The Startup Pitch: Demo Showcase - October

&lt;p&gt;It&#x27;s time to &lt;b&gt;go beyond the deck and see the best live tech&lt;/b&gt; from New York&#x27;s emerging startups.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Welcome to a pitch event with a twist. We skip the fluff and focus on what matters: &lt;b&gt;a live look at real products&lt;/b&gt;. Each month, we hand-pick a few of NYC&#x27;s most interesting startups with demonstrable products and early traction to share what they&#x27;re building.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This pitch &amp;amp; demo showcase gives you a first look at new technology from startups that are actively building and shipping product&amp;nbsp;— &lt;b&gt;sometimes even before VCs have seen them!&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The format is fast-paced and interactive. After each demo, the floor is open for questions, ideas, and honest feedback from the community. It&#x27;s about helping founders in the trenches get the insights they need to build better.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;We welcome investors who want an unfiltered look at new technology and early-stage teams.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Hosted in collaboration with &lt;b&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://theyard.com/&quot;&gt;The Yard&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/b&gt; coworking community, this event offers a platform for startups to share ideas, gather feedback, and connect with fellow founders.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;📅 Date: Thursday, October 16th&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;🕓 Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;📍 Venue: The Yard: Herald Square&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;🎫 Tickets: Only $5 (&lt;i&gt;includes happy hour refreshments)&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;📑 Founders: &lt;b&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://forms.gle/A7LsswmLwwrQi3Jh7&quot;&gt;Sign up here to pitch&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;at an upcoming event&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;u&gt;WHO SHOULD ATTEND&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Startups ready to demo a real product and get honest feedback&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Engineers, PMs, and designers who love seeing new tech in action&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Investors looking for a ground-floor, early look at local startups&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Anyone in the NYC tech scene who wants to connect with and support the people building things&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;u&gt;AGENDA&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;5:30 PM:&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;Doors Open &amp;amp; Networking&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;6:00 PM:&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;Startup Pitches &amp;amp; Demos with Audience Q&amp;amp;A&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;7:00 PM: Meet the Presenting Startups&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;This is not a competition&lt;/b&gt; -- it&#x27;s an opportunity for founders to showcase their projects, exchange insights, and receive constructive feedback from founder peers.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;u&gt;PITCH FORMAT&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Pitch &amp;amp; Demo - 5 minutes&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Audience Q&amp;amp;A - 5 minutes&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Pitch deck is required&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</p>

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Agenda<br/>

5:30 PM: Doors Open &amp; Networking<br/>

6:00 PM: Startup Pitches &amp; Demos with Audience Q&amp;A<br/>

7:00 PM: Meet the Presenting Startups<br/>

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Hosted By<br/>
Joshua Ness, Director, Startup Grind<br/>
Joshua Ness is Executive Director at Startup Grind NYC and Director of Emerging Technologies with IEEE. He provides opportunities and access for startups to build and scale their companies. He advises new entrants in tech-driven sectors from startup to scale-up, and provides guidance on enterprise partnerships and venture opportunities. He is an international technology development specialist with Fulbright in the field of AI in public sectors, and a Professor of Technology at City University of New York.<br/>
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Tova Feldheim, Cofounder<br/>
I am a strategic advisor and marketing expert with 20+ years in B2B SaaS, brand building, and customer discovery. Specializing in aligning human behavior with technology to build products that resonate and marketing that converts. I&#x27;ve worked with enterprise clients and early-stage startups alike to refine messaging, strengthen go-to-market efforts, and accelerate growth<br/>
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Prianka Ball, <br/>
Currently working in data at a early stage startup. Ex founder and looking for my next startup building adventure.<br/>
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Paul GUILLARD, Chief of Staff / BizOps / Project Manager / BD<br/>
I moved to NYC in April 24. I am currently coaching and advising early-stage founders on ideation, Business Model x Ideal Customer Profile x MVP, GTM and Fundraising.
Received my authorization to work in Nov so now also looking for a full time job as BizOps / Chief of Staff / Strategic Project Management for B2B SMB or Series A+
Before that, an Engineering Degree and 2 years of SMBs consulting in France, 10 years in APAC doing Strategic Project Management, Sales and BD; and 4 years in Spain for an MBA at IESE (consistently ranked Top10 in the world by FT) and working on some startups.<br/>
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Rebecca Liang, <br/>
Ex-founder | Ex-VC | 5 yrs @ Startup Grind Shanghai

