Big news, announcements at 2015 MakerCon in San Francisco

San Francisco, CA — The business of Making is an increasingly hot topic as illustrated earlier this month at MakerCon, the only conference by and for leaders of the Maker Movement. Over 500 Makers and top Maker Movement leaders convened to discuss 3D printing, digital manufacturing, tool production, and other cutting-edge technologies May 12-13. The conference featured two days of presentations, meetings, networking, and exclusive announcements. Maker Media, parent company of Make: magazine and Maker Faire, hosted the event in partnership with presenting sponsors Intel and Cisco.

The event featured some 80 speakers and presenters across multiple interest areas, including digital manufacturing, tool producers, accelerators, traditional VCs, educators, community organizers, and a select group of Makers. Among the conversations about the Maker Movement and the impact it’s having on business and technology, several companies delivered newsworthy announcements. Highlights include:

• Sprout by HP announced a new partnership with Dremel
• Plethora revealed the fullness of its automated CNC service
• Spark changed its name to Particle
• Zymbit unveiled its integrated IoT platform
• Thud Rumble demonstrated the next phase in DJ turntable technology in a partnership with Intel’s Edison

“It’s so inspiring to learn about the amazing things people are working on,” said Dale Dougherty, executive chairman and founder of Maker Media, founder and publisher of Make: magazine, and co-founder of Maker Faire. “What’s even more gratifying is that major companies and brands are revealing amazing new products, strategic partnerships, celebrating their growth while at MakerCon.”

MakerCon also hosted the first-ever Launch Pad competition, which is focused on the innovative work of hardware startups. A group of 10 companies presented a Shark Tank-style pitch for a $5,000 prize, plus exposure and support from the Maker Media properties and channels. The 2015 winner was BotFactory’s Squink, the desktop circuit printer that allows anyone to design and create circuits via their browser, without the hassle of installation.

“There were a lot of great presentations, so the competition was definitely intense,” said Nicolas Vansnick, Chief Executive Officer of BotFactory. “Meeting customers at Maker Faires and winning the MakerCon Launch Pad competition has continuously given us the validation and support we needed to keep going. For this and their support, we would like to thank Maker Media and the entire team!”

For more coverage on MakerCon, including videos, interviews and blog posts, check out Makezine.com. To learn more about the event and other upcoming MakerCons, visit the conference homepage.

About MAKER MEDIA

Maker Media is a global platform for connecting makers with each other, with products and services, and with our partners. Through media, events and ecommerce, Maker Media serves a growing community of makers who bring a DIY mindset to technology. Whether as hobbyists or professionals, makers are creative, resourceful and curious, developing projects that demonstrate how they can interact with the world around them. The launch of Make: magazine in 2005, followed by Maker Faire in 2006, jumpstarted a worldwide Maker Movement, which is transforming innovation, culture and education. Headquartered in San Francisco, Maker Media is the publisher of Make: magazine and the producer of Maker Faire. It also develops “getting started” kits and books that are sold in its Maker Shed store as well as in retail channels. The Make: brand caters to a universe of more than 25 million makers collectively across its Make: magazine, makezine.com, Maker Faires, and Maker Shed properties.