SVASE's 2nd annual Launch event was today. 30 startups presenting in a 10 minute PowerPoint/Demo format. Keynote speaker, Guy Kawasaki, presented how to startup a web-site with $12K (Truemors). As usual Guy was entertaining. The only minor issue is that in order to get pageviews, blogs, and 3 TechCrunch articles without PR, marketing, etc., you have to be Guy Kawasaki. So basically this $12K business model works for 1 guy (pun semi-intended).
My favorite 3 presentations were from Jaxtr, EyeJot, and Kongregate. Jaxtr had an ingenious way of providing free, anonymous VOiP calls. Unlike Skype, your calls can be made and sent to landline or mobile phones free. No need to go Skype to Skype. Jaxtr's user base and growth is already exploding. This is not a me-too Skype, but a major evolutionary improvement on what Skype has begun. Expect really, really, really, really big things from this company.
EyeJot has a cool video messaging solution. The great thing about EyeJot is that it is very simple to use and distribute. EyeJot can be used to simply video-message to any email address you wish. They also have a cool widget where people can see your videos and respond to them with a click of a button. The message lands in your email and you can view the video response. Right now this solution is very popular with military families. This will be popular with mySpace and FaceBook users as well. I am sure that the porn industry will find some interesting applications as well (could be pretty high on the icky factor here).
Kongregate also had an excellent presentation. Kongregate is a social network for gamers. Additionally they are using user-generated games that are simple to publish and offer on-line. The publishers get a revenue share, which should make them a great destination for game developers who don't have the ability to distribute their games by themself. The Kongregate team really understands the mind of gamers (they are hard-core gamers themself). It appears clear that Kongregate will be a big success. How big they can get will be the more interesting question. They appear to be an excellent solution for the long-tail of gaming. Going after huge gaming companies like EA does not appear to be in their sites... for now.
Launch. Well-run. Good networking. Inspiring technology and enterpreuners.
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