept active conversations throughout the event.

 One of the most anticipated events for TechCrunch Disrupt is the “Startup Battlefield”. This is where many startup companies pitch their ideas for investments. In the past, this particular event helped more than 1,300 companies to thrive in the market, while collecting more than 29 billion USD for those companies. Some of the notable companies that attended this event are Dropbox, CloudFlare, and Fitbit.

 This year, about 200 startup companies competed for the prize of 100,000 USD. More than half of the attendees were AI/Machine Learning companies. There were a lot of SaaS and Fintech related companies as well.

 Let me introduce six (6) finalists of Startup Battlefield:

● Parallel Health
 A medical technology startup which specializes in genome sequencing and big data. It was founded in Los Angeles, CA.


● Magnestar
 A Canadian startup company that helps organizations and governments to clearly map and understand how their network connections are being used.


● Electrified Thermal Solutions
 Their major offering, “Joule Hive Thermal Battery” helps to reduce CO2 emissions from many industries by effectively exchanging unused electricity into heat source. It was founded in Massachusetts.


● BioticsAI
 A medical startup company from Oakland that uses AI to identify abnormalities with fetus within a womb.


● Allie Systems
 A B2B startup from Mexico City that offers Industry 4.0 solutions such as efficient operation analysis and maintenance.


● Agri-Trak
 An agricultural startup company from New York. They provide services to farmers for them to increase work efficiency and help them collect useful data.

 Out of all six (6) finalists, BioticsAI won the competition for 2023. In addition, Electrified Thermal Solutions was recognized as a Runner-up.

 There was a line where people had to wait more than 1 hour to get into the event on the first day. This event made everyone feel like San Francisco is one of the major cities to support technological innovations. Many startup companies are still struggling to find investors in the US, and it is expected to be a harsh environment for many of those companies to survive. It is crucial for many startup companies to collect more attention through major events like TechCrunch Disrupt.