TechCrunch has named the 20 startups that will compete in the 2026 Startup Battlefield at Disrupt. The founders will pitch on the Disrupt Stage for a $100,000 prize and the Disrupt Cup, with semifinals running October 13-14 and finals on October 15.
The cohort's unifying theme is making the previously invisible measurable. Examples include TimeTeller GmbH, which measures biological clocks to time treatments; Intero Biosystems, which grows miniature human organs for drug testing; and Apate.ai, which uses conversational bots to gather intelligence from scammers. Longshot Space aims to launch cargo into orbit at $50/kg with a hydrogen-powered kinetic launcher, while Flox Intelligence uses real-time AI to prevent wildlife collisions at airports and railways.
Other finalists focus on industrial and enterprise challenges: Helix Carbon upcycles blast furnace waste gas into replacement fuels, CedarDB offers a database with guardrails AI agents cannot bypass, and Satlyt lets satellite operators monetize idle onboard compute. Before the finalists take the stage, TechCrunch will host alumni updates from Glīd, Nephrogen, and Molecule.one.