Start-up Weekend

Where is the customer?  And shouldn't they make clear this is limited to Cloud Computing?

All Startup Weekend events follow the same basic model: anyone is welcome to pitch their startup idea and receive feedback from their peers. Teams organically form around the top ideas (as determined by popular vote) and then it’s a 54 hour frenzy of business model creation, coding, designing, and market validation. The weekends culminate with presentations in front of local entrepreneurial leaders with another opportunity for critical feedback.

Market validation?  You mean the product or service is pitched to buyers?   You form a hypothesis and test it with your target customers during the 54 hours?  No?  Then why would anyone form a business model, code, design or anything else?

Startup Weekend is a global grassroots movement of active and empowered entrepreneurs who are learning the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures. It is the largest community of passionate entrepreneurs with over a thousand past events in 110+ countries around the world.

If there has been thousands of these, why is there not a scorecard of how many of the "winners" went on to thrive in commerce?

Whether entrepreneurs found companies, find a co-founder, meet someone new, or learn a skill far outside their usual 9-to-5, everyone is guaranteed to leave the event better prepared to navigate the chaotic but fun world of startups. If you want to put yourself in the shoes of an entrepreneur, register now for the best weekend of your life!

Shark Tank and such events as Start-up weekend may be fun and entertaining, but none of the people involved are your customers.   And there is no way to access the customers in the time alloted.

Seattle will be hosting truly a unique event kicking off on May 16th. Startup Weekend and 9Mile Labs are coming together to host one of the world's first B2B Startup Weekend! B2B (business-to-business) implies that your primary customer and source of revenue is another business. The objective of this event is to encourage and empower entrepreneurs to build their B2B idea. To help the B2B entrepreneurs, 9Mile Labs and Startup Weekend will be bringing great people and resources to this event to educate and coach participants on the key considerations for building a viable B2B business.

Wait!  "primary customer... another business...   coach participants on key considerations..." there is only one consideration, and that is the customer.  No one will dispute the customer is the most important thing in business, but getting the product right is the hardest thing.  That takes interacting with the customer.  You must at some point speak to a customer, why not make that the first thing?  As I read through the brochures I see a sort of Disneyland of Rides as opposed to business start-up.  Again, for $99, probably fun, but where are the businesses that get started?

Also, apparently in Seattle there is only one business, and that is cloud computing.  No restaurants?  No  manufacturers?  No apparel companies?  No jewelry? This event is centered on something called 9Mile labs.

About 9Mile Labs9Mile Labs is a high-tech accelerator based in the Seattle metro area focused on B2B software and cloud technologies. 9Mile Labs runs two 3-month programs every year, each with a group of 9 startups. During these 3 months, startups receive funding, access to an impressive set of mentors, free workspace and the opportunity to present to investors at the end of the program in exchange for an equity stake in the startups.

Although success is doubtful in their approach, one thing is for sure...  what happens when you have all those resources directed to one tiny area, cloud computing?  The price comes down.  Very good. Further, the entire effort is dedicated to software and cloud computing.  Apparently there is no other business.

It seems to me this is selling fantasy to people who are hoping for the big score.  Good luck.  if you are not going after the customer first and building organically a company based on matching your natural talents and customer needs then I wonder how far one will get.

I should talk though, I've never kept track of how many people have taken my class and started up.  Plenty of positive feedback over the years, but no data.  But then I don't claim to be an incubator, merely a lecturer.  And then, people do save time and money and actually get businesses up and running based on directions form my seminars and follow-up assistance.  That's what me feedback says.

I am in discussions with a local school to form a business incubation program, and funny, I keep thinking "everything but tech" to specifically exclude tech from the program.

I think the tech business and funding model advances a false economy... indeed, if one contemplates the false economy, the thread that holds it together is tech.

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