RALEIGH, NC -- Rownd, a leading frictionless authentication start-up, has been selected to pitch in the Enterprise & Smart Data category for the 15th annual SXSW Pitch event, held during the South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference & Festivals from March 10th to 19th, 2023. This year, Rownd stands as the only North Carolina-based company and authentication solution to participate in the highly-anticipated pitch.

SXSW Pitch is a two-day event held during the first weekend of the SXSW Conference & Festivals, taking place on Saturday, March 11th, and Sunday, March 12th. The event provides a platform for leading start-ups from around the world to showcase their innovative technology solutions to a panel of hand-picked judges and a live audience. This year, Rownd was selected as one of 64 companies spanning eight separate categories, chosen from 731 applicants.

The categories for this year's event include: Artificial Intelligence, Robotics & Voice, Enterprise & Smart Data, Entertainment, Media & Content, Food, Nutrition & Health, Future of Work, Innovative World Technologies, Metaverse & Web3, and Smart Cities, Transportation & Logistics.

“We are thrilled to be launching our latest version of the Rownd Authentication Platform at the 2023 SXSW Conference,” said Rob Thelen, CEO of Rownd. “Our platform empowers growth and product teams to provide their users with secure, frictionless sign-up experiences, making SXSW the perfect place to showcase the future of authentication.” 

Rownd is dedicated to helping companies increase their user conversion rates with simple, secure authentication. Thelen added, “Authentication has remained largely static for the past 20 years, but Rownd is changing the status quo.” By integrating into landing pages and apps, Rownd enables growth and product teams to move the sign-up process to where it's most convenient for users.  Rownd raised a $2.2M seed round in April 2022 with participation from YCombinator and Uncorrelated Ventures, and Alumni Ventures.

SXSW Pitch Event Producer, Chris Valentine, shared that “of the 613 companies who have been selected as finalists since the competition’s inception, over 93 percent have gone on to secure funding, and numerous have been acquired by the likes of Google, British Telecom, Huffington Post, Apple, Live Nation, OpenTable, Meta, Michelin, Constant Contact, and Harmon.  We’re excited to see this year’s impressive group of startups take to the stage and show us how their innovations will change the world.”

About Rownd‍

Rownd is a leading frictionless authentication start-up, dedicated to helping companies increase their user conversion rates with simple, secure authentication. The company's platform integrates into landing pages and apps, allowing growth and product teams to move the sign-up process to where it's most convenient for the user. Rownd is backed by YCombinator, Uncorrelated Ventures, Alumni Ventures, AIN, Legal Tech Fund, SaxeCap, Grit Partners, DVC, Asymmetry Ventures, Plug and Play Ventures, Betaworks Ventures, and many others. Visit rownd.com or follow Rownd on Twitter and LinkedIn to learn more.  ‍

About SXSW
SXSW dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals. Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and festival that celebrate the convergence of tech, film and television, music, education, and culture. An essential destination for global professionals, the annual March event features sessions, music and comedy showcases, film screenings, exhibitions, professional development, and a variety of networking opportunities. SXSW proves that the most unexpected discoveries happen when diverse topics and people come together. SXSW 2023 will take place March 10 - 19, 2023 in Austin. For more information, please visit sxsw.com. To register for the event, please visit sxsw.com/attend.

SXSW 2023 is sponsored by White Claw, Volkswagen, Porsche, Itaú Bank, and The Austin Chronicle.

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Media Contact: 

Robert Thelen, CEO, Rownd

208-473-0100 

robert@rownd.io