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Blueprints AI, a Santa Monica startup founded by Al Drams and Coco Cao, is showcasing a new version of its software that converts 2D sketches or PDFs into code-compliant, permit-ready construction blueprints within minutes. The company, incorporated in 2025, was selected for TechCrunch Disrupt's Startup Battlefield 200 cohort, where it is presenting this week in San Francisco.
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 begins tomorrow at 8 a.m. PT and runs through three days at San Francisco's Moscone West, with over 10,000 founders, investors and tech operators expected to attend. Organizers say this is the last day to buy tickets at a discount of up to $100, with additional offers including 50% off a second pass and a $75 Expo+ Pass for people who have been laid off.
Startup Efferon has developed a blood-purification device called Efferon NEO that absorbs both endotoxins and cytokines to treat pediatric sepsis, which kills about 3 million children under five each year. The device received CE mark approval in April, making it the first multimodal blood purification device built specifically for children, and is now used in ICUs across 30 countries including parts of Europe, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand. Efferon is preparing an FDA submission and expects to reach $2 million in annualized revenue by the end of 2026.
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 begins on October 13 at 8 a.m. PT at Moscone West in San Francisco, featuring more than 300 startups in the Expo Hall and 20 Startup Battlefield 200 finalists competing for a $100,000 prize and the Disrupt Cup. The event will also host over 200 sessions with more than 250 tech leaders discussing AI, fundraising, go-to-market strategy, and scaling. Attendees can still save up to $100 on passes, with discounts for groups and a 50% off second ticket offer.
Alongside the main TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 conference running October 13-15 in San Francisco, a range of independently organized side events are scheduled from October 10 through 16. These include national and regional tech meetups hosted by groups like Poland's PAIH, Innovation Norway, and Pakistan's Software Export Board, plus startup workshops and networking sessions.
TechCrunch's Disrupt 2026 conference takes place October 13-15 at Moscone West in San Francisco, expecting around 10,000 attendees including founders, investors and tech executives. Online ticket discounts of up to $100 expire when the event opens at 8 a.m. PT on October 13, with a discounted Expo+ Pass available for those affected by layoffs and a 50%-off second-ticket offer.
TechCrunch announced the five judges who will select the winner of Startup Battlefield at Disrupt 2026, running October 13-15. The panel includes Stacy Brown-Philpot of Cherryrock Capital and Chi-Hua Chien of Goodwater Capital, among others, chosen from thousands of applicants narrowed to 200 startups and 20 finalist pitches. After judging concludes, the five will take part in a live audience Q&A on the Builders Stage.
TechCrunch has published the complete speaker roster for the Disrupt Stage at its Disrupt 2026 conference, running October 13-15 at Moscone West in San Francisco. Confirmed speakers include Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe, Cerebras CEO Andrew Feldman, Science Corporation founder Max Hodak, Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley, and all five partners of venture firm Benchmark appearing together.
Circuit Breaker Labs, founded by siblings Shirali and Arul Nigam, has built AI agents designed to simulate users of different ages, backgrounds, languages and cultures to stress-test chatbots for psychologically harmful responses. The startup is one of TechCrunch's 2026 Startup Battlefield 200 finalists and will pitch at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco this October. Arul Nigam said the company was motivated partly by the case of Sewell Setzer, a teenager whose family sued Character.AI after he died by suicide following interactions with its chatbot.
MyMonthlyCar, a startup founded by three Ukrainian entrepreneurs including CEO Igor Dobrianskyi, has built an online platform connecting dealerships' unsold used-car inventory with customers seeking month-to-month rentals. The company charges no listing fees but takes a 10% cut from both dealers and renters per transaction, and also enables rent-to-own arrangements. MyMonthlyCar has been selected for TechCrunch Disrupt's 2026 Startup Battlefield 200 cohort, taking place in San Francisco in October.
TechCrunch announced five additional judges for its Startup Battlefield 200 competition at Disrupt 2026, bringing the total revealed so far to 20. The 200 selected startups will exhibit and pitch at the event, with judges narrowing the field toward finalists who compete for a $100,000 equity-free prize and the Disrupt Cup.
Muju Earth has built the Aeropod, a fingernail-sized device farmers plant alongside seeds that bursts open from soil temperature, pressure and moisture to loosen compacted soil without machinery. The startup, founded by Ifeoluwa Afolayan and Wangyang Hu at Imperial College London, says the device can match tilling's results at roughly a quarter of the cost. Muju Earth is running paid field trials with nine UK onion farmers this fall and will present at TechCrunch Disrupt's Startup Battlefield in October.