SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- CES® 2017, the largest consumer electronics showcase in the world, sets the stage for the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) 2017 Semi-Finals taking place January 7th at 1PM PST. Ahead of the Semi-Finals, the masterminds behind XTC, MaiTai Global, are thrilled to reveal the Top 10 who will pitch their venture live on-stage at CES in hopes of being one of three companies selected to move onto the final round taking place on Sir Richard Branson's Necker Island. A hotly-contested battle thus far, the Top 10 Semi-Finalists were announced December 3rd at MaiTai Global's annual Ocean Gala in San Francisco and now forge on to the glittering backdrop of Las Vegas.

The 2017 XTC Top 10 Semi-Finalists advancing to the CES® Showcase are Audicus (New York, NY), Canaria (London, UK), Cloudwear (San Francisco, CA), Cresilon (New York, NY), Emerge (Los Angeles, CA), Intezer Labs (Tel Aviv), MobileODT (Tel Aviv), ReDeTec (Toronto, CAN), SWFL Filament (Reno, NV), and VantageRobotics (San Francisco, CA).

Voracious tech-enthusiasts attending CES® 2017 will witness the industry elite jockey to stay in contention as the challengers present the complexities of their entries, which transcend the spectrum of technology, encompassing mobile cancer screening, robotics, cyber security, virtual reality, wearables -- nearly every sector of technology on the market. Facing off live during a worldwide broadcast, the fate of the contenders rests in the capable hands of the panel of visionary Semi-Finals judges, spearheaded for a third year by President and CEO of Consumer Technology Association Gary Shapiro.

Joining Shapiro are entrepreneurial titans Founding Partner of leading venture capital firms Draper Associates and DFJ and CES 2016 Judge Tim Draper, plus new additions to the CES round, Founder and Managing Partner of SoftTech VC Jeff Clavier, Director of Intel Capital Christine Herron and Founding Partner of Pacific Investments and Innova Capital Fund Veronica Serra, plus Founder and Managing Partner of Binary Capital Jonathan Teo.

"XTC empowers daring entrepreneurs with the resources they need to build and grow an idea into a viable business. I'm proud to be part of an event that will surely help discover the world's next great companies." - Jonathan Teo, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Binary Capital

Emceeing the second stage of XTC 2017 is news anchor, author and businesswoman, Nicole Lapin. The Semi-Finals round of XTC 2017 takes place Saturday, January 7th, 1:00PM to 3:00PM at the Bellini Ballroom located in the Venetian Hotel.

In an unprecedented shift of events, Extreme Tech Challenge is proud to announce—for the first time in its existence—the XTC 2017 Wildcard, who will have the opportunity to showcase in conjunction with the Top 10 Semifinalists at CES® 2017. Congratulations to the inaugural XTC 2017 Wildcard Winner MiniBrew (Netherlands), a compact, all-in-one craft beer brewing machine that easily brings local fresh craft beer to homes around the globe, founded by Olivier Van Oord & Bart van de Kooij.

Directly following CES® 2017, the Top 3 Finalists will gear up for the last stage of XTC taking place February 2, 2017 on Sir Richard Branson's very own Necker Island, where each finalist will have one last shot to dazzle the stringent panel of judges to preside over the last phase of the hard-fought contest. Vying for invaluable access to massive visibility, essential software and infrastructure prizes, and an unparalleled advice network of world-class contacts and mentors, the final three will meet with chief judge Sir Richard Branson alongside 2017 Finals judges venture capitalist, founder and CEO of Breyer Capital, Jim Breyer, Veteran software entrepreneur and founder of C3 loT, Tom Siebel, Managing Partner of Aspect Ventures, Theresia Gouw, CTO for the Hillary for America campaign, Steph Hannon and COO of the iTutor Group Jerry Huang.

Extreme Tech Challenge and MaiTai Global would like to extend their deepest gratitude to the 2017 sponsors, without whom this event would not be possible. Special thanks given to CES 2017, iTutorGroup, Deloitte, Treasure Data, Zoom and Living In Digital Times.

XTC is presented by MaiTai Global, a vanguard collective of the world's leading entrepreneurs, creators, and athletes. Participants combine their energy, network and resources to help each other achieve professional success, pushing the limits of work and play while also fueling philanthropic activities around the world.

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Introducing, the Extreme Tech Challenge 2017 Top 10 Semifinalists:

• Audicus - Audicus sells hearing aids online with prices 70% less than competitors. Audicus is now developing technologies to test hearing remotely, optimizing the process of obtaining hearing aids even further. (Founder: Patrick Freuler)
• Canaria- Featuring unobtrusive 24x7 wireless vital signs monitoring, Canaria monitors heart rate and blood oxygen and has an audible danger threshold alarm to alert the wearer when they need to head back to safety. (Founders: Alex Moss, James Lynn, Rob Finean)
• Cloudwear - Developing mobile technology for cybersecurity, Cloudwear provides frictionless (zero user action), ultra-secure and invisibly autonomous Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for mobile. (Founders: Wendell Brown & Kevin Shen)
• Cresilon - Cresilon makes a gel technology that stops traumatic bleeding in seconds without the need for manual pressure. (Founders: Joe Landolina & Isaac Miller)
• Emerge - Creating a device that uses ultrasound to digitize touch for AR/VR, Emerge is the first haptic interface that works. Emerge is a VR company making vast strides, creating world-changing magic on par with the first mouse-based windowing systems.
• Intezer Labs - Intezer Labs is a cyber security startup, currently in stealth mode that has developed a security solution that gives the user control and full visibility for all the code running through their enterprise network. (Founders: Itai Tevet, Roy Halevi)
• MobileODT - Enabling mobile phones to screen for cancer and other diseases, startup MobileODT turns mobile phones into intelligent, visual diagnostic tools allowing any health provider, anywhere in the world, to conduct visual inspections on the level of an expert practitioner. (Founder: Ariel Beery)
• ReDeTec- Producer of a desktop filament extruder and recycling unit for 3D printers, ReDeTech creates novel plastic processing technology with significantly reduced energy and space requirements, freeing plastic recycling from the factory floor and making it a much more accessible technology for everyone. (Founders: Dennon Oosterman, Alex Kay)
• SWFL Filament - Filament provides a secure foundation for the industrial internet of things. Filament connects legacy machinery with secure, private mesh connectivity, as well as enabling microtransactions among autonomous devices. (Founder: Eric Jennings)
• VantageRobotics - Vantage Robotics creates the best flying camera in the world, making it easy for anyone to capture stunning aerial video. Their team includes DARPA Grand Challenge winners, IDEO alumni, and experienced entrepreneurs. (Founders: Joe van Niekerk, Tobin Fisher)

SOURCE Extreme Tech Challenge