The jury for the NEXT Elevator Pitch – the large start-up competition for the NEXT Conference – has been finalised. After the community has selected the top 30 start-ups from all submitted applications, by voting at elevator.nextconf.eu, the final choice now rests with the jury. Mike Butcher, the European face of TechCrunch, and Stefan Glaenzer, prominent player in all matters of founding a business, are just two of the names on the international jury.

The German and European Venture Capital scenes are, among others, well represented with Sarik Weber (Hanse Ventures), Stefan Glaenzer (White Bear Yard) and Reshma Sohoni (Seedcamp). Other members of the jury have already completed the journey from start-up to big player with their own businesses. Boris Veldhuijzen from Zanten, the founder of The Next Web and other companies is not only successful in the Netherlands, Mike Butcher from TechCrunch, Joana Picq, COO of the award-winning business magazine The Next Women and the media partner Wired UK, all assure that the participating start-ups will get the international attention necessary.

The jury will now decide which 12 founders will present their businesses at the NEXT Elevator Pitch on the first day of the NEXT Conference on May 17.

The complete jury consists of Marco Börries (NumberFour AG, Founder), Mike Butcher (TechCrunch Europe, Editor), Alexander von Frankenberg (High-Tech Gründerfonds, Managing Director), Maks Giordano (juuman´okudo, Founder), Stefan Glaenzer (White Bear Yard, Founder), Olaf Jacobi (Target Partners, Partner), Torsten Oelke (YOU IS NOW, Manager), Joana Picq (The Next Women, COO), Christoph Räthke (Founder Institute, Berlin Director), Reshma Sohoni (Seedcamp, Partner), Boris Veldhuijzen from Zanten (The Next Web, Founder), and Sarik Weber (Hanse Ventures, Founder).