This weekend plays host to Startup Weekend Toronto, an event that pits the smart entrepreneurial minds of Toronto against each other in a winner take all battle for prizes and glory. I can’t wait.
The event kicks off Friday with a keynote talk by Freshbook’s own Mike McDerment and a panel moderated by Dan Martell featuring April Dunford, Sarah Prevette & Leila Boujnane. All the speakers are superstars of the Toronto startup community that shouldn’t be missed!
Following the kick off talks, the challenge will begin. Participants will pitch ideas for the weekend’s 30-hour building session. Once you find an idea you like, teams will form, and the building will begin.
I’ve already started assembling my team, which includes Satish Kanwar & Andrew Peek of Jet Cooper fame, as well as Brian Gilham, the creator of TTCUpdates. In keeping with the spirit of the event, we hope to add three or four new members to the team that we meet at the event.
When the event concludes on Sunday afternoon, all the hard work will be evaluated by four expert judges and our peers on a variety of criteria including, Most Fun Idea, Breakthrough Potential & Viability. The top team will take home some great startup related prizes to help them get their idea off the ground.
I’m really looking forward to the event and can’t wait for the opportunity to work with some great people that I otherwise haven’t had the chance to. I’m sure we’re going to build something fantastic (or at the very least memorable).
If you’re attending the event, don’t forget to check out the agenda for times and locations.