Technology

TechCrunch is headed to Lagos to host our second Startup Battlefield Africa competition on December 11! Last year, we held our first Startup Battlefield Africa in Nairobi, where startups from across the continent highlighted how technology is optimizing supply chains, increasing access to education, strengthening farmers& revenues and so much more.

Since the last Startup Battlefield Africa, the continenttech scene has continued to develop at a rapid pace. VC investment in African startups doubled between 2015-2017. Overall, therebeen an uptick in committed VC for Africastartups and accelerators, including $2.1 billionacross at least four funds. There are more than 300 tech hubs across the continent (and counting) that are building, supporting and bringing together African startups, mentors and innovators.

We&re looking for Sub-Saharan Africabest innovators, makers and technical entrepreneurs to participate in TechCrunch Startup Battlefield Africa 2018. We&re looking for startups most likely to produce an exit or IPO; startups of any kind may apply. TechCrunch will host the event in Lagos in front of a live audience and top judges, and the show will be covered on TechCrunch. The judges will choose a winner, &Sub-Saharan AfricaMost Promising Startup,& whose founders will win US$25,000 in no-equity cash plus a trip for two to compete in the Battlefield at TechCrunchflagship event, Disrupt 2019 (assuming the company still qualifies to compete at the time). Applications are open now and you can submit your startup here.

TechCrunch is eager to take part in covering Africaburgeoning tech sector more fully. We love to see startup ecosystems develop, and Startup Battlefield is one of the best platforms in the world to spotlight the most promising ventures for investors, partners and even future employees. Our editors carefully pick the best startups to compete from tons of applications, and recruit world-class judges to ask tough questions and pick the winners. And the Startup Battlefield editors coach the founders to make brilliant pitches onstage at the Startup Battlefield event.

At the end of the day, thatwhy the more than 765 companies that have competed in Startup Battlefield have raised over $8 billion and produced over 105 exits to date.

Herehow to participate:

Fifteen startups will be selected to join us onstage for the Battlefield Africa in Lagos.

Qualifying startups should:

• Be early-stage companies in &launch& stage
• Be a resident from our eligible countries
• Have a fully working product/beta, reasonably close to or in production
• Have received limited press or publicity to date
• Have no known intellectual property conflicts

What do the winners receive

Apart from the exposure that comes from pitching to the global TechCrunch audience as well as the live audience of distinguished technologists, entrepreneurs and investors in Lagos, the overall winner will receive US$25,000 in no-equity cash plus an all-expense paid trip for two to compete in Startup Battlefield at TechCrunchflagship event, Disrupt 2019 (assuming the company still qualifies to compete at the time).

Are costs to attend the pitch-off covered

No, but TechCrunch will try to find financial assistance for a startup in need of assistance to reach the Lagos event.

Who picks the startups that will compete

The TechCrunch editors who run the TechCrunch Startup Battlefield competition will choose the finalists from the application pool.

Who will judge the pitch-offs

TechCrunch will select four judges for each theme. They will be noted entrepreneurs, investors and technologists with experience relevant to the category. A TechCrunch editor will moderate the judging, and cast the tie-breaker ballot, if needed.

What is the pitch-off format

Each company will have six minutes to present. The judges will have six minutes to ask questions.

What are the judging criteria

The judges will pick the startup with the product or service most likely to go into full commercial production and have the biggest impact on human potential and/or the largest exit.

When is the application deadline

September 3, 2018 at 5pm PST.

When will you notify the finalists

October 19, 2018 at 5pm PST.

Will TechCrunchteam help prepare startups for the pitch-off

Yes, in-person training and rehearsal sessions will be required, as well in-person rehearsal on December 10.

Which countries are eligible

Residents in the following countries may apply: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Central Africa Republic, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cote d&Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing language, the &Applicable Countries& does not include any country to or on which the United States has embargoed goods or imposed targeted sanctions (including, but not limited to, Sudan).

If you would like to apply — please click here.

Want to refer innovators you admire or have any questions Get in touch at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

See you in Lagos!

AmazonPrime Day, the companyannual sales event thatnow its biggest, will be held this year on July 16, starting at 12 PM PT/3 PM ET, and will feature over a million deals, the retailer announced today. One big change this time around is the eventlength — last year, Prime Day ran 30 hours, but this yearevent will run for 36 hours. In addition to being the longest Prime Day to date, the event will also expand to new markets this year, says Amazon.

Australia, Singapore, Netherlands and Luxembourg will join the other countries hosting Prime Day this year, which includes the U.S., U.K.,Spain, Mexico, Japan, India, Italy, Germany, France, China, Canada, Belgium and Austria.

As in previous years, Amazon is touting deals across product categories, likeTVs, smart home, kitchen, grocery, toys, fashion, furniture, appliances, back-to-school supplies and everyday essentials.

