Meet the Startup Battlefield 200 judges who’ll decide the winner at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026

The five judges selected represent a concentrated source of early-stage venture capital expertise available for direct interaction.

TechCrunch has announced the five judges who will determine the winner of the Startup Battlefield 200 competition at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. The event, taking place from October 13-15, will feature 20 startups pitching on the Disrupt Stage, with only one ultimately being crowned champion. The selected judges are all founders or co-founders of their current investment firms, bringing extensive experience in backing, building, and scaling companies. The judges include Stacy Brown-Philpot (Cherryrock Capital), Chi-Hua Chien (Goodwater Capital), Dayna Grayson (Construct Capital), Carter Reum (M13), and Alexa Von Tobel (Inspired Capital). Following the competition, these judges will also participate in a live AMA session on the Builders Stage to discuss their insights on founders, fundraising, and investment trends.

The selection of judges who have all founded their own investment firms highlights a trend towards investing in founders with deep operational and entrepreneurial backgrounds. This signals a potential emphasis on practical execution and founder-market fit, moving beyond purely financial metrics in early-stage evaluations.

The judges' diverse investment theses, spanning consumer tech, foundational industries, software, and specific founder demographics, suggest that TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 aims to showcase a broad spectrum of emerging technology and investment opportunities.