TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 to explore the journey from prototype to production

TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, taking place at Moscone West in San Francisco from October 13–15, will feature a session examining how technology companies transition from a working prototype to a product customers can rely on in real-world conditions. The panel, titled "From Prototype to Production: Can It Scale in Reality?", will take place on the event's Real World AI Stage.

Organizers note that a successful prototype only answers whether something can technically be done, while moving into production raises dozens of additional challenges spanning manufacturing capacity, infrastructure, and daily operations.

Three perspectives on one milestone

The discussion will include John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of MBRYONICS, whose company has grown from a photonics spinout into a builder of space-based optical communications hardware, scaling up high-volume manufacturing along the way. Boris Sofman, co-founder of Bedrock Robotics, previously helped lead autonomous trucking efforts at Waymo, where driverless vehicles logged more than 100 million driverless miles; he will discuss maintaining safety and reliability while scaling production. Adrian Macneil, co-founder of Foxglove, previously led infrastructure engineering at Cruise, building the data platform that supported autonomous vehicles at scale, and will speak to the engineering systems needed to move technology into everyday use.

The conference expects to draw more than 10,000 founders, investors, and operators across more than 250 sessions. Ticket prices are set to rise after September 25, with discounts of up to $200 available before then.