6th Sense Analytics

Notes from DEMO 07

Chris Shipley has built the DEMO franchise into the premier launch pad for emerging technologies. It is unquestionably the most credible and highest-impact venue for launching a new product, drawing an audience of 700 of the most influential players in technology and bringing them back each and every year—for 17 years and counting. Palm, Tivo and Sun’s Java are just a few of the breakthroughs first introduced at DEMO. While other events have grown larger, no other event has retained its exclusivity, clear mission or loyal attendance. Unlike most conferences, DEMO gets better with age. Last week, 6th Sense Analytics launched the latest version of its solution at DEMO. (Be sure to read the press release and watch co-founders Greg Burnell and Todd Olson in action on the DEMO stage.) Making it to the DEMO stage is a major achievement. Chris considers hundreds of vendors vying for about 65 slots. She selects only the most innovative, disruptive and promising technologies. Chris has keen insight and a unique ability to identify what’s real and what really matters. We’re proud to have been selected and very pleased with the overwhelmingly positive response we received at DEMO. At the risk of sounding smug, I think people were a little taken aback by 6th Sense—a refreshingly simple solution to a business problem that’s as plain as day. DEMO is a serious event with a serious purpose; it’s one of the key vehicles for vetting invention and identifying the ideas that will transform how we think, communicate, compute and conduct business. But it also has a less heady side, which is every bit as important to its loyalists: It’s a great deal of fun. Despite the intensity of event—presenters prepare for months, sort of like training for a marathon—DEMO doesn’t take itself too seriously. There is no stuffiness, no attitude—just inspired interaction. There is a pulse and a tone to the event that makes it a phenomenal networking opportunity. This is a key part of the DEMO magic and I suspect it's very much by design. In addition to knocking it out of the park on the DEMO stage, we also had the good fortune of closing our Series A venture funding last week. This gave us an extra pop in visibility and added to the uniqueness of the event. Core Capital of Washington, DC led our Series A round, with participation from our original investor, Intersouth Partners of Durham, NC. We’re very pleased to welcome Core to the 6th Sense family. It was really quite a memorable week …

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