Going for the Gold: NEVYs 2015

Flashing lights, disco balls, and gold glitter engulfed the House of Blues last night at the third annual NEVY awards party by the New England Venture Capital Association. More than 800 VCs and entrepreneurs gathered in Boston to count down New England’s greatest hits and paint the town gold.

"Hello, all of you beautiful people!” NEVCA Executive Director CA Webb greeted the crowd dressed in an  ‘80s- theme. Of course, what’s more attractive than a gathering of local rock stars in glistening gold bow ties, sparkling rings and Mardi Gras beads?

The 2015 NEVY winners included Entrepreneur(s) of the Year Dharmesh Shah and Brian Halligan, who are co-founders of HubSpot; Acquia won for the brand-new category of “Next Unicorn in Tech.”

The celebration around healthcare in Boston was particularly striking, as this year’s judges were unable to choose just one exit of the year due to the sheer number (17!) of biotech companies that went public. Stephen Krauss of Bessemer Venture Partners took the stage to honor them in a short video – an excerpt of which sounds like this.

A couple takeaways from the NEVYs:

1. The innovation landscape is Boston is on fire – The competition was fiercer than ever. And the data proves it, noted in a recent piece by Josh Boyle of VentureFizz, which reported that “New England saw more VC-backed companies go public in 2014 than in any other within the past five years.”

2. Talent is what fuels the ecosystem – The NEVCA is on a mission to connect Boston startups with talented students through TechGen, the beta program that in 10 weeks since inception has already accumulated more than 100 companies seeking 300+ interns, ready to take Boston’s companies to the next level.

Boston you’re our home: here at InkHouse, we’re excited to be part of this growing community and we can’t wait for #NEVYs16!

(Photo credit: Angela Smith)