The first dot.LA Summit is gaining steam. We'll soon be holding three Startup Pitch Showcase events that will serve as qualifying matches for the pitch finale at this month's summit. We're looking for Southern California startups in any industry that have a product on the market and have raised less than $1 million in funding. Nominate your company here. Have any you think we ought to reach out to? Let us know!
Meanwhile, stay tuned for announcements about cutting-edge programming, networking, workshops, social events and more!
Today's L.A. tech news:
TikTok creators are finding the app's newly created payment process is opaque and riddled with problems.
A song made by a group of video game avatars is number one on Billboard's world charts.
Disney+ is experimenting with a virtual watch party format.
Electric semi-truck maker Nikola's stocks tank after claims it staged events and misled investors in reports.
TikTok's new interim CEO Vanessa Pappas gets a profile in the New York Times.
L.A.-based Toucan — whose CEO was featured in our "Female Founders Stories" series — raises $3 million.
China is reportedly pressuring Bytedance to shut down TikTok in the U.S. rather than sell it.
Our Startup Pitch Showcase Events
Join us Thursday, September 24th at 11 a.m. PST for the first of three qualifying rounds of dot.LA's Startup Pitch Showcase competition. A winner will be chosen at each qualifying event. Each winner will advance to pitch at the finale which will be broadcast live at the dot.LA Summit with a grand prize and guest judges. Nominate your company and register for the first event!
Catch Up on This Week's Top 5 Stories
dot.LA chief host and correspondent Kelly O'Grady takes you through the key points of the top five headlines. Watch her video recap here >>
* Justice Dept. calls TikTok 'direct threat' U.S.
* L.A.'s contact tracing app 'Citizen SafePass' tracks your moves to stem COVID
* Los Angeles opens COVID testing kiosk at Union Station
* Techstars Starburst Accelerator holds demo day
* Raises: Behold raises $5M and Bonfire Ventures raises a $100M fund
Nominate Innovators for dot.LA's Startup Awards
We are thrilled to announce the inaugural "dot.LA Startup Awards 2020," a celebration of the most innovative people and companies in the L.A. startup and tech community, on Wednesday, October 28th. See the award categories and nominate companies >>
Save the Date: The 2020 dot.LA Summit
Our inaugural dot.LA Summit is coming up on October 27th & 28th. The virtual gathering will include cutting-edge programming, fast pitch competitions, a live awards show, networking, workshops, social events and more! The Summit will feature the most disruptive and innovative L.A.-based startups. Early access - Register here >>