This month, 50 small-time tech entrepreneurs didn't even get their full ten minutes to make their case. At the AlwaysOn Summit at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., each would-be Sergey Brin or Larry Page had just six minutes each to pitch a roomful of about 100 venture capital investors and potential business partners.

For some of the startups here, the stakes are pretty high. Make a lasting impression, and it could open the door to an hour-long pitch session with the funder of your dreams. Put the audience to sleep, and, well, it just means one thing: lots more pitching.

Rex Wong, CEO of Internet TV distribution company Dave.TV, pitched so smoothly that he was chosen as one of three CEOs to make a two-minute pitch at an evening reception. His secret sauce? "Pitch all the time--that's why they call us chief evangelist officers."