15 reasons why you must attend TechSparks 2015!

India’s premier startup conference and showcase kicks off in Bangalore this week: TechSparks 2015! YourStory’s beloved flagship annual event is back with a bang. It is bigger and better than before. Here are 15 reasons why you must sign up for this once-a-year highlight.

1. Expanded programme

The TechSparks agenda this year spans three days of activities, instead of just one or two. Day One features a full-day hackathon for developers, designers, and aspiring founders. (More Hackathon details here.) Day Two has 9 workshops along with conference sessions on industry leadership, business culture, and tech trends. Day Three cover lessons learnt, mobile payment, CTO insights, growth hacking, and startup showcases.

2. Parallel tracks

To address the diverse interests of the audience, the programme features two parallel tracks with panels on topics such as social entrepreneurship, tech infrastructure, and product/service pitches. For comic relief, we even have Praveen Kumar, one of India's top 10 standup comedians, doing his act!

3. Indian language content – 10 languages, beyond English

TechSparks celebrates the launch of YourStory’s 10 additional editions in Indian languages, thus reaching beyond English to bring in India’s majority population into the startup networking community. This is an unprecedented scaling up of resources and discussion for creating more ventures, value, and jobs for India’s teeming masses.

4. Tech30 showcase

YourStory has mobilised the startup community like never before and scoured the length and breadth of the country to come up with the Top 30 tech startups of India! YourStory also conducted startup meetups in 11 cities to gather new inputs for choosing this year’s elite Tech30 lineup.

5. Outstanding speaker lineup – from across India and overseas

There are over 60 speakers at TechSparks this year, including experts, investors, and unicorn founders! Shailendra Singh, Sequoia Capital; Mohandas Pai, Manipal Global Education, and Naveen Tewari, InMobi, are just some of the speakers who will be on stage. From overseas, we have Klaas Oskam, Signal Hill; So-Young Kang, author of Inside Out, and Hiro Mashita, M&S Partners.

6. Report on startup ecosystem in India

YourStory will release its flagship annual publication, ‘The Tech30 Report’, with detailed insights into seven key sectors ranging from e-commerce and mobile to ed-tech and healthcare. Each section has guest authors who are founders of India’s iconic startups, such as Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder of Paytm.

7. Meet VCs and angels

At TechSparks 2015, you can hear from and meet a range of ace investors from India and abroad. This includes the Indian Angel Network, Sequoia Capital, Innoven Capital, Blume Ventures, SeedX, and SAHA Fund.

8. Meet tech infrastructure providers

Startups in scale stage need reliable and high-capacity infrastructure – come meet the key providers at TechSparks 2015, such as Microsoft Azure, Intel, and Akamai.

9. Meet the YS media team – ace startup reporters and researchers

For over seven years, YourStory has been covering startups, entrepreneurs, and social changemakers in India. Come meet the team which has posted over 22,000 startup stories and research profiles, and share your excitement and story with us!

10. Meet others like you!

The best source of learning for startups is – other startups! Come bond with fellow entrepreneurs and share your stories and experiences with them. Over a thousand pioneers of India’s startup ecosystem will be at TechSparks 2015; what a wealth of learning and potential partners for your own journey!

11. Meet experts and mentors

In addition to startups and investors, you will get to meet industry experts, tech leaders and business mentors. The startup journey is long and arduous, and you need all the insights and support you can get from advisors, consultants, coaches, trainers, and more.

12. Surprise!

Let's just say it will involve #tsparks and your delegate badge.

13. Nine amazing workshops

Many of the panel and keynote slots are 15-20 minutes in duration, but for those entrepreneurs who need more hands-on insights and in-depth advice, we have a wide range of workshops on IoT, SMAC, financial management, valuation, metrics, design, and M&A.

14. Meet the exhibitors

In addition to technology and investment, startups need a wide range of services from design and hosting to marketing and talent management. Come meet a range of solutions providers who will share their offerings and learnings with you in the exhibition space.

15. Lots of fun things lined up as well!

In addition to competitions and giveaways, TechSparks 2015 has a range of fun things lined up for attendees. Entrepreneurs may be a bit crazy but they enjoy life to the fullest, as you will find out!

A big shoutout to our sponsors - Sequoia Capital, ICICI Bank, Microsoft, Signal Hill, IBM Bluemix, PwC, Atom-Tech, Teamchat, KBITS, Intel, Rabbler, Dailyhunt, Reverie, Loginext and PayUBiz; and our partners - Duff&Phelps, Taxmantra, Exotel, 360ride, Yoga Bar, Chai Point, GWC; and our Media Partners - TV9, RedFM amd Deccan Herald.