Community over Competition

Shanghai → Hong Kong → Singapore → New York<br/>
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Madison Simon, <br/>
I&#x27;ve spent the past 8 years working closely with startups in revenue-focused roles, and I genuinely love being in the trenches with bold, compassionate founders tackling real-world problems. There&#x27;s nothing more energizing than teaming up with people who think differently, move fast, and build with heart. I believe being genuine, knowledgeable, and deliberate in business relationships is essential.

Business aside - I enjoy scuba diving, sailing, painting, cars, and all things going on at http://www.thegirlswhogather.com.

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Daniel Silver, Owner<br/>
Creative, Thoughtful and Results-Driven Product Marketing Strategist Focused on Building, Launching and Optimizing New and Existing Products Across Their Life Cycle.<br/>
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KT Goldthorpe, <br/>
I&#x27;m a NYC-based brand strategist and startup advisor with over 20 years’ experience guiding both global corporations and early-stage ventures.I specialize in foundational brand development—helping founders articulate their business’s inner narrative, align teams, and build brands that resonate from the inside out. I am a champion of helping early-stage startups strategically position themselves in crowded markets, using audience insights and agile frameworks like The Wayfounding Map to operationalize brand strategy for real growth.

After years advising corporate, agency, and startup teams—including roles like founding member and CMO at Thirstie—I’ve learned that standing out starts with building brand from the inside out. My programs are designed to help startups find their market fit and shape messaging that actually connects. I lead with practical coaching and actionable frameworks grounded in experience, and while my work hasn’t won awards, yet, it’s delivered meaningful impact and momentum for founders pushing their brands forward.

I’m also the creator of Champ, built to help founders and teams navigate brand development step-by-step. Outside of work, I’m a two-time NYC Marathoner, a steady runner, and an active community builder—focused on making healthy brand growth accessible, collaborative, and fun for those who want to move fast and make purposeful change.<br/>
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Michaela Freedman, <br/>
As a freelance business consultant, I help companies go-to-market in highly regulated industries globally, advising an industry-agnostic clientele spanning AI/tech, healthcare, consumer goods, industrial manufacturing, and logistics.

I specialize in navigating regulatory compliance protocols and developing business action plans, including lead generation strategies and securing high-value partnerships that successfully expand revenue channels.<br/>
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Payton Shafer, <br/>
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Nabila Okudo, <br/>
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Gold<br/>
Codewalla (https://www.codewalla.com/startup-grind-offer)
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Codewalla is a small product development studio dedicated to helping startup founders launch products quickly. As founders ourselves, we understand the challenges of traditional development: high costs, long timelines, and risks. We are a CTO-led studio of developers, designers, and project managers dedicated to building exceptional products. With expertise in startups, SaaS, fintech, and more, we bring creativity and experience to every project.<br/>
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Partner<br/>
The Yard (https://theyard.com/)
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The Yard is a coworking space at the intersection of innovation, creativity, design, &amp; play -- with locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Philly, and DC -- with a variety of shared and private workspace options.<br/>
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Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs. We host monthly events in more than 600 cities and 125+ countries featuring successful local founders, innovators, educators and investors who share personal stories and lessons learned on the road to building great companies. Our monthly fireside chat interviews, startup mixers and annual conferences provide ample opportunities to connect with amazing startups and the people behind them, tap into a strong support network, form meaningful connections and gain inspiration for the startup journey ahead. For more information visit &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.startupgrind.com/&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;StartupGrind.com&lt;/a&gt;(http://StartupGrind.com&lt;/a&gt;) or follow us on twitter &lt;a href=&quot;https://twitter.com/StartupGrind&quot;target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;@StartupGrind&lt;/a&gt;.
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Complete your event RSVP here: https://www.startupgrind.com/events/details/startup-grind-new-york-city-presents-the-startup-pitch-demo-showcase-october/.

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