Winning Startups will advance to the global competition and compete for a share of $1 million
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The UAE Final for the Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) organized by Startupscale360 will be held at in5 TECH Dubai.
Startups participating in the Idea Stage finals are Manhat, Equevu, and Wemax. The Early Stage category includes EVA, Ahad and PlainTiger. Finally, the Growth Stage category nominated ProvenMed, FoodATM and Desert Control.
At the UAE Final, one winner from each category will advance to the EWC Global competitions. All startups will be evaluated on product value, impact and resolution of a global problem, team, and scalability potential.
Global Finalists will meet each other in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in March 2023, and compete for a share of $1 million in prize money. In addition to the cash prize, the top 100 global finalists will receive $100,000 in in-kind services and support from service providers including AWS, Freshworks, Oracle, Hubspot, Stripe, and Segment. Global Finalists also gain automatic access to the GEN Starters Club, an invitation-only community of talented founders from around the world.
“Startups typically go through a process of metamorphosis at every stage of their lifecycle, and there are challenges at every stage. EWC provides these startups with a great ecosystem to ensure they overcome challenges and focus on delivering their core product.” globally,” said Swethal Kumar. , CEO and Managing Partner, StartupScale360 FZCO.
EWC is supported by global sponsor Misk Foundation and the initiative is led by the Global Entrepreneurship Network and Monsha’at, supported by a collection of national and global partners including One Valley, The Global Education and Leadership Foundation (tGELF), Entrepreneurs ‘ Organization, KAUST, and Startup Genome.
Since its launch in 2019, the EWC has attracted 400,000 registrations from 200 countries and connected founders with more than $3 million in cash prizes and another $256 million in benefits and free support and services.
Swethal Kumar added that Startupscale360 is the national organizer for EWC in the UAE. To ensure fair assessment and proper governance, Startupscale360 established three independent committees that come from companies such as BP Venture, Flat6labs Abu Dhabi, Hub71, Alvarez & Marshel, Al Ghurair Investment, Fintech Galaxy, Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, KPMG and Gen Global. . The applications were evaluated by 20 judges from different parts of the world who come from companies such as International Financial Corporation, Mahindra & Mahindra Limited, Landmark Group, Mashreq Bank, Stride Ventues and a mix of doctors, venture capitalists, heads of innovation lab and much more.
Speaking about the semi-final, Swethal Kumar mentioned that two semi-finals were successfully organized last week at WeWork Dubai and Intelak Hub. The semi-finalist startups appeared before 18 judges who hailed from companies such as Panthera Capital, Dana Venture, Founder Institute, Gems Education, Wami Capital, DHL Innovation, Virgin Hyperloop, MBRIF, Careem, Plug and Play, Dubai SME