Today at the Microsoft campus, Building 1 in Mountain View, the first class from the Israel-based Azure accelerator pitched their companies, progress and teams to a room of investors, journalists, and other Valley dignitaries.

TNW visited the accelerator in Israel in April, finding both the program, and the country’s startup scene to be impressive. From our initial coverage:

“As I came to learn, Microsoft is a huge force in Israel, lending a hand to many of the startups that I met. The company is attempting to build a really strong ecosystem of entrepreneurs, developers, engineers, and design talent, and decided to start the company’s first ever accelerator right in the heart of the country.”

However, when TNW visited, none of the companies had yet moved in to the office space. So, to watch the young firms present was a nice cap to our first coverage of the program. Microsoft’s incubator play is now somewhat extensive, with programs in India, the United States (working with TechStars), and Israel.

The Israel program accepted 11 companies in its first class, out of more than 100 applications. Teams of 2-4 people were preferred, and while no cash was provided, each company was given office space, access to advisors, and other perks, not to mention a short line to Microsoft and its Azure product. In the next class, a $20,000 convertible note will also be offered.

This post is a short look at our favorite demos from the day. Instead of trying to write about every company, we picked the few that most piqued our fancy. Enjoy!…Read More>>

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