The year continues to move forward quickly, as does all of our planning for TechCrunch Disrupt 2026! We’ve got an exciting new panel in store for founders in need of M&A advice…but first, we have a limited-time ticket offer to share.
Disrupt will be held again at Moscone West in San Francisco October 13-15, and for a limited time, attendees can also bring a colleague, co-founder, investor, or teammate for less! You can purchase a Disrupt 2026 pass here, And get 50% off a second pass of the same ticket type with a limited-time offer that ends on May 8 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Exciting New Panel at Disrupt 2026
As for what kind of programming will keep you locked in for all three days of Disrupt, let’s dive into our new panel that will be on the Builders Stage.
Image credits:TechCrunch
Hear at Disrupt how M&A is now an early-stage strategy
If you followed our recent article, mergers and acquisitions remain in vogue, especially in the AI scene. Whether it’s OpenAI buying Hiro, Anthropic acquiring Vercept, Google taking on the team behind Hume AI, or Databricks recruiting two startups just for its security product, it’s been a busy year!
And the acquisition is far from the end of a long road for the founders; this may be part of their initial journey. With these and other acquisitions in mind, we’ve assembled a panel of experts to help founders understand all the M&A options available to them.
Their perspectives will provide you with a playbook for creating potential sales options, ways to make your startup more attractive to buyers, and the realities of the acquisition process. Let’s delve deeper into the expertise of our industry leaders.
Aklil Ibssa, Head of Corporate Development and M&A, Coinbase
Image credits:Coinbase
Aklil Ibssa brings the buyer’s perspective from one of the largest crypto companies, leading Coinbase’s acquisition strategy and execution. He has overseen more than 14 acquisitions and nearly 50 early and later-stage investments, contributing to an M&A program that has become one of the most active in crypto, with over 40 acquisitions completed in total.
More importantly for founders, he has seen first-hand how strategic buyers evaluate young companies for technology, talent, licensing, product speed, and beyond. He will discuss acquisitions, including Deribit, Liquifi, and Echo, and significant investments in startups like Kalshi.
Lindsey Mignano, Founder, Mignano Law Group
Image credits:S72 Business portraits
Lindsey Mignano offers legal and structural expertise that often determines whether an early-stage M&A transaction can succeed. As the founder of the Mignano Law Group, she represents emerging technology companies, SMEs, venture-backed startups, and venture capital firms as outside general counsel. Her practice covers everything from SAFE notes, pricing cycles, and bridge financing to buy-side and sell-side acquisitions.
She educates founders on when M&A preparation should begin. Many of her clients are Series B companies, including enterprise SaaS, PaaS, and AI startups—exactly the kind of companies currently facing strategic interest. She will ground the conversation in cap tables, contracts, asset sales, and the work required for acquisitions.
Karl Alomar, Managing Partner, M13
Image credits:Gillogley asked.
Karl Alomar joins the conversation as an investor and operator. As Managing Partner of M13, he supports seed and Series A software founders in infrastructure, fintech, developer productivity, and other categories. He offers insights on early strategic decisions: when to raise funds, partner, accelerate growth, and when an acquisition route might yield the best outcome for the company, team, and investors.
As COO of DigitalOcean, he helped build the cloud infrastructure company from its first product to approximately $250 million in ARR and an eventual NYSE IPO. As a founder, he was involved in acquisition cycles, with companies like China Export Finance and Clearview Networks being acquired. He provides a nuanced perspective on when founders should continue building with their team or consider M&A strategies.
Get your second pass at 50% off before May 8
And remember: If you register for Disrupt 2026 before May 8 at 11:59 p.m. PT, you can take advantage of this offer to get your pass with savings of up to $410 and get 50% off a second pass of the same ticket type. It’s best to share all the information Disrupt offers with a partner or colleague, so don’t miss this opportunity!
Image credits:Kimberly White/Getty Images
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