TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 to Host Session on Scaling Prototypes Into Production

TechCrunch said AI has dramatically lowered the barrier to building impressive prototypes, but getting those prototypes into production is a different story. Every founder hopes a breakthrough becomes a product customers can rely on, yet the path from prototype to production rarely follows a straight line. Manufacturing challenges emerge, infrastructure has to support growth, and autonomous systems have to perform outside controlled environments. The problems change quickly once technology leaves the lab.

The session does not promise a single blueprint, according to TechCrunch. Instead, it brings together founders who have tackled production from different angles, allowing attendees to compare what scaling looks like across industries. The discussion will include leaders from space communications, autonomous systems and AI infrastructure who have navigated the transition from promising innovation to production-ready deployment.

John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of MBRYONICS, will discuss building manufacturing capability alongside technology. TechCrunch said Mackey has transformed a specialized photonics spinout into a leader in space-based optical communications, expanding high-volume manufacturing while helping build the infrastructure behind next-generation space networks. His insights are intended to help startups understand what changes when a company shifts from building prototypes to building products.

Boris Sofman, co-founder of Bedrock Robotics, will address deploying autonomy where consistency matters. Before co-founding Bedrock Robotics, Sofman helped lead autonomous trucking and core technologies at Waymo, where fully driverless vehicles logged more than 100 million driverless miles, according to TechCrunch. His experience reflects what happens when autonomous systems leave controlled testing and begin operating in environments where consistency and reliability matter every day. He will shed light on how to scale production while ensuring safety and reliability.

Adrian Macneil, co-founder of Foxglove, will focus on the engineering foundation for autonomous systems. Before co-founding Foxglove, Macneil led infrastructure engineering at Cruise, developing the data platform that supported autonomous vehicles at scale, TechCrunch said. His work demonstrates that production depends on the engineering systems surrounding it. His talk will underscore the systems and infrastructure that allow complex technologies to move beyond experimentation and into everyday use.

TechCrunch said the three speakers bring different perspectives to the same milestone every ambitious technology company eventually reaches: moving from a successful prototype to something customers can trust in the real world. Disrupt is expected to bring together more than 10,000 founders, investors and operators for more than 250 sessions exploring technologies and market forces. Registration is open, and TechCrunch said attendees can save up to $200 by September 25.