Exclusive: Laravel, an open source startup in Arkansas founded by Taylor Otwell, raises $57 million Series A from Accel

(Credit: Courtesy of Laravel)

Taylor Otwell has done some risky demos in his life. 

In a world where nearly every onstage demo is very controlled, Otwell, CEO of open-source framework Laravel, has at various times trusted himself and his technology so much that he’s gone all-in, in real time. Once, Otwell unboxed a new MacBook for a demo—as the audience watched.