The Startup Battlefield 200[1] global pitch competition at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025[2], taking place October 27–29 at San Francisco’s Moscone West, is just weeks away, and the stakes have never been higher.
Twenty founders will pitch their companies on the Disrupt Stage, but only one will walk away with the $100,000 equity-free prize and the coveted Disrupt Cup. Helping to decide the winner is our world-class roster of judges, investors, and operators who know what it takes to build enduring companies.
Today, we’re unveiling the third group of judges who will bring their expertise and tough questions to this year’s competition. And we’re not done yet. Stay tuned for two more batches of judges in the weeks ahead.
Register now[3] to witness the intense “World Series” of pitch competitions and save up to $668 on your pass. Rates rise after September 26.
Without further ado, meet our next five Battlefield 200 judges
Check out the Disrupt agenda[4] to see the 10 judges who have already been announced.
Jon Chu, Partner, Khosla Ventures
Jon Chu[5] is a partner at Khosla Ventures[6] with a passion for machine learning and its impact on enterprise infrastructure, applications, and developer tools. Before joining Khosla Ventures, he built a career in technology as a founder, early employee, and organizational leader across a range of engineering and product roles.
He started as an early engineer at Palantir, helping the company grow from 200 to 1,800 employees. He then founded KoalityCode, which he sold to Docker, where he created and led Docker’s enterprise division. At Opendoor, Jon served as head of product for growth and head of engineering for Core Machine Learning, contributing to the company’s growth to IPO. Most recently, he led international engineering organizations at Facebook in both VR and machine learning.
Techcrunch event
San Francisco | October 27-29, 2025
Eryk Dobrushkin, Partner, Index Ventures
Eryk Dobrushkin[7] is a partner at Index Ventures[8], investing from inception to the growth stages in artificial intelligence, infrastructure, and robotics. He is drawn to curious and relentless founders who share his passion for tackling the world’s toughest problems.
Prior to Index, Eryk spent several years at Databricks, where he partnered closely with Ali Ghodsi as his chief of staff. During his tenure, Eryk had a front-row seat in one of the fastest-growing enterprise software companies in history, working across every aspect of the business — from product and engineering to sales and operations. Eryk started his career at the Boston Consulting Group, where he focused primarily on enterprise software and digital health. He holds a B.A. in Applied Math and Economics from Harvard University.
Cathy Friedman, Executive Venture Partner, GV
Cathy Friedman[9] is a business executive with nearly 40 years of experience in finance, technology, and healthcare. As executive venture partner at GV, she advises the life sciences portfolio and invests across the healthcare continuum. Her interests include adolescent mental health, the full lifespan of women’s health, and more equitable systems for the underserved.
Jen Hoskins, Startups Head of Cloud and Partnerships, NVIDIA
Jen Hoskins[10] leads cloud, partnerships, and go-to-market for Nvidia[11] Inception, a program designed to help startups accelerate technical innovation and business growth at all stages, with 29,000+ members globally.
Hoskins joined Nvidia after seven years at Microsoft, where she held roles in business development and partnerships across product teams, including Microsoft Outlook, Teams, Graph, and Microsoft for Startups. Prior to Microsoft, Hoskins worked in marketing and alliance management at Cisco.
Jon McNeill, Co-Founder and CEO, DVx Ventures
Jon McNeill[12] is the CEO and co-founder of DVx Ventures[13], a venture studio that has launched 12 companies tackling large-scale market opportunities. A visionary entrepreneur, investor, and operator, Jon has founded six companies, building and scaling businesses that created tens of thousands of jobs and delivered 9x returns to investors.
Jon’s operating career includes leadership at some of the world’s most transformative companies. As president of Tesla, he helped scale the company from $2 billion to $20 billion in revenue in just 18 months, overseeing global sales, delivery, and service. At Lyft, where he served as COO during a critical growth phase, Jon doubled revenue, expanded market share, and prepared the company for its IPO.
He currently serves on the boards of General Motors, Lululemon, Asurion, CrossFit, and Stash. At Lululemon, Jon played a key role in its turnaround, contributing to a 5x increase in stock value. He also sits on the Liquid AI Advisory Council.
Catch this live and get key lessons for scaling success
The ultimate global pitch-off[14] returns October 27–29. TechCrunch Disrupt 2025[15] brings together 10,000+ startups and VC leaders at San Francisco’s Moscone West. Witness Startup Battlefield 200 live, join sessions, and make the deals that launch tomorrow’s innovation — all at the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch. Secure your ticket with up to $668 in savings[16] before prices rise after September 26.
References
- ^ Startup Battlefield 200 (techcrunch.com)
- ^ TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 (techcrunch.com)
- ^ Register now (techcrunch.com)
- ^ Disrupt agenda (techcrunch.com)
- ^ Jon Chu (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ Khosla Ventures (www.khoslaventures.com)
- ^ Eryk Dobrushkin (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ Index Ventures (www.indexventures.com)
- ^ Cathy Friedman (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ Jen Hoskins (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ Nvidia (www.nvidia.com)
- ^ Jon McNeill (www.linkedin.com)
- ^ DVx Ventures (www.dvx.ventures)
- ^ ultimate global pitch-off (techcrunch.com)
- ^ TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 (techcrunch.com)
- ^ Secure your ticket with up to $668 in savings (techcrunch.com)