Startup Maine sends 8 Maine companies to leading tech conference
Courtesy / Startup Maine
Katie Shorey, right, president of Startup Maine, is shown here with some of the group's organizers and friends at a past event. The nonprofit is sponsoring eight Maine companies to exhibit at one of the world's largest tech conferences.
Startup Maine, a nonprofit group that advocates for the state’s entrepreneurial “ecosystem,” is about to showcase it at one of the technology industry’s most influential events.
For the first time, according to a news release, Maine startups will exhibit at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference, scheduled for Oct. 2-4 in San Francisco. Startup Maine is funding the participation of eight companies, all based in Portland:
- Defendify, a provider of small-business cybersecurity solutions that recently raised $1.6 million;
- Friday, a software company building a product to improve communication and engagement among teams;
- Highbyte, which is building off-the-shelf industrial software that solves data interoperability and security problems;
- KinoTek, a software developer from the University of Maine that uses virtual reality and motion capture technology to improve athletic performance and reduce the chance of injury;
- Neerpeer, an education technology business with a social media platform designed to connect college students and reduce so-called “summer melt”;
- VETRO FiberMap, a startup that’s developed a mapping platform used by telecommunication companies;
- Wallit, a financial technology business with a product to help families manage money better; and
- Yarn Corp., a startup that’s building publishing tools to help people tell interactive stories through virtual reality.
The companies will be featured exhibitors at the conference, appearing in the “Maine Pavilion,” according to the release. The venue is expected to provide opportunities for them to meet venture capitalists, investors and other entrepreneurs.
"Disrupt is where the startup world gathers to see the present and the future of tech in one place, and Maine will be part of the action for the first time," Startup Maine said in the release.
The annual Disrupt conference was launched by online publisher TechCrunch in 2011, and last year drew about 10,000 attendees and 1,200 exhibitors. While that's not giant, compared to technology events around the world, Disrupt still is one of the larger venues — and one of the industry's most closely watched.
In June, Startup Maine held a conference of its own, a three-day event aimed at new businesses that included more than 80 speakers and drew several hundred attendees.
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