WORLD’S LARGEST STARTUP COMPETITION SEMI-FINALISTS PITCH AT CES IN VEGAS 17th January, 2019

The 5th annual race to Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island continues to heat up for Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC), the world’s largest startup competition. 

 

XTC Top 10 Semi Finalists awaiting results

After announcing the Top 25 teams on Necker Island this past October, the list of contenders has now been narrowed down to the Top 10 Semi-Finalists. This year’s XTC semi-finals took place on January 10th, 2019 in the Bellini Ballroom at the Venetian Hotel.  Each of the 10 companies pitched to a captured audience in the packed room, the judges found it extremely difficult to pick the Top 3. It was one of the most divers Top 10’s to date with companies from Switzerland, Sweden, Turkey and throughout the United States, presenting a variety of inspiring technologies, including blockchain, transportation, wearables, IoT and biotech. 

 

Dave Shor, Founder / Lynq

 

Drew Lakatos, Founder / ActiveProtective

 

The XTC 2019 Top 3 Finalists are ActiveProtective (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), developing a wearable that protects the hips of older adults using wearable airbags, Elevian (Boston, Massachusetts), creating regenerative medicines, with the potential to treat and prevent many age-related diseases and Lynq (Brooklyn, New York), the the world’s most advanced long-range tracker.

 

XTC Top 3

 

Congratulations to the XTC Top 3!

The Top 3 Finalists will now compete for the top spot at the XTC Finals on Necker Island on April 3rd, 2019.

Since 2015, XTC has established itself as the premier competition empowering entrepreneurs with visibility, and resources, leading to and enabling exponential growth. Semi-finalists represent a broad range of industries, including Biotec, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Energy, Accessibility, Transportation, Internet-of-Things, and more. As a worldwide competition, semi-finalists were travelling to Las Vegas from Australia, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, Switzerland, and throughout the United States to make their presentations to judges and the crowd. The diversity in the industries, backgrounds, and current stages of the finalists adds an extra layer of complexity and intrigue to the competition as the judges evaluate each company. Each year it has proved to be an exciting event for all present.

 

XTC judging panel evaluating the Top 10 presenters

 

The fate of the 10 Semi-Finalists rested in the capable hands of an expert judging panel including Veronica Serra (Founding Partner, Pacific Investimentos and Innova Capital), David Hagan (CEO, Boingo Wireless, Executive Board Member CTA), Shankar Chandran (Sr. Vice President & Managing Director, Samsung Catalyst Fund), Lisa Andrews (CEO, Ignite Alliance), Larry O’Connor (Founder & CEO, OWC).

XTC is proudly partnering with well-known companies in the tech industry, including Bitfury, Cisco, OWC, Zoom, Joy Ventures, INCmty; event partners CES, Necker Island, IBM and Revl as well as supporting partners AP Live, Beep, Onkaro, The Confluence, Imaginex, The Ticket Fairy, Poltio, F6S and VR Fest. Together with XTC, these sponsors offer support and exposure that money cannot buy with this showcase event at the world’s largest technology trade show, CES, and then also at Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island in April 2019.

Learn more about all the semi-finalists, and additional details about the event here: https://goo.gl/UZJM6V.

To learn more about accessing these start-ups and how to attend the finals on Necker Island, contact: [email protected] or call +44 (0)207 145 0150


Slingshot Sponsorship wins SME News’ most innovative sponsorship agency award for 2018. 27th November, 2018

Slingshot Sponsorship wins SME News’ most innovative sponsorship agency award for 2018.

 

London, UK, 27/11/18 – Slingshot Sponsorship, a strategic sponsorship agency, has today been named 2018’s most innovative sponsorship agency by SME News as part of their Business Elite Programme.

SME News (a brand of AI Global Media) is a quarterly publication which draws on a UK wide network of industry insiders to provide CEO’s, leaders and decision makers with cutting edge features, the latest news and industry deals.

The awards programme, strives to showcase the talent, hard work and commitment of SME firms from a vast array of industries across the UK. Its Business Elite program is formulated on the back of months of qualitative and quantitative research to ensure that its awards are a true representation of the very best that the SME environment has to offer. This tried and tested method ensures that each and every award is given on a strictly a merit basis,

Kieran Morris, Director of Slingshot Sponsorship stated: “We are extremely proud to win this award from SME News. We have had a great year creating and evaluating sponsorship opportunities for our clients including Extreme Tech Challenge, London New Year’s Day Parade, NOW TV and Southbank Wintertime Festival. Winning this award has topped a great year and we can’t wait to see what 2019 brings!”

