Out of the top picks for TechCrunch Disrupt 2019, 43% are branding on non .COMs

TechCrunch Disrupt 2019 is just around the corner and that means some of the hottest startups in the world will be converging on San Francisco and vying for the attention of top Silicon Valley VCs. I’m a big fan of disrupt, it celebrates innovation and does a great job of showcasing exceptional startups and founders that are pushing the limits of what’s possible.

One of the companies that I’m an investor in called Self Lender, launched at Disrupt back in 2014, and there’s a good chance that some of the startups you use today started on the same stage.

Of course, whenever I see TechCrunch announce their top picks for disrupt I can’t help but look at what domain extensions everyone’s using. It changes every year but usually most of the companies brand on .COM.

This year, things have certainly changed quite a bit as 43% of TechCrunch’s top picks at Disrupt 2019 are branding on non .COMs. The most popular .COM alternative is .IO which represents 18% of the domain extensions used.

Other domain extensions in the mix this year are .CO, .ME, .AI, .EU, .IN, .APP, .BZ, .ORG, .and BZ. I was pretty surprised that not a single .NET was there. It wasn’t that long ago that if a startup couldn’t get the .COM, they’d immediately go for the .NET, now it’s clear other extensions have become more attractive.

For domain name investors reading this, don’t fear. .COM is still king and my guess is the startups on this list that land funding and continue to grow will probably move from whatever extension they’re on, to a .COM. It’s happened over and over again and with .COM prices continuing to rise every year with demand, that’s certainly not changing any time soon.

What is clear though is that for startups, getting their initial idea out there on a .COM seems to be less of a priority. While I didn’t go back and calculate it myself I’m guessing this is the lowest number of .COMs Disrupt has ever seen…does that mean next year .COM could slip below 50%?

If you want to see the full list of TechCrunch’s top picks at Disrupt 2019, you can check them all out here.

What do you think? I want to hear from you – comment and let your voice be heard!

Morgan Linton

Morgan Linton