Register now for the International Startup Festival in Montreal
The International Startup Festival is a 3-day event, all about the business of Startups.
Held in the historic Old Port of Montreal, the event brings together industry veterans and fresh new faces, creative thinkers, experienced entrepreneurs and technologists from around the world.
Startups that Matter
All startups matter. Even more so than ever in 2012, startups are an important and growing part of the economy. But some startups are doing things that have an impact not just on the economy, but also on society as a whole.
At this year’s International Startup Festival, the aim is to work on things that matter. Hear from those who were there at the start, learning where they got their inspiration and how they defied the nay-sayers. Examine the truly tectonic shifts in society that pose new threats and open up new opportunities, and discuss how to spot them and capitalise on them.
Meet and connect with people who want to change the world
At the International Startup Festival you’ll meet a diverse group of people – creators, entrepreneurs, investors, advisers and more –who all want to, in the words of the late, great Steve Jobs, “put a dent in the universe”.
There is plenty of room and space at the conference to meet with the people who inspire you and the people who want to meet you. With dedicated spaces for meeting investors, co-founders, and media, the festival provides the perfect environment to get offline and make real connections.
Off-Festival Events
One of the off-festival events is the BlackBerry Dev Jam in Montreal.
If you have been in a coma and don’t know. the BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour is a series of full-day events dedicated to providing the developer community with insights on the BlackBerry 10 platform; its strengths, the vision, and how developers can make apps that stand out to app-hungry BlackBerry users.
Attendees will gain insight on building applications for the launch of the new BlackBerry 10 platform later this year. Beginner and master mobile application developers will be able to attend in-depth breakout sessions focused on HTML5 + BlackBerry® WebWorks™ and Native C/C++ development for the BlackBerry platform. Developers will be able to interact with development experts who can provide guidance, tips and tricks, and other information to help developers get started building apps for BlackBerry 10.
Unfortunately, the Montreal event is completely sold out.
RIM are a Gold Sponsor of the International Startup festival.
Prizes
There are plenty of awards at the Startup Festival for startups selected to pitch and for all Startups present. The prestigous Grandmother award, the best Elevator pitch and even MONEY for at least one Startup at the event.
Prizes include:
- $50,000 Investment Prize: A group of angel and VC investors have come together to make an investment in at least one Startup at the International Startup Festival. Any Startup badged and in attendance is eligible for the prize.
- $25,000 + Accelerator Prize: FounderFuel is adding even more value to this year’s International Startup Festival by offering a winning startup a spot in their Fall 2012 Cohort!
- Grandmother’s Pick: Back by popular demand, our panel of 7 grandmothers will judge your startup and hand out their pick for best Startup at the award ceremony.
- Teenager’s Pick (new!): Not to be outdone by their grandmothers, our cohort of expert Teenage judges will be handing out an award of their own. Your rockstar developers may have built you the most incredible web app the world has never known, but can they help you connect to the world’s most mysterious, complex, indecipherable, impenetrable fortress known to every parent on the planet?: the teenage mind.
- Top elevator pitch: one of the most popular features of last year’s event (with over 100 pitches given), the Elevator Pitch is back. Sign up, hop in, give it your all in 30 seconds or less, and get out. Good luck!
- Judge’s pick: Our panel of expert judges includes entrepreneurs, investors and technologists from around the world. They’ll be watching all the presenting startups and giving a thumbs up to their favorites. Who knows maybe they’ll even want to invest! Or not.
- Best demo table: Manning a demo table at a conference is hard to do. You’re on your feet all day. Everyone is zinging pass you in the hallway, off to refresh their plastic beer cup or get the best seat at the keynote speech, while you’re stuck behind your table, shucking and jiving, giving the same pitch over and over and over again to anyone who will listen. Well you can be sure at least we will and we’ll even go a step further and tell you who we think gave the best one.
- Audience choice award: there’s no echo chamber here! Every word you speak and pitch you make is being watched by the most important people of all – the audience. Win their hearts and mind, and you just might win their award too
The 2012 winners of the awards will be announced at the end of the Festival.
Visit the International Startup Festival for more info and to register.