To see the full list of winners, click here.

About Slingshot Sponsorship

Slingshot Sponsorship is an innovative strategic sponsorship agency based in Central London with offices around the world.  Slingshot works across all industry sectors to help organisations identify, create and optimise assets so they become engaging marketing opportunities for brands to partner with.  Clients include diverse verticals such as publishing, events, music artist rights, award programmes, music festivals, business conferences, sports teams and charities – all with a desire of pushing the boundaries in traditional sponsorship.

For comments and information, please contact:

Kieran Morris, Director, Slingshot Sponsorship

Telephone: +44 (0)7527 784019

Email: [email protected]


XTC SPONSORSHIP SERIES ANNOUNCES QUALCOMM VENTURES AS VIRTUAL REALITY VERTICAL SPONSOR 14th November, 2017

Consistently leading conversations on the forefront of innovation and technology, Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) is pleased to announce American multinational semiconductor and telecommunications equipment company, Qualcomm, will be joining the Extreme Tech Challenge as an Official Sponsor of XTC 2018. Leading this year’s Virtual Reality Vertical judging panel, Qualcomm will use their unparalleled industry expertise as they choose the best VR startups to receive an incredible prize and to be presented on stage at CES alongside the overall Top 10 start-ups.

Qualcomm has been the cornerstone of communication technology for decades, and as one of the founding companies that helped launch the mobile revolution they are the perfect sponsors to help the Extreme Tech Challenge competitors explore the ever- growing field of Virtual Reality. In order to stimulate human senses with realistic feedback, a successful VR product relies on 3 pillars of immersion: visual quality, sound quality, and intuitive interaction. Offering an unprecedented experience, Qualcomm will be on hand to to guide competitors through this new frontier of mobile technology as Virtual Reality shapes how people will be able interact with the world.

Qualcomm has made it their business to help others build amazing things, and as the latest to join XTC’s 2018 incredible team of sponsors, Kevin Gregory- Senior Director of Business Development at Qualcomm,couldn’t be more thrilled to be involved with this year’s Extreme Tech Challenge.

On the upcoming competition, “‘Qualcomm prides itself on creating enabling technologies that allow new ecosystems to flourish. VR has tremendous potential to change the way the world works and plays.  We believe great VR experiences shouldn’t require wires or expensive computers, and we are thrilled that many of the core mobile technologies pioneered for smartphones are enabling the untethered VR future.

Equally excited about the new partnership with Qualcomm, XTC Co-Founder, Bill Tai, said. “Qualcomm Ventures is a fantastic sponsor to have on-board. With a hugely successful global technology company involved with XTC, they will be able to impart their expertise on the VR vertical, providing support and expertise to the start-ups.”

As part of its sponsorship, Qualcomm will be awarding The Final Champion of XTC 2018 with a meeting with the world-renowned Qualcomm Ventures Team as well as development kits for their unique XR program.

Sponsorship brokered by Slingshot Sponsorship.

About Qualcomm

Qualcomm’s technologies powered the smartphone revolution and connected billions of people. We pioneered 3G and 4G – and now we are leading the way to 5G and a new era of intelligent, connected devices. Our products are revolutionizing industries, including automotive, computing, IoT, healthcare and data center, and are allowing millions of devices to connect with each other in ways never before imagined. Qualcomm Incorporated includes our licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of our patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, all of our engineering, research and development functions, and all of our products and services businesses, including, our QCT semiconductor business.

About Extreme Tech Challenge

The Extreme Tech Challenge is the world’s largest startup competition. It is a contest designed to identify emerging leaders that have the potential to dominate their markets and reward them with greatly enhanced visibility, infrastructure and resources to scale quickly at low cost. Ten world class startups will be selected as semi-finalists to present live on stage at CES with 3 finalists presenting to a panel of all-star judges TBA on Necker Island. Winners will receive resources to amplify their success and scale their companies.


Slingshot Sponsorship nominated for four ESA Excellence Awards 2017, including Agency of the Year 7th November, 2017

Slingshot Sponsorship is pleased to announce that they have been shortlisted for four awards at the prestigious European Sponsorship Association Awards.

The ESA Excellence Awards, hosted by the European Sponsorship Association, is an awards show that recognises and celebrates the achievements within the sponsorship industry across Europe. The European Sponsorship Association is in charge of regulating shareholders and owners in the sponsorship sector and making sure members are being sustainable and ethical. They also maintain a duty in improving and keeping standards in the sponsorship industry, which they do by educating members, through policy and networking opportunities.

