Second Frontier Tech Showdown to Take Place in December: Startups in 3D Printing, Robotics and Virtual Reality Invited to Apply

At the beginning of this year, Rising Media, the company behind the successful Inside 3D Printing Conference & Expo series, as well as the RoboUniverse and Virtual Reality Summit trade shows, announced a newly developed competition, to debut at Inside 3D Printing New York in April. The Frontier Tech Showdown combined the regular Inside 3D Printing and RoboUniverse startup competitions into one, while adding virtual reality into the mix as well. Startups from any of those three “frontier technology” fields were invited to apply for the chance to pitch their business plans to an audience of investors at the Inside 3D Printing conference.

The New York competition was a hit, with Brooklyn-based Dog Parker taking home a $15,000 uncapped SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) from early-stage venture capital firm Asimov Ventures. Now Rising Media is ready to begin accepting applications for Frontier Tech Showdown Part II, to culminate at the Frontier Tech Forum – i.e. Inside 3D Printing, RoboUniverse, and the Virtual Reality Summit, which will be taking place concurrently in San Diego in December.

Applications are being accepted until October 21. If you’re a seed-stage startup or entrepreneur in the fields of 3D printing, robotics, or virtual reality, you’re eligible to apply, which you can do here. The top eight finalists will be selected to pitch their business proposals for five minutes each on December 14. (Note: you need to be sure you can be present in San Diego on that date before you apply. Travel costs are not provided, but finalists will receive free admission to the Frontier Tech Forum.)

The winner of this winter’s competition will receive, like the last winner, a $15,000 uncapped SAFE from Asimov Ventures – plus the publicity that comes from the victory. Past winners of the Inside 3D Printing and RoboUniverse startup competitions have gone on to raise a cumulative $37 million after their victories, and it didn’t take long for some of them to become big names, including:

• 3D Hubs
• Metamason
• Voxel8
• CleverPet
• Wiiv

April’s Frontier Tech Showdown winner was Dog Parker.

Details were recently released for Inside 3D Printing San Diego, which, along with the RoboUniverse and Virtual Reality conferences, will be taking place at the San Diego Convention Center from December 14-15. Tracks will include business, manufacturing, metal and medical 3D printing, and registration is currently open. If you’re interested in attending, act fast, because this week is your last chance to take advantage of significantly reduced prices. Before September 16, passes are up to $600 less than the onsite price.

All passes include access to all three Frontier Tech exhibitions along with the Frontier Tech Showdown (excluding the basic exhibition pass, which is free up until the conference begins). For access to tracks and keynote sessions, there are several increasingly higher tiers of purchase that you can take advantage of. Also, don’t forget to enter the code 3DPRINT at checkout for an additional 15% off. Discuss further over at the Frontier Tech Forum Application thread at 3DPB.com.