TechStars Cloud (Skynet)

Building server-side applications/systems has changed forever thanks to virtualized infrastructure. I'll never forget asking a colleague at Netscape when I'd just started my professional career "why are we thinking about hardware at all?!? Shouldn't software just abstract all of that?" He chuckled at my naiveté. Lo-and-behold ten years later I was able to think about hardware like I did software; disposable resources that I used a command prompt to setup and tear down, script, load, configure, and tightly integrate my software with.

Beyond exciting.

Over the past four years at Gnip, we've used nothing but virtualized hardware for a highly-scalable piece of infrastructure sustaining countless, sustained, high-bandwidth connections to customers all over the planet. The only hardware we own are the laptops we use to write the code. Wow... every time I say that I get chills down my spine; so cool.

I've been a TechStars Boulder mentor for a few years now, and I'm stoked that TechStars spun-up a focused "Cloud" program. I'm excited to be engaged in a more infrastructure focused thread of TechStars (something I've criticized the program for in the past). TechStars is an amazing thing, but I'd always wanted a more explicit systems/infrastructure twist (my bag, frankly, because I think these kinds of plays are more impactful).

If you've considered using TechStars in the past, but thought it might be too consumer focused for your idea, you should consider TechStars Cloud as a mechanism to get your idea squarely into the execution phase. Even if you haven't considered TS in the past, and you're looking for a place to hone your idea into something with traction (or at least die trying), check it out.

You can apply for admission here.

I hope to meet you soon, and to have an opportunity to help you build something cool using our new fangled "infinite resource" that is now Skynet (errr... the Cloud).