Jan 4, 2018   SOURCE: PR NewsWire

Looking for the hottest startups at CES 2018?

WASHINGTON and AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Angel investors and venture capitalists have selected 12 of the hottest companies to take the stage at ShowStoppers® LaunchIt, the sixth-annual official "pitch" event for startup companies that exhibit at Eureka Park during CES 2018 in Las Vegas.

"ShowStoppers LaunchIt" is a CES 2018 Media Day Power Session scheduled for Monday, January 8, 2:30-4:30 p.m. at Mandalay Bay, one day before the CES show floor opens.

Working with the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), which owns and produces CES, ShowStoppers LaunchIt helps entrepreneurs and startups raise early seed capital by selecting from the more than 900 young, innovative, transformative and entrepreneurial startups that exhibit in Eureka Park, a marketplace within CES where retailers, venture capitalists, manufacturers and others will find entrepreneurs launching new products, services, apps and ideas.

The 12 finalists are:

    --  Athom, from Enschede, Netherlands -- maker of Homey, the heart of the
        smart home.
    --  Big Boy Systems, from Wavre, Belgium - which developed and patented a
        camera and audio system made to see and hear like a human, recording in
        3D and streaming content to VR headsets - used for surgery, psychology,
        technical training, education and entertainment.
    --  Cardiomo Care Inc., from New York City - maker of wearable technology
        and an analytics platform for heart disease prevention.
    --  Cinema Snowglobes, from San Francisco - the beloved nostalgic snowglobe,
        reinvented for the 21st Century.
    --  Cubomania, from Mykolaiv, Mykolaivs'ka oblast, Ukraine - interactive
        cubes to help children develop motor skills, logic, mathematics,
        financial literacy.
    --  Pebby Corp., from Sunnyvale, CA - a robotics company that strengthen the
        bonds between pet parents and pets, anytime, anywhere.
    --  Picoo, from Eindhoven, Netherlands - a robust, no-screen handheld that
        uniquely combines what kids love: interactive technology and active
        play.
    --  Robomart, from Santa Clara, CA - a fleet of on-demand, autonomous,
        self-driving stores for grocery retailers.
    --  SolarGaps, from San Francisco, CA - solving the world's energy crisis
        with a network of distributed-energy solutions for Smart Cities.
    --  Velco, from Paris, France - designing and selling solutions for smarter,
        more personalized urban mobility, including the Wink Bar, the first
        connected handlebar.
    --  We.Stream, from Amsterdam, Netherlands - which provides secure mobile
        WiFi hotspots with embedded Cloud SIM technology to enable unlimited
        data in 100+ countries.
    --  Zhor-Tech, from Nancy, France - which pioneers smart shoes.

This year's judges are:

    --  Nicholas Zaldastani, managing director, Zaldastani Ventures and a Mentor
        Capitalist leveraging his venture capital and serial entrepreneurial
        experiences.
    --  Marita McGinn, manager of hardware products, Indiegogo, an international
        crowdfunding platform.
    --  Sharona Justman, a businesswoman known for connecting companies and
        leaders to align in creating rich opportunities for business. She
        co-founded STEP Strategy Advisors, an advisory firm focused on
        technology and consumer products providing strategic planning and
        acquisitions advisory to facilitate expanding the growth of companies
        through market entry expansion planning and execution.
    --  Arthur Rubinfeld, former chief creative officer and president, Global
        Innovation and Operational Lead of Starbucks Reserve Roasteries for
        Starbucks Coffee and Founder of AIRVISION. Rubenfeld is known for
        leading-edge, visionary work in integrated brand positioning, marketing,
        and design in retail. He is the author of Built for Growth: Expanding
        Your Business Around the Corner or Across the Globe, which has been
        printed in six languages.

The winning company is invited to demonstrate and meet with more than 1,300 journalists expected to attend ShowStoppers @ CES, the press event that takes place Tuesday, January 9, at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas.

About CES:

CES® is the world's gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies. It has served as the proving ground for innovators and breakthrough technologies for 50 years-the global stage where next-generation innovations are introduced to the marketplace. As the largest hands-on event of its kind, CES features all aspects of the industry. Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)(TM), it attracts the world's business leaders and pioneering thinkers. Check out CES video highlights. Follow CES online at CES.tech and on social.

About Consumer Technology Association:
Consumer Technology Association (CTA)(TM) is the trade association representing the $321 billion U.S. consumer technology industry, which supports more than 15 million U.S. jobs. More than 2,200 companies - 80 percent are small businesses and startups; others are among the world's best known brands - enjoy the benefits of CTA membership including policy advocacy, market research, technical education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CTA also owns and produces CES(®) - the world's gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies. Profits from CES are reinvested into CTA's industry services.

About ShowStoppers
Now in its 24th year, ShowStoppers is the global leader in producing press and business events spanning the US, Europe and Asia. Each event organizes product introductions, sneak previews and demonstrations for selected journalists, bloggers, industry and financial analysts, venture capitalists and business executives. Industry leaders, innovators and startups exhibit to generate news coverage and product reviews, make new connections, promote brand, and open new markets. ShowStoppers produces events at CES, Mobile World Congress and Mobile World Congress Americas, among others; the official press events at CE Week, IFA, and NAB; and partners with CES and CTIA.

For questions relating to the ShowStoppers Launchit event, contact Dave Leon, director of sales, +1-845-638-3527.

Contacts:

Allie Fried
Consumer Technology Association
+1-703-907-7603

Steve Leon
Partner, ShowStoppers
+1-310-936-8530

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SOURCE ShowStoppers