Looking forward to TechCrunch Disrupt 2025! The new Startup Battlefield 200 competition will feature some of the industry’s best and brightest VC judges. Advanced judges include Katie Stanton, Charles Hudson, Crissy Behrens and Santi Subotovsky. Collectively, they have many years of experience and depth from their practice areas. The event will be held in San Francisco, California. Its purpose is to highlight the most innovative early-stage startups and give them a real opportunity to gain exposure to investors, corporate acquirers, and other industry leaders.
Katie Stanton is the founder and general partner of Moxxie Ventures. In both her extraordinary public service and venture capital careers, she has made that possible. She started her professional career as a banker at J.P. Morgan Chase. With her now in influential positions in the Obama White House and later the State Department. Stanton has served in other executive roles at major tech companies including Twitter, Google, Yahoo, and Color. Her deep experience in the technology sector furthers her capacity on the Board of Vivendi. This leading French global media group is headquartered in Paris. Stanton has great political timing and an impressive portfolio. She’s led investments into more than 100 early-stage companies with recognizable names such as Airtable, Calm, and Coinbase.
Charles Hudson, another of the burgeoning stars of the venture capital landscape, is the founder and managing partner of Precursor Ventures. He’s written the most checks of anyone in the world to more than 400 companies and coached over 450 founders over the last 16 years. Hudson’s early stage investment portfolio is very impressive with earlier investments in startups like Bobbie Baby, Modern Health, and The Athletic. His expertise in nurturing early-stage companies makes him a valuable addition to the panel of judges at this year’s event.
Experience and Accomplishments
Katie Stanton’s history as an entrepreneur, investor, public servant and advocate provide a unique lens through which to view the startup ecosystem. Following her time in the banking industry, she entered government service where she helped develop and craft critical policy and witnessed first-hand the necessity of effective leadership. Her experience at Twitter, Google and Yahoo have all given her a finger on the pulse of technology shifts and market opportunities. At Moxxie Ventures, she’s doubling down on her mission to support women-led startups, which is just one part of her dedication to fostering diversity in entrepreneurship.
Stanton walks the talk when it comes to her operational roles. She has previously served on the Board of Time Inc., and now sits on the Board of Vivendi. Her work with such prominent organizations highlights her impact in the media and technology spaces. Investors and founders alike revere her for her unusual strategic investment thesis and sharp eye for getting ahead of the curve on really interesting ventures.
If you follow the journey of entrepreneur turned venture capitalist Charles Hudson, you’ll notice an unwavering commitment to propelling diverse founders forward. His current efforts at investment firm Precursor Ventures focus on investing in underrepresented entrepreneurs that are consistently passed over by more traditional funding avenues. Hudson’s experience helps him to see not only the potential, but the different challenges that these founders often experience.
Though the choices have sometimes been surprising, his previous investments showcase a visionary perspective for innovation and market opportunity. Incredible Health and Pair Eyewear are just two examples that highlight his commitment to uplifting startups. These entrepreneurs are addressing deep-rooted challenges and providing scalable solutions. Hudson’s excitement for helping founders shines through as he immerses himself in their journeys from seed to scale.
A Diverse Panel of Judges
Crissy Behrens, who joined Insight Partners in 2021. She specializes in due diligence for high growth software companies with sub-specialties in SaaS, DevOps and Infrastructure. Her experience includes all stages of investment from pre-seed rounds to IPOs. Behrens’ strategic insights and innovative approaches have guided dozens of successful startups along their trajectories of great growth – sometimes even yours.
Now at Insight Partners, she works very hands-on with the companies they invest in to maximize their potential and accelerate growth. Her deep network and experience in government, academia and the private sector will make her an invaluable addition to the series of Startup Battlefield 200 competitions. One of the biggest challenges Behrens will tackle is ensuring that we’re doing everything possible to help our startups succeed in today’s hyper-competitive environment.
Santi Subotovsky is a general partner at Emergence Capital. He’s been instrumental in catapulting the firm’s most successful investments. He was the architect behind Emergence’s early and transformative investment in Zoom. With this move, he proved his mettle at seeing the stars before they blossom into behemoths. His ongoing role on Zoom’s board allows him to influence its strategic direction while continuing to support other emerging companies.
Subotovsky’s investment philosophy centers around finding and developing contrarian innovators that can shake up existing industries. His successes, most famously Chorus and Openpath, both of which are having banner years as they establish their niches within the larger markets they serve. His story is a familiar tune within the startup ecosystem as he imparts wisdom on scaling and product go-to market strategies.