Of course, Amazon will again mark down its own devices for Prime Day, and itteasing some of its deals in advance. The retailer says it will offer &double the deals& on Amazon devices, including the lowest prices to date on Echo, Fire TV and Fire tablets.

The expanded number of deals comes from Amazon now owning more hardware brands. For example, it acquired the smart doorbell maker Ring earlier this year, and the smart camera and doorbell startupBlinkback in December. Today, itselling a suite of home security products that includes these brands and others, like its own Echo Dot and Amazon Cloud Cam.

These could be the &home security devices& that will be newly on sale this year during Prime Day, alongside the Echo Show.

Also new this year is Amazon bringing Prime Day to Whole Foods.

Prime members shopping in-store can take an additional 10 percent off hundreds of sales items and will receive other deep discounts on popular products, Amazon says. Plus PrimeRewards Visa card members will receive double the rewards — 10 percent back — July 14 through 17 when shopping Whole Foods.

In addition to the usual slate of deals, some brands are unveiling new products, new content or special edition products for Prime Day 2018.

This list includes the newDelta Trinsic Touch2O, the first Alexa-enabled kitchen faucet; Coleman RoadTrip LXE portable propane grill; Fingerlings Light Up Unicorn Mackenzie; an Audible Original production, Hi Bob!, which has Bob Newhart sitting down with guests Sarah Silverman, Will Ferrell, Lisa Kudrow, Jimmy Kimmel, Judd Apatow and Conan O&Brien; an exclusive version of the Moto G6 64 GB, and more.

Amazon is kicking off the Prime Day deals starting immediately, however.

The following items are already on sale:

• Echo Show & save $100 (normally $229)
• Amazon brands & 25 percent off furniture and décor from Rivet and Stone - Beam, up to 20 percent off AmazonBasics items and 30 percent off everyday essentials from Presto!, Mama Bear and Solimo, and others
• Prime Video, DVD, and Blu-ray & save up to 50 percent on select movies and TV shows
• Amazon Music & four months of on-demand music for $0.99
• Twitch Prime & hundreds of hours of free gameplay and free PC game giveaway every day until July 18, and more
• Kindle Unlimited and eBooks & three months of Kindle Unlimited for $0.99; $10 Prime Day credit for buying your first Kindle book
• Audible & first three months for $4.95/month (65 percent off)

During Prime Day, Amazon is adding 50 percent more Spotlight Deals, and will feature deals across the following: Watch a Deal (deal notifications from the Amazon app); Prime Day Sneak Peek (sneak peek at deals in the app from July 9-15); deals by Popular Interests (deals organized by 40 of the most shopped interests); Alexa Shopping (ask Alexa for deals); Amazon Prime Credit Cards (5 percent back on Prime Day purchases).

To encourage Alexa shopping this year, Amazon is offering customers a chance to win a sweepstakeswhere a grand prize winner will get anAlexa-enabled 2019 Lexus ES, a complete Alexa smart home package and more. This is a big step up from the Alexa shopping perks from last year, which included $10 for first-time Alexa voice shoppers.

Prime Day began as a way to drive more consumers to subscribe to Amazonannual Prime membership program, which now has more than 100 million paid members. However, because of the numerous deals available, italso become a sales event that outpaces Black Friday, Cyber Monday and other sales holidays for Amazon. Prime Day 2017, for example, was the biggest sales day in history for Amazon, up 60 percent from the year before.

With Amazon doubling down on the event this time around, with even more device deals, Whole Foods deals, market expansions and longer hours, it will likely break records again.

The robotic monk is facing a wall, charging up when I first approach the Longquan Templebooth at TechCrunchevent in Hangzhou, China. Thereprobably a good metaphor here for meditation or mindfulness, but as a terrible meditator who semi-regularly runs into objects while his mind is somewhere else entirely, I&m struggling to find the right one.

The whole spectacle is an unusual one, alongside row after row of the Chinese companies that dot Startup Alley. Robe-wearing monks meander around, in front of cartoon drawings and figures of Xian&er, the &Worthy Stupid Robot Monk.& Hea two-foot-high robot whosomething akin to a Buddhist version of SoftbankPepper. Hean adorable little ‘bot with little in the way of articulation, who sports a small tablet atop his belly.

This particular model is one of three version of the robot that currently exist in the world, designed to greet young visitors at Longquan Temple in Beijing. Children can interact with the robot through the touchscreen or a voice remote, asking it one 100+ questions. Rather than utilizing some bit of consumer AI like Alexa or Siri, however, the robot is trained to offer up answers provided by the templemasters.

The robotic version of Xian&er, who is also the subject of books and cartoons, was created in 2015 with help from a number of key Chinese tech firms, including Tencent andiFlytek. Hedesigned to serve as an ambassador, helping to help educate, children about the ways of Longquan and help bring the temple into the 21st century.