East Meets West Conference to Feature ‘Unicorn’ Companies

Blue Startups will hold its fifth annual East Meets West summit and conference on O‘ahu an Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, 2019. PC: Blue Startups

Blue Startups, a top 20 accelerator in the United States, will hold its fifth annual East Meets West summit and conference on O‘ahu an Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, 2019.

The event brings together investors and entrepreneurs from both sides of the Pacific.

East Meets West is a cross-cultural event targeting Asian, U.S. and Hawai‘i participants.

Top entrepreneurs, investors and accelerators from North America, China, Taiwan, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea will be featured at the conference.

Organizers have gathered some of the top influencers and innovators to come to Honolulu for this groundbreaking event. A “Startup Showcase” of vetted companies from Asia and the U.S. will be featured.

Patrick Lee, founder of Rotten Tomatoes. PC: Blue Startups

Participants will engage in deal making, learning and networking amongst regional startup investors and entrepreneurs in a tropical paradise.

This year will feature several entrepreneurs who have built global “unicorn” companies (valued over $1 billion), including Patrick Lee, founder of Rotten Tomatoes; Holly Liu, founder of Kabam; and Jesse Middleton, co-founder of WeWork Labs.

In addition, 20 global venture capital firms controlling over $7 billion in capital will be participating, including GGV Capital, Y Combinator, Sparklabs, Chinaccelerator, Golden Gate Ventures and Fresco Capital.

“This year’s conference is really focused on providing tangible and actionable advice for any entrepreneur with global ambition,” said Henk Rogers, founder of Blue Startups.

Entrepreneurs will learn from technology companies that have conquered global markets. They will discuss the challenges of entering new markets, receiving foreign investment and how to stay competitive in an increasingly interconnected global marketplace.

Holly Liu, founder of Kabam. PC: Blue Startups

New this year will be the “Visions from Hawaii” track that will discuss Hawai‘i’s leadership in sustainability, indigenous innovations and specific sector strengths, such as renewable energy.

Investors will discuss the complexities and best practices of cross culture and cross border investing.

They will also explore the latest trends in innovation, influencer marketing and sustainability from Silicon Valley to Asia.

One of Hawaii’s own, Max Holloway—an Ultimate Fighting Championship title-holder—will discuss his new role as social media influencer with over 1 million followers on Instagram.

Jesse Middleton, co-founder of WeWork Labs. PC: Blue Startups

The conference will feature a startup showcase where vetted deals sourced from regional accelerators based in the U.S. and Asia will pitch investors. Participants will include Asian-based startups looking to enter the U.S. markets and U.S. based startups looking to enter the Asian markets.

About Blue Startups
Blue Startups is a Top 20 Accelerator in the U.S. (Techcrunch) focused on helping scalable technology companies compete on a global scale. With deep domain expertise in technology and an extensive network in Asia, Blue Startups is a nexus of entrepreneurial activity in Hawai‘i, and between Asia and North America. Blue Startups was founded by Henk Rogers, founder of the Tetris Company, and Chenoa Farnsworth of Hawaii Angels in 2012 and has been a full member of the Global Accelerator Network since 2013. Blue Startups is funded by the State of Hawaii, Hawaii Strategic Development Corporation, Hawaii Technology Development Corporation and private investors. For more information, visit www.bluestartups.com.