5 ‘Crazy’ Entrepreneurs on a Bus to SXSW

Last week, 152 entrepreneurs boarded six buses in NYC and headed to Austin, Texas for South by Southwest, the annual music, film and interactive festival that helped launch such startups as Twitter and Foursquare to national prominence. The buses don’t just serve as a leisurely way to travel to the festival, however: Over the course of five days, the entrepreneurs will form teams to pitch, develop, build and launch new startups with their fellow passengers. While most passengers seem to be participating for the networking possibilities or the personal opportunities for growth (many referred to the Startup Bus as a bootcamp for entrepreneurs), there is the chance that one of the startups nurtured on the bus continues to thrive after South by Southwest, says Elance Chief Marketing Officer Rich Pearson. This is the second year that Elance will be sponsoring the hackathon. Check out this year’s cast of ‘crazy’ entrepreneurs aboard the startup bus.