LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Silicon Beach Fest, happening June 19-22, 2013 in Santa Monica, brings together technology leaders, startup CEOs, investors, Hollywood studio executives, entrepreneurs, developers, students and more to celebrate and explore LA’s burgeoning tech scene.
The third Silicon Beach Fest includes panels and workshops with LA’s top startup CEOs and investors, hackathon, luncheons, networking mixers, and a Startup Showcase spotlighting 40 local startups. The fest features 15 tracks covering categories of interest to LA’s business leaders.
Track topics include: Investor, Entrepreneur, Hollywood, Games, Digital Content, Advertising, Social Media, International, Developer, Design, Arts and Education, and Green, among others. Speakers include LA’s accelerators, venture capitalists, startup CEOs, and entertainment executives from companies such as Warner Bros., Disney, Fox, and more.
This year’s fest expands upon last year’s inaugural success, which attracted more than 2,000 attendees, received national press coverage, sparked collaboration among industries, and resulted in new startups being created. Last year’s speakers included executives from notable companies such as Google, ShoeDazzle, Honest.com, FOX Broadcasting, NBCUniversal, The GRAMMYs, TopSpin, and Interscope Records UMG.
LA’s Dynamic Ecosystem Fosters Collaboration and Innovation Among Industries
Silicon Beach refers to LA’s startup tech scene from beaches to Hollywood and downtown, with the majority of startups located in Santa Monica and Venice.
“Silicon Beach Fest maximizes the intersection of LA’s key industries and raises global awareness of our dynamic community,” said Silicon Beach Fest festival director Kevin Winston, CEO and founder of Digital LA, Los Angeles’ largest digital entertainment networking group, which created the Silicon Beach Fest.
Winston continued, “We’re thrilled with the results and feedback from our inaugural event. The tremendous success of last year further confirmed the importance of this fest in celebrating the future of technology in Los Angeles – and boosting connections with other key U.S. tech hubs. Silicon Beach Fest 2013 will build on this successful foundation as a platform for advancing LA tech by bringing together industry leaders to explore new opportunities and to foster new business partnerships.”
LA Ranked Top Third Startup Ecosystem in the World, Second in the U.S.
LA is garnering global attention for its burgeoning tech scene. Specifically:
- In November 2012, The Genome project ranked LA the top third startup ecosystem in the world, second in the U.S. after Silicon Valley. As a result of this new startup activity, there’s an influx of venture capital flowing into the area.
- The latest MoneyTree Report (PricewaterhouseCoopers/National Venture Capital Association) states approximately $3.2 billion was invested in Southern California startups in 2012.
- Last year, 220 startups launched in LA, according to the Built in L.A. 2012 Digital Startup report.
- The report also found that 100 companies secured funding of at least $1 million, with digital media and marketing being the fastest growing sectors, and that 43 companies were acquired, more than any previous year.
Sponsors
Many companies, people, and initiatives share the mission to make LA a global epicenter for technological innovation and entrepreneurialism. Sponsors include ROC Santa Monica, Cross Campus, Demand Media, Media Temple, MyLife, Business Wire, PageWoo, PromoJam, TechZulu, Digital LA, Kluge Interactive, Santa Monica Place, and more. AT&T is supporting the Hackathon. Sponsorship opportunities are still available.
Schedule and Registration
For the Silicon Beach Fest 2013 schedule and registration, please visit: http://siliconbeachfest.com.
Social Media
For conference updates, follow @SBFestLA on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/siliconbeachfest.
About Digital LA
Digital LA is the largest digital entertainment professional group based in LA, reaching more than 45,000 professionals weekly via its newsletter, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn groups. http://digitalla.net @DigitalLA