Slingshot Sponsorship’s nominations at this year’s ESA Awards include:

  • Rights Holder of the Year: having won this category for the last two years, Slingshot Sponsorship are thrilled to be nominated again for two clients: The Holi Festival of Colours and the Extreme Tech Challenge held on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island.
  • B2B Sponsorship of the Year: a sponsor with the Extreme Tech Challenge, the activation of iTutorGroup showcased how the tech event could support female entrepreneurs in China, providing them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend and pitch.
  • CSR Partnership of the Year: a deal brokered with Slingshot the Aramco and Bloodhound SSC partnership aims to engage 50,000 children in 6 months in STEM.
  • Agency of the Year (Single Nation): after a highly successful year, Slingshot are delighted to also be nominated in this category at the prestigious ESA Awards.

Slingshot Sponsorship, renowned for disrupting and moving away from logo-centric partnerships, specialise in brokering sponsorships for their rights holder clients. Through a highly strategic approach, Slingshot Sponsorship continually delivers world-class partnerships.

Jackie Fast, the MD of Slingshot Sponsorship, commented “It’s a wonderful achievement to be shortlisted for so many awards, for an association that holds as much weight as ESA. But we are not content, we are aiming to get better every year and show the same level of quality at all times with all our clients.”

The winners this year will be announced at the ESA Awards on the 7th of February 2018 at the Science Museum, London. The event will be attended by over 350 people across Europe.


XTC SPONSORSHIP SERIES ANNOUNCES OWC AS SPONSOR OF SUSTAINABILITY VERTICAL 23rd October, 2017

Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) is proud to announce that US-based manufacturer of storage, connectivity, upgrade and expansion products,  OWC will be joining the list of 2017 Sponsors, representing the Sustainability Verticalfor this year’s competition. OWC will also become the Official Data Storage provider of XTC and ACTAI, providing their expertise and services to ensure the competition runs smoothly.

Starting with Apple compatible memory upgrades, OWC’s product offering has grown to encompass the entire spectrum of upgrade and expansion possibilities, all with a focus on easy, DIY setup and installation. With an outlook that focuses on the long term, OWC looks for simplicity in action and sustainability in practice. It’s as much about building exceptional relationships, as it is about building exceptional products.

OWC has made significant strides towards being zero waste with notable sustainability milestones that include:

– 2008 marked the opening of OWC’s sustainable campus Woodstock, IL.
– 2009 saw the addition of a wind turbine at the Illinois campus.
– 2010 earned OWC’s Illinois campus the LEED® Platinum and ENERGY STAR®.
– 2011 began OWC’s box size program, reducing up to 60% of box volume for their products.
– 2014 introduced the first solar array to OWC’s Austin, Texas facility.
– 2015 expanded OWC’s solar initiatives as a second solar array went online at the Illinois campus.

XTC 2018 marks the fourth year of this exciting and innovating competition that brings together the world’s brightest entrepreneurial minds to compete for the chance to pitch their budding business ventures to an all-star panel of judges on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island.

On their involvement in XTC 2018, Larry O’Connor, Founder and CEO, said “At OWC we love technology and innovation, it’s been a part of our DNA since day one. All of our solutions, from our Mac upgrade and storage solutions to game changing products like our Thunderbolt 3 Dock, and new ThunderBlade V4 are completely driven by innovation, so I’m absolutely thrilled to be a part of the 2018 Extreme Tech Challenge.”

As part of its sponsorship, OWC will offer the winner of the Sustainability vertical one of their most sought after products, the OWC Envoy Pro EX. Elegant in design, and easily carried in a coat pocket, backpack, or briefcase, the anodized aluminium body securely houses an OWC Aura Pro 6G Solid State Drive offering 100x greater protection of valuable data than even an Enterprise class hard drive.

Commenting on the partnership, XTC Co-Founder, Bill Tai, said ““We are thrilled to have OWC as a sponsor of the very important and relevant Sustainability Vertical. In addition to this, OWC provide their leading data storage expertise and services to not only XTC, but the wider ACTAI group. We simply couldn’t function without their help”.

Sponsorship brokered by Slingshot Sponsorship.

About OWC

At OWC, we’re committed to constant innovation, exemplary customer service, and American design. For more than 25 Years, OWC has had a simple goal. To create innovative DIY solutions to give you the most from your technology.  Our dedication to excellence and sustainable innovation extends beyond our day-to-day business and into the community. We strive for zero waste, both environmentally and strategically.


