Focal is revolutionising venture fundraising with a strong emphasis on collaboration rather than competition. Our unique partnership model involves 250 leading VC funds who actively participate in promoting each Demo Day and voting on applicants, granting them exclusive access to the companies that apply. We’re super excited to welcome top funds Sequoia, NEA, Entreé, Headline and others to the mix for this Demo Day.
For founders, Focal offers a streamlined way to connect with the most relevant investors for their fundraising needs. Our open application process ensures that startups are judged on merit, not on who they know. We are committed to addressing the inefficiencies in the venture fundraising process, making it more meritocratic and efficient.
To date, over 10,000 companies have applied to Focal, with 122 selected to pitch at Demo Day. The results speak for themselves: our alumni have gone on to raise hundreds of millions, with standout successes such as Scan.com, Jude, and Honest Mobile.
Recent initiatives like the Focal Top 100 have proved a huge success, with over 30,000 people flocking to the page and significant engagement on LinkedIn. We’re excited to continue this initiative and highlight even more exceptional startups in our upcoming Demo Day.
One Pitch, Thousands of Investors: Focal's leading startup Demo Day returns
How does Demo Day work?
It’s straightforward! Startups can apply in just 7 minutes through our online application form. Applications are reviewed by the Focal team and our 250 VC partners, with 20-30 companies selected to pitch at Demo Day. During the review process, our partner VCs request introductions to specific companies, and we’ll facilitate these connections if both parties are interested.
Finalists will prepare a video pitch, and on Demo Day, they will participate in a Q&A with one of our partner VCs. Finalists attend a dinner the night before Demo Day where they meet each other for the first time, before attending an exclusive afterparty with our partner VCs and sponsors on the day of Demo Day. It’s a very fun couple of days.
Key dates for your diary:
- 9am BST, Monday 9th September 2024 - Application window opens
- 9am BST, Tuesday 24th September 2024 - Application window closes
- 2pm-5pm, Thursday 17th October 2024 - Demo Day
If you’d like to watch, you can sign up here. The event kicks off with a brief introduction, followed by a panel discussion on the European vs US venture landscape with Anne Dwane (Village Global), Vidu Shanmugaraja (GV), and George Robson (Sequoia), and then the all important pitches from our finalists.
Exciting announcements for S24
In recent months, we’ve ramped up our SPV activity, successfully running SPVs for Focal alumni Vizgard and YASO, taking our portfolio to twelve companies in total. This is an area we’re gearing up to double down on as we intensify our investment efforts.
To support this expansion, we’ve welcomed our newest team member, Joel, who joins us as Investment Lead. Joel comes from the plant-based startup, Next Gen Foods, which has raised $130 million in venture backing. He’ll be leading Focal’s investment initiatives, further strengthening our commitment to supporting the startups in our ecosystem.
We’re also thrilled to announce that HSBC Innovation Banking, Google Cloud, Carta, and Cooley are back as sponsors. Additionally, we welcome three incredible new sponsors in Making Moves, Novabook, and Xero. These new partners address two critical needs for startups; securing the best rates on office space, and using high quality accounting services.
Whether you’re a founder, investor, or simply passionate about early-stage startups, we look forward to seeing you at Demo Day on 17th October 2024!
Register to watch demo day here, or apply as a startup via our website here.
