Friday, 10 March 2023

Join the Party at SXSW 2023!

Are you going to SXSW this year?

Entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem builders, you're invited to The Established® Lounge on March 12 (9 AM - 7 PM), at Jack's Upstairs (E. 6th Street) where you will converge with some of the brightest minds in the innovation world!

Guests to this free event will enjoy and experience an all-star investor panel sharing insight on the state of startup investment, a Startup of the Year® Fast-Pitch competition, a special session featuring several government funding opportunities for Startups and ESOs, and networking gatherings for startups (morning) and ESOs (afternoon). Not to mention, throughout the day, there will be a multitude of stellar one-on-one interviews with innovation leaders, authors, and investors as part of our Startup of the Year® Podcast Live from ATX series.

Click the link below to RSVP, and read on to learn more about the days events and schedule. Also, be sure to check out a special addition of our Startup of the Year Blog, heralding our return to SXSW for our 12th year!

If you're not going to SXSW but have friends and colleagues who are attending, please feel free to forward this invitation to them! Keep an eye out next week for exclusive content from the Established Lounge, including panels and interviews via our podcasts, and YouTube Channel.

LEARN MORE & RSVP

ESTABLISHED LOUNGE SCHEDULE

KEY EVENTS

10:30 AM - 11:15 AM

Future of Startup Investment Panel

Join us for this session where we will explore startup funding history, investment types, and future trends. Speakers are Frank Gruber, Co-CEO & Co-Founder, Established & Established Ventures; Erica Duignan Minnihan, Founder & General Partner, Reign Ventures; Aziz Gilani, Managing Director, Mercury Fund; and, Maria Pope, Head of Venture Growth and Partnerships, Republic.

ALL DAY

Startup of the Year Podcast - Live!

Pull up a seat and listen as throughout the day we will be recording live interviews for upcoming episodes of our Startup of the Year Podcast. After the interviews stick around for and a chance to meet these acclaimed speakers.

Kathryn Finney, a serial entrepreneur and investor, Founder and Managing General Partner of Genius Guild.
Rohit Bharagava, Founder, Non-Obvious Company, and 3-time WSJ bestselling author of nine books on marketing, innovation, diversity and trends.
Mike Evans, Co-Founder, GrubHub; Author, "Hangry: A Startup Journey"; and Founder, Fixer.

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM

Startup of the Year ATX Fast-Pitch Competition

Investors, ESOs, and Founders - Don't miss our Startup of the Year Fast-Pitch Competition. Ten Startups will pitch to our expert judges, followed by a quick Q&A. The winning company will receive an invitation to fast-track to the 10th Annual Startup of the Year Summit where they will compete as a Top 100 Semifinalist!

3:30 PM - 5:00 PM

Startups, ESOs + Government Funding

These five one-on-one interview sessions will provide you with valuable insight into non-dilutive funding available to startups and ESOs: America's Seed Fund Investments and ESO innovation network, United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Launch Tennessee (Established® Lounge sponsor and FAST Awardee), and Tampa Bay Wave (Growth Accelerator Fund Competition winner).

The Established® Lounge is sponsored by Launch Tennessee and in partnership with America's Seed Fund. Thank you for your support.

LaunchTN empowers Tennessee's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at all stages of company building, from ideation and launch through commercialization and growth. From their capital programs to their statewide Network Partners, mentor networks, and universities, LaunchTN is taking a collaborative approach to serve Tennessee's entrepreneurs.

America's Seed Fund awards $4.2B in non-dilutive funding to startups and small businesses to develop technology and chart a path toward commercialization.