Accolades

"At the end of January, some of the freshest new ideas in tech will be on display at DEMO, an invitation-only gathering outside Palm Springs. There, veteran tech analyst Chris Shipley stages the tech biz version of Survivor, where a closely guarded roster of innovative startups (and a few big companies) gets a few minutes to demonstrate a breakthrough new product or service in front of an elite audience of venture capitalists and corporate kingmakers."

--Tech's caucus season; Jon Fortt; Fortune; January 3, 2008

"Then there's DEMO, a well known venue for new products, technologies and companies. Over its 16-year history, DEMO has built a strong reputation for finding and publicizing the latest and greatest technologies at conferences held twice a year. The events provide a platform for both fledgling and mature companies to announce new, envelope-busting products and services."

--Eight Reasons Small Biz Should Give Thanks; Judy Motti; Forbes.com; November 19, 2007

"Every year, about 700 tech industry insiders gather in the desert to look at new products. The event, which is in its 17th year, is called Demo because it's an opportunity for companies to demonstrate their wares. Before they make it to the Demo stage and exhibit hall, companies and their products have to be vetted by Demo executive director Chris Shipley..."

--The New Media Mogul - You; Arik Hesseldahl; BusinessWeek; January 31, 2007

“DEMO, the technology conference that aims to introduce venture capitalists and journalists to tomorrow's hot tech tools and toys is appealing for folks like me. We get to see cool stuff and hang out in Palm Desert, Calif., for a couple days."

-- Ready, Set, Launch; Victoria Murphy Barret; Forbes; February 1, 2007

"For an early look at emerging technologies, the Demo conferences can't be beat. Attended by corporate execs, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and other tech junkies, the semiannual events feature demonstrations of dozens of new products, none of which has previously been shown publicly. Unlike other trade shows that allow any company that can afford it to exhibit, each product at the Demo conferences is handpicked by executive producer Chris Shipley, a discerning journalist and analyst who has covered the industry for more than 20 years."

-- The woman behind the curtain; Mary Kathleen Flynn; Tech Confidential; October 27, 2006

“Call DEMO a high-tech farmers market, a place where a small sampling of the tech world's freshest ideas and ventures are gathered and displayed for an audience of connoisseurs -- industry analysts, technology journalists and investors.

 
It's Shipley, 43, who handpicks the tech start-ups that show their wares at Demo. She jets around the world -- logging some 125,000 miles annually -- to meet with companies for a first look at their innovations. For each of her twice-a-year Demo conferences, she whittles down the list of hundreds of potential exhibitors to 60 or 70 that are worthy of a make-or-break, six-minute pitch on the Demo stage.”

--Chris Shipley, Idea Capitalist; Sam Diaz; The San Jose Mercury News; April 19, 2005

In 2004 and 2005, Conferenza honored Chris Shipley as "Host of the Year", saying, "Audiences believe in her, presenting companies excel under her guidance and her events are consistently glitch-free."

--PopTech & Shipley Take Conferenza Awards; Shel Israel; January 11. 2005

"Chris Shipley knows a winning technology when she sees it. With her control over two of the highest-profile trade conferences in the business, Shipley's imprimatur can seal a budding company's success."

--For new tech products, her word can mean fame or ignomy; Silicon Valley's "Influential Woman in Business" series; Janet Rae-Dupree; San Jose Business Journal; April 30, 2004

“If you could assemble the world's most perfect board of directors, whom would you put on it? …. Consider Chris Shipley, a technology analyst at IDG. After covering the tech world for almost two decades and meeting with some 400 companies a year, she has developed a reputation for finding the most promising technologies before anyone else.”

--The Brain Trust; Stephen D. Solomon and Julie Sloane; Fortune Small Business; December 2002