XTC Sponsorship Series Presents: Jungle Creations As Sponsor For Social Media Vertical 4th September, 2017

Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) is excited to introduce first time judges and proud official sponsors of the Social Media Vertical category Jungle Creations to the 2018 XTC Sponsorship Series. Jungle Creations specializes in viral content creation and distribution for an array of global brands and regularly tops the charts for the most shared branded campaigns on Facebook. Regularly achieving over four billion views a month on its social channels alone, they’re in the top 10 most viewed media platforms in the world and in March 2017 their channel VT was the most viewed channel on all of Facebook.

Now in it’s fourth year, XTC 2018 returns more exciting and innovative than ever as the competition brings together the world’s brightest entrepreneurial minds to compete for the chance to pitch their budding business ventures to an all-star panel of judges on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island. Jungle Creations will be be joining the team of global sponsors who will be on hand to guide and support this year’s applicants as they compete in the Tech Challenge of their lives.

“At Jungle Creations we’re always on the look-out for exciting and innovative technology companies to showcase to our billions of viewers. With our platform reaching millions of people a day, we think it’s important to use this influence to give ground-breaking tech companies an opportunity to be seen.We’ve carefully crafted our network to offer specific, relevant audiences for brands. By building platforms with unique identities and audiences, we’re able to market category-specific brands to the right people at the right time.We’re proudly sponsoring the Social Media vertical to help start-ups learn how to market the right way on social by utilising platforms like ours to grow their businesses, drive sales and raise awareness of their world-changing tech.” – Mitch Strong, Jungle Creations Commercial Partnerships Director

As part of its sponsorship, Jungle Creations will offer prizes to the contestants within the Social Media Vertical as well as to the Winner of XTC 2018. Up for grabs is one Social Media Consultancy session with the Head of Social at Jungle Creations and one branded video distribution on its largest page VT.

Commenting on the partnership, XTC COO, Sabine Schindlbauer said: “We are delighted to welcome Jungle Creations as the official Social Media Vertical sponsor. Integrating brands into XTC helps the entire competition grow, whilst also helping Jungle Creations achieve their objectives. With Jungle Creations’ leading content platforms showcasing our start-ups technology, it will enable them to grow and drive global awareness.”

Deal brokered by Slingshot Sponsorship.

Jungle Creations: Website | Facebook | Instagram
XTC: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram


Slingshot’s Founder Jackie Fast Wins Emerging Leader Award in Europe 25th August, 2017

The M&A Advisor, renowned globally for its recognition of outstanding professionals in the field of M&A, financing, and turnaround professionals, created The Emerging Leaders Awards – EMEA to celebrate the emerging industry leaders who have reached a significant level of success in the industry before the age of 40.

The awards programme, in partnership with Shard Media Group and supported by ACG, is now in its 2nd year and is unique in that the winners are announced before the ceremony takes place – so we are delighted to announce our very own Jackie Fast as the winner of the ‘Marketing, Communication and Business Development Professional’ category for 2017.

Jackie Fast, Managing Director of Slingshot Sponsorship stated:

‘I am absolutely thrilled to be recognised amongst this group of extremely bright and talented individuals.  I am especially proud to be noticed within the marketing, communication and business development, which is a reflection on the consistently great work Slingshot produce as an agency for our clients across all sectors. It is an unbelievable honour.”

Judged by a team of industry experts the awards ceremony, taking place in Andaz Liverpool Street on Wednesday September 13th, will feature speakers including the likes of John Kiely, Managing Director at Smithfield; Richard Shaw, Chair at ACG; Ian Jamieson, Chief Executive at Jamieson Corporate Finance; and Robin Johnson, Partner at Eversheds Sutherland.

To see the full list of winners, click here.


XTC Sponsorship Series Presents: Meltwater As Sponsor For New Data & Analtyics Vertical 10th August, 2017

Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) 2018 is excited to announce the addition of a data & analytics vertical for this year’s competition, which will focus on highlighting tomorrow’s most promising data science companies. The new vertical will be sponsored by Meltwater, a global leader in media intelligence. Meltwater’s Outside Insight technology uses advanced AI and data science to help more than 25,000 clients leverage valuable external data to make more informed business decisions. Meltwater was founded in Norway in 2001 by CEO Jorn Lyseggen, who bootstrapped the company with $15,000. Today it has more than 1,500 employees and 55 offices globally.

On their involvement in XTC 2018, Jorn Lyseggen, Meltwater Founder & CEO, said: “Meltwater has long been dedicated to supporting the next generation of tech startups through our data science hub, Shack15, in London and our non-profit, MEST, in Africa. I’m thrilled to be part of this year’s XTC and to support the next big innovators.”

