Arizona Announced as Location for 2020 Unmet Conference

PHOENIX, AZ (January 29, 2020)  — The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) and Stout Street Capital today announced an agreement to bring high-growth tech startups and investors together at the largest venture capital conference in Arizona. The UNMET Arizona 2020 conference will be held in Scottsdale May 13 - 14 at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts.

The event will draw more than 120 institutional venture capital investors from around the country. These investors will see potential deals with 100 of the fastest-growing tech startups from the central United States, including Arizona, seeking to raise seed and series A rounds. During the event, founders and investors will have the opportunity to network and engage in private meetings.

The UNMET Arizona 2020 conference will be the first in a series of ongoing events in Arizona, aimed at further increasing access to capital for startups located in the central United States. 

“The UNMET Conference provides a great opportunity for tech startups located in the middle of the country to network with potential institutional investors that can help scale their businesses,” said Clay Gordan, Partner at Stout Street Capital. “By attracting high-quality startups from all over the country to a single location, the UNMET Conference helps level the playing field for startups in central states that may not have the same level of access to capital as startups located in coastal areas currently do.”

The partnership with Stout Street to present the UNMET events is in alignment with the ACA’s efforts to grow Arizona’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Partnering with founders to create new businesses and commercialize new technologies is a significant part of the organization’s mission to grow Arizona’s statewide economy.

“Under Governor Ducey’s leadership, Arizona has established an incredible reputation as the best place to test, launch and scale new ideas and new technologies,” said Sandra Watson, President & CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “The UNMET Conference will serve as yet another tool helping to increase early-stage deal flow and showcase Arizona as a hub for technology and innovation.”

In 2019, an estimated $1.1 billion was raised across 206 investment deals in Arizona. 

The ACA supports startups at all stages through a comprehensive suite of programs. This includes the flagship Arizona Innovation Challenge (AIC), one of the largest business plan competitions in the country; the Venture Madness pitch competition, presented in partnership with Invest Southwest; the Venture Ready Accelerator mentorship program; and the Venture Partner program, which facilitates introductions between venture capital firms and promising early-stage Arizona companies.

Applications are being accepted to present at the UNMET Arizona 2020 conference. For more information and to register for the event, visit UNMETConference.com.

Media Contact

Connie Weber, Arizona Commerce Authority, [email protected], 602-845-1243

About the Arizona Commerce Authority

The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) is the state's leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona's economy. The ACA uses a three-pronged approach to advance the overall economy: attract, expand, create - attract out-of-state companies to establish operations in Arizona; work with existing companies to expand their business in Arizona and beyond; and help entrepreneurs create new Arizona businesses in targeted industries. For more information, please visit azcommerce.com and follow the ACA on Twitter @azcommerce.

About the Stout Street Capital

Stout Street Capital is a seed-stage fund that invests in underserved markets in the middle of the country and sees an average of 5,000 deals per year and co-invests with over 200 VCs around the country. Stout Street Capital seeks to invest in early-stage companies focused on improving efficiency and generating bottom-line value in large, established sectors in the market. Stout Street Capital is focused on improving the Series A/B-funding eco-system in the middle of the country. UNMET is one of its primary instruments, which will help companies located in the middle of the country to meet investors and attract capital.