Techstars NYC Demo Day

Techstars is an incredible incubator program.  The one in NYC is run by David Tisch (who I am a huge fan of).  Many companies apply and about a dozen are chosen for each program.  There are many things amazing about the program.  As each start-up goes through the program they evolve into solid business models.  They have spent the last three months with mentors in the tech space going through a very intensive agenda (think of it like getting a mini-mba)  Each start-up gets a chance to really hone their business model in a safe environment before launching to the world.  I am always impressed with the difference between what goes in the program and what comes out after 3 months. 

This year I did not mentor or get involved after making the rounds a couple of times.  A few reasons is that many of the companies were already funded and in all honesty funded at a level that I thought was too high.  At this point it is truly difficult for me to go on a weekly basis and get involved unless I have a financial stake in the company.  With that being said, I still went to demo day and sat through every presentation.  I was impressed with the companies and the entrepreneurs behind them.  It is worth clicking through all the links and seeing what they have each created. 

Small Knot.  Invest in your neighborhood.  Give money to local stops in return for something back in kind.  Gives you an opportunity to be part of something in your own hood.

Moveline.  A radically different way to move.  Looking to disrupt the moving industry which does  billions of dollars a year.  They might be on to something here.

Rewind.  Unlock the Value of Your Past. 

Bondsy.  Loved this.  The easiest Way to Put Things Back Into the World.  Think EBay with your friends without Paypal. 

Marquee.  Rewiring the Way Contentis Delivered on the Web.  A new word press.

Classtivity.  Centralized Source for Recreation and Fitness Classes.  Want to take yoga in an hour in Union Square, click on Classtivity and find out whats available and sign up.

Wander  A Beautiful Way to Share and Experience the World.  A mixup of Instagram, Tumblr, Foursquare and Twitter.

C1.  Powerful Immersive Experiences.  A very cool way to easily streamline video that makes you feel that you are actually there.

Poptip  Social Integrated Realtime Feedback.  Questions and answers

10Sheet Reinventing the Bookkeeper.  Get rid of the person who enters in your data and do it in real time.

Pickie.  Personalized Shopping Magazine. 

Lua.  Communication and Project Management for Mobile Workforces.  Better way of managing large workforces to create anything from making a movie to doing a musical festival.

Karma:  Simple and Honest 4G Provider.  Easier way to access wireless.

All and all, really great.  My favorite screen shot was the one above from Bondsy.  He is right on the money.  Embrace existing behavior.  It is a helluva lot easier than creating new ones.