Lyseggen will be the official judge for the Meltwater data & analytics prize. The winner of this vertical will receive 2 seats at a hot desk in one of Meltwater’s global Shack15 data science hub locations (including London, SF and Shanghai) for 3 months. Shack15 was launched in London in 2016 as a co-working and events space specifically focused on data science startups, as part of Meltwater’s commitment to fostering tech startup communities around the world.

Commenting on the partnership, XTC COO, Sabine Schindlbauer said: “We are delighted to welcome Meltwater as the official Data & Analytics Vertical sponsor. Their leading technology and media intelligence showcases exactly what our competition stands for, and their fantastic prize for the winner of the vertical will continue to help data-focused startups grow.”

Deal Brokered by Slingshot Sponsorship.

About Meltwater

Meltwater helps companies make better, more informed decisions based on insights from the outside. More than 25,000 companies use the Meltwater media intelligence platform to stay on top of billions of online conversations, extract relevant insights, and use them to strategically manage their brand and stay ahead of their competition. With over 55 offices on six continents, Meltwater is dedicated to personal, global service built on local expertise. Meltwater also operates the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST), a nonprofit organization devoted to nurturing future generations of entrepreneurs.For more information, follow Meltwater on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, or visit meltwater.com.


Sponsorship Inspires the Next Generation 29th June, 2017

Education is the engine of the future.  As we live in a world that requires skilled people to run our technology, a shortage in this sector of the workforce will slow us down.  According to the Daily Telegraph,  43% of STEM skilled vacancies in the UK are difficult to fill.  Across the world, there is a shortage of workers for this highly technical world.  And as technology continues to advance, the shortage will become more extreme.

Sponsorship should be part of the solution.  Governments are building STEM skill learning into their education strategies but it is expensive and will not solve the problem fast enough.  STEM skills are needed in the workplace now.  Private schools have the money to push STEM education but only 7% of the UK population attends private schools. State schools have not been given enough resources to make big changes in STEM education.  Not only do we need skilled teachers, but teachers need to be inspirational. Children need role models to look up to and follow so we need to provide inspiration beyond the national curriculum. Children of today are digital natives and need to be educated to work to develop their technological world. Sponsorship can provide not only the resources but also the essential spark that is so badly lacking in our schools.

Sponsorship should support STEM education as it has the power to ignite STEM interest in young people.  Yesterday, the Bloodhound Super Sonic Car visited ICS, a school in North London.  It is a technologically complex machine that will attempt to break the land speed record and hit 1000mph in a South African desert next year.  A new partnership has been created between Bloodhound SSC and Saudi Aramco to support the Bloodhound SSC traveling to schools across the UK.  The charismatic team headed by Mike Ford used interactive projects to explain the complex technology to the roomful of excited children who sat in rapt attention before queuing up to sit in the simulator.  The children heard the story and watched footage of the brave Wing Commander Andy Green and then worked on technical problem-solving projects that the Bloodhound SSC had needed to work out to develop.  Partnerships can offer interesting engagement that conventional education cannot always achieve and prove that STEM is both exciting and relevant.

Sponsorship involves many people working towards a common goal.  Though the Bloodhound SSC continues to develop new technologies and push boundaries, it now has the added mission to promote the uptake of STEM subject by schoolchildren and inspire passion for the disciplines that make such a project possible.  Saudi Aramco is a leader in innovation and has cutting-edge technologies in the field of energy. It has a developed programme in Saudi Arabia to promote the study of STEM subjects by young students and educate teachers to address its problem of the shortage of skilled workers.  Governments across the world acknowledge the need for more STEM students.  In a technological world with such a need for skilled workers, all interests will be aligned to support the partnership.

Sponsorship is a story that can engage for a lifetime.  The story of the Bloodhound Super Sonic Car began more than 25 years ago and over the years has evolved into its current configuration with the original driver Richard Noble as the Project Director.  People around the world have been following the story of the Bloodhound SSC since the 1980’s and look forward to each new exciting development.  Saudi Aramco’s support will be entwined with the story of the Bloodhound SSC as it attempts the record and furthers technological advances.  Children who are introduced to the Bloodhound SSC will never forget the day the modular car visited their school and will follow and support the project in the news, on the website and on social media.  The memory will last a lifetime of engagement.

The partnership of Saudi Aramco and Bloodhound SSC is providing a solution to the problem of STEM skill shortage by inspiring the next generation to pursue STEM careers.