We’re fast approaching Disrupt NY, TechCrunch’s big conference in the Big Apple taking place April 29-May 1 at the Manhattan Center. This year’s event promises to be one of the most international yet, with the Startup Alley featuring three country pavilions, focusing on Brazil, India and Israel, and we’re on the lookout for exciting startups from these three countries and the rest of the world to be a part of the action.
Startup Alley is the boisterous, buzzy complement to what happens on Disrupt’s main stage, with its usual lineup of killer speakers and the Startup Battlefield. The Alley is where people mingle, scope out and network; and with a daily, rotating list of startups exhibiting in the Alley, it’s the perfect platform for our country spotlights.
Brazil, India and Israel are without question three of the world’s most important tech hubs outside of Silicon Valley. With their supersized populations of digital consumers, Brazil and India typify some of the most exciting elements of emerging economy market growth. And while Israel is significantly smaller, it provides an anchor for what is happening in the wider Middle East/north African region.
But it’s not just a simple numbers game: all three countries are also pushing the envelope on some of the coolest innovations in technology and engineering.
This combination of these two currents is driving a lot of activity that is increasingly helping the three countries gain an international profile in terms of new business and investment.
For the India pavilion, TechCrunch is teaming up with the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI); and Initial:Capital will be bringing startups from Israel and Brazil to the event. If you are a startup from one of these three places, less than two years old and with under $2.5 million in funding, the Pavilions at Disrupt NY are your chance to shine and show off how you are prime examples of why your countries are forces to be reckoned with in the tech world.
For more details on applying to one of the Pavilions, go here for Brazil, here for India and here for Israel.
But wait! There’s more!
In addition to these three country pavilions, we’re still accepting applications for qualifying startups from anywhere to come and show off their stuff by applying to exhibit in the wider Startup Alley itself. (As with the pavilions, you need to be less than two years old and have less than $2.5 million in funding.)
Everyone in the Alley, including the Pavilions, gets a cocktail table to demo for one day. Those who exhibit in the Alley get two tickets for the entire 3-day event and after parties, and a chance to compete for the Audience Choice Award — a fast track to joining the Battlefield to present your startup on the main stage and compete for the $50,000 grand prize.
We’re especially excited about the international pavilions for a couple of reasons. We love the idea of showcasing how the startup world is about a lot more than just what’s happening in Silicon Valley — something that those of us who live outside the Bay Area know well but often feel is under-represented in wider tech discourse (and all the business that goes along with that).
This is not a fleeting idea. It’s something we’ve been pushing hard in our U.S. city tours in the past year, and it’s equally an important trend worldwide. This is a large part of why we’re launching a new Disrupt event this year — pointedly, in another major hub for tech startups outside of the U.S.: Berlin, Germany. That will be taking place 26-29 October, and we’re laying the groundwork already. Go here if you want to get involved.
Accelerators, VCs and industry/government associations who would like to partner with us and bring a group of startups either to Disrupt NY or Disrupt Berlin, please email Jamie Quiocho.
Our sponsors help make Disrupt happen. If you are interested in learning more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact our sponsorship team here sponsors@beta.techcrunch.com.