A 54 hour coding marathon |
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Mass High Tech
A 54 hour coding marathon
Developers, start your laptops! That may be the rallying cry tomorrow at 6 p.m. as more than 150 technology geeks are expected to descend on Microsoft's campus for the beginning of Startup Weekend. The 54-hour coding marathon brings together developers, designers, lawyers and others in a grand attempt to incubate new startup businesses at warp speed.
And this year, there will be some cash on the line for those who come through with the top projects. Microsoft's BizSpark program plans to award $5,000 to the team that develops the most compelling offering on top of the Microsoft platform, while the Seattle technology incubator H-Farm will invest $5,000 to the team that gives the best product pitch at the end of the festivities Sunday night.
In the grand scheme of things, $10,000 isn't much. But remember, these are companies being built in less than 54 hours at no cost, so $5,000 can go a long way.
The event will have some other twists this year, partly due to the leadership of new organizers Clint Nelson and Marc Nager. For one, the Seattle event will take place simultaneously with a Startup Weekend in San Francisco in an effort to create more buzz. (So, this is the big chance for Seattle geeks to really test their coding chops against the Bay Area).
This year's Startup Weekend also will feature speakers, including Seattle area investors and developers such as Mike Koss, Roy Leban and Andy Sack.
Nelson said the short talks will be done in "Ignite style" in order to keep things fresh and interesting. "It can kind of get monotonous writing code for hours and hours," says Nelson.
Film makers also will be on hand. Biznik's Dan McComb will be speaking and filming for his documentary film Shine, which is about the entrepreneurial process.
Nelson also said that a filmmaker has expressed an interest in following one of the teams for a pilot reality TV show.
Here's some of the coverage from last year's event, and we'll be checking back in this year to see what some of Seattle's entrepreneurial minds come up with. In the meantime, you can follow activities on Twitter at #swredmond.
And, if you're interested in attending, the Startup Weekend organizers are offering a 20 percent discount to TechFlash readers who sign up. If interested, enter the discount code -- swtechflash20 -- on the registration page.
UPDATE: If you're looking for something to build, Kevin Leneway offers five ideas for Startup Weekend.
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