Among nearly 30 biz execs skedded to participate in “Startup of the Year” as mentors include: Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group; Peter Diamandis, chairman and founder, X Prize Foundation; Carly Fiorina, chairman Good360 and former chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard; and Ray Kurzweil, director of engineering at Google.

Company also highlighted WSJ Custom Studios, which will work with advertisers to create specialized video segments with integrated brand placement. And data-crunching tools to let marketers target auds is central to WSJ’s sales pitch. […]