The first TechCrunch Disrupt Europe is now in the can. The energy was electric. Every seat was filled. Startup Alley was packed. Pavel Durov stopped by for an unscheduled Fireside Chat with TechCrunch Co-Editor Alexia Tsotsis. Benchmark’s Bill Gurley explained Snapchat. And one lucky TechCrunch fan even talked Michael Arrington into an impromptu interview and pitch – an event that has never happened before.
Fifteen startups launched on the Disrupt Europe stage. From enterprise data companies to consumer electronics, the mix ably represented the best of Europe’s exploding startup scene. But Germany-based Lock8 won it all and will keep the Disrupt Cup here in Berlin.
If nothing else, Disrupt Europe was a great melting pot of entrepreneurial spirit. Startups from more than 80 countries exhibited their products in front of the international crowd. The highlights are below.
Saturday & Sunday, October 26 & 27, 2013
With the first Disrupt in Europe came the first Hackathon in Europe. The crowd was focused. On point. The hundreds of attendees formed teams, eventually presenting nearly 100 hacks on the massive Disrupt stage. PreCheck, a Foursquare system that lets people express intent to visit places before they go, bested the other teams and took home the $5,000 prize. #hotdogcam
Monday, October 28, 2013
Disrupt Europe:Berlin started with a Fireside chat with Mike Butcher and Marc Samwer where the Global Founders Group partner explained European entrepreneurship, copy cats and more.
Google Ventures general partner MG Siegler took the stage longtime entrepreneur Marco Boerries to talk about founding a company in Europe and his latest startup, which has been in stealth for the last 4 years.
TechCrunch International Editor Ingrid Lunden led a panel with three startups founded in Europe, but two of them eventually moved to the States. Ingrid inquired about the reasons for moving to the Valley or staying put in Europe.
Games are big business and Anthony Ha led a panel with industry leaders including Jens Begemann from Wooga, Misha Lyalin from Zeptolab, and Rina Onur from Peak Games.
Nearly overnight, Airbnb reinvented travel, a thought that TechCrunch writer Ryan Lawler discussed with the company’s founder, Nathan Blecharczyk, during an on-stage edition of Founders Stories.
Is Bitcoin the new Euro? That was the theme of the panel, led by TechCrunch writer Kim-Mai Cutler, where the general consensus was that the future of the digital currency lies in the hands of upcoming startups, the regulatory system and China.
Berlin’s startup scene is growing so rapidly that during a talk between TechCrunch Founder Michael Arrington and Matt Cohler, Peter Fenton, Bill Gurley and Mitch Lasky, all from Benchmark Capital, Cohler declared there is no better place to be than Berlin – a statement backed up by the VC firm’s massive presence around Disrupt.
The highlight of the first day was arguably when Pavel Durov, founder Russia’s largest social network, talked with TechCrunch Co-Editor Alexia Tsostis about VK, privacy, and throwing money out of the window.
Two years ago, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong fired TechCrunch Founder Michael Arrington. The two reunited on stage as Arrington grilled Armstrong about that event and Aol’s pivot to content. Then, during an audience Q&A session, a long-time Michael Arrington fan talked his way on stage and took Armstrong’s seat for a once-in-a-lifetime chat with TechCrunch’s founder.
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