In June, we accepted five teams (out of 40 applicants) into the first Techstars Startup Next cohort in Austin, TX. Those teams spent 3 hours in class each week (for six weeks) learning from speakers, practicing their pitches, and working 1-on-1 with their mentors. Below is a list of the guest speakers that joined us throughout the program:
Speakers
- Customer Development | Gavin Gillas | CEO of The Magazine Channel
- Pitching | Keith Casey | Product Management at Okta
- Product Market Fit | Dave Lemphers | Cofounder of Hyperplane
- Funding pt 1| whurley | Founder of Honest Dollar
- Funding pt 2 | Evan Baehr | Cofounder of Able Lending
If you’re interested in learning more about the Startup Next program or want to apply to the next cohort, please email us directly: austin@startupnext.co
Pitches
The program culminated with Demo Day at Galvanize where the teams had 5 minutes to pitch to a room full of 100+ people. It’s impressive to see how far they came from those 1-minute pitches on the first day of class.
Billsley (previously OnePay)
We created Billsley because we realized most people didn’t know they could be saving on monthly bills. By automating the painful process of comparing your plan to a dozen others, Billsley makes it possible for anyone with a smartphone to save up to $500 a year.
Dojour
Helping people discover the local events they ought to know about.
Human Planet
A customer experience platform that enables businesses to build and sustain personal relationships with their customers automatically and at scale.
Ponos
Ponos is the easiest way to eat fresh, sustainable produce grown right in your own home with an indoor smart farm.
Uplift Memorials
Helping families create meaningful memorial legacies that truly reflect their loved one’s VALUES, PASSIONS & CAUSES, while also leaving a positive impact on the world.
Acknowledgements
This program would not have been possible without the tremendous support from the community here in Austin. We would like to thank the following organizations and individuals:
Mentors
Our hats are off to the fantastic group of mentors that challenged the teams each and every week:
- Ashley Hathaway | IBM
- Marc Nathan | Miller Egan Molter & Nelson LLP
- Mikaela Berman | Texas Venture Labs
- Niek Smit | Indeed.com
- Evan Michner | Atlassian / Hipchat
- John Kestner | Supermechanical
- Andy Aguiluz | Techstars
- Ryan Joy | Microsoft
- Daniel Agee | Indie.vc
- Seyi Fabode | VestedWorld
- Gavin Gillas | The Magazine Channel
- Joel Bush | Amplifier
- Mark DiMarco | data.world
- Keith Casey | Okta
- Brandon Marker | Notley Ventures
Techstars
Huge thank you to Amos, Hollyann and Andy for giving us the space to hold the class every week.
Thanks to Moyo Oyelola for the videos and Galvanize for hosting us.
And thanks to you, the Austin community that makes programs and events like this possible.
Andy Keil + Sean Duffy,
Co-Directors of Startup Next: Austin
