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2 reasons why demo days are dead

TechCrunch

Startup accelerators are increasingly putting the brakes on demo days. The often flashy events reserved for founders to connect with investors have long been part of the likes of Y Combinator’s program, seen as the “graduation” of startups’ journey. Demo day dilutes investor engagement.

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Startup accelerators’ definition of ‘value add’ is due for a refresh

TechCrunch

Even to outsiders, the inner workings of startup accelerators has become familiar: pumped up on camaraderie and energy drinks, scrappy founders do product demos onstage before a room full of buzzy journalists and investors. Accelerators have an interesting role to play here. Let’s start with a juicy topic: pro rata.

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The biggest moonshots from 500 Global’s latest Demo Day

TechCrunch

It’s demo day season. This morning marked the kickoff of VC firm 500 Global’s Fall 2022 Demo Day, which saw over a dozen startups give their best pitches to prospective investors — and customers. 500 Global, formerly branded under 500 Startups , has an accelerator that competes with YC.

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Highlights from Berkeley SkyDeck’s virtual demo day

TechCrunch

With 17 startups participating, Berkeley SkyDeck’s Demo Day isn’t the largest cohort we’ve seen by any stretch. Founded in 2012, the accelerator is focused on developing early-stage companies tied to the University of California system. Attending a remote startup accelerator is absolutely worth it.

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Extra Crunch roundup: 500 Startups’ demo day, smart SaaS pricing and much more

TechCrunch

Demo days at startup accelerators are a pretty big deal around here. Here’s just one example from Y Combinator’s Summer 2013 Demo Day: Positioning itself as the “FedEx of today,” it hopes to provide a logistics framework that goes beyond food and can be used for any type of on-demand order. Omnitron Sensors.

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Y Combinator is back to bet on the Bay Area

TechCrunch

Y Combinator, the startup accelerator that has launched the likes of Instacart, Stripe and Airbnb, has broadened its investing lens in recent years, backing companies all over Africa and India, and beyond. In many ways, it’s a new era – but in some, it’s a return to the accelerator’s former geographic roots.

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Y Combinator will now invest $500,000 in accelerator companies

TechCrunch

Startup accelerator Y Combinator announced this morning that it has updated its terms, providing participating companies with more total cash. The group will now invest $500,000 in batch startups. The first is the well-known Y Combinator equity deal, worth $125,000 for 7% of accelerated startups.