---
title: "Introducing The Cold Start: pitch your startup live at Cloudflare Connect"
description: "Cloudflare announces The Cold Start, a live startup competition at Cloudflare Connect in San Francisco on Monday, October 19, 2026. Five early-stage companies with less than $10 million raised will each get five minutes on stage to pitch their vision to judges including Cloudflare co-founders Matthew Prince and Michelle Zatlyn, and CTO Dane Knecht. The winning startup receives $500,000 in Cloudflare credits, a billboard in San Francisco, and an invitation to the VIP speakers dinner. Applications close Friday, October 2, 2026, and Cloudflare will pay travel for the five finalists. The competition is inspired by Cloudflare’s own launch at TechCrunch Disrupt in 2010 and is part of its Cloudflare for Startups program, which offers eligible companies up to $350,000 in credits."
---

# Introducing The Cold Start: pitch your startup live at Cloudflare Connect

[Cloudflare](https://yomu.fyi/company/cloudflare) · Sunil Pai · Sep 28, 2026

**Type:** Announcement

## Summary

Cloudflare announces The Cold Start, a live startup competition at Cloudflare Connect in San Francisco on Monday, October 19, 2026. Five early-stage companies with less than $10 million raised will each get five minutes on stage to pitch their vision to judges including Cloudflare co-founders Matthew Prince and Michelle Zatlyn, and CTO Dane Knecht. The winning startup receives $500,000 in Cloudflare credits, a billboard in San Francisco, and an invitation to the VIP speakers dinner. Applications close Friday, October 2, 2026, and Cloudflare will pay travel for the five finalists. The competition is inspired by Cloudflare’s own launch at TechCrunch Disrupt in 2010 and is part of its Cloudflare for Startups program, which offers eligible companies up to $350,000 in credits.

## Context

The Cold Start is inspired by Cloudflare’s own launch at TechCrunch Disrupt in 2010, where they were given a stage to present their infrastructure startup. The competition aims to give five early-stage startups a similar opportunity at Cloudflare Connect in San Francisco.

## Approach / What changed

Five early-stage startups (raised less than $10 million) are selected to pitch their vision in five minutes on stage at Cloudflare Connect, followed by 3-5 minutes of questions from judges. The winner receives $500,000 in Cloudflare credits, a San Francisco billboard, and VIP dinner invitation. Cloudflare pays for finalists’ travel.

## Takeaways

- Five early-stage startups with less than $10 million raised will pitch for 5 minutes at Cloudflare Connect on October 19, 2026, to judges including Cloudflare’s co-founders and CTO.
- The winning startup receives $500,000 in Cloudflare credits, a billboard in San Francisco, and an invitation to the VIP speakers dinner.
- Applications are open until Friday, October 2, 2026, and Cloudflare will cover travel for the five finalists.

## FAQ

### How do I apply for The Cold Start?

Applications are open now and close Friday, October 2, 2026. You apply through the link provided in the post, providing information about yourself, your one-line pitch, what you're building, funding stage, and how Cloudflare fits into your stack.

### What are the prizes for winning?

The winning startup receives $500,000 in Cloudflare credits, a billboard in San Francisco, and an invitation to the VIP speakers dinner at Cloudflare Connect.

### Who are the judges?

The judges are Matthew Prince (co-founder and CEO), Michelle Zatlyn (co-founder and President), and Dane Knecht (CTO) of Cloudflare.

**Tags:** [Cloudflare Connect](https://yomu.fyi/topic/cloudflare-connect), [Cloudflare for Startups](https://yomu.fyi/topic/cloudflare-for-startups), [Startups](https://yomu.fyi/topic/startups)

- Source: [Cloudflare](https://blog.cloudflare.com/introducing-the-cold-start)
- Source URL: https://blog.cloudflare.com/introducing-the-cold-start
- Ingested by Yomu: 2026-09-28T15:00:09.861Z

[Read original post](https://blog.cloudflare.com/introducing-the-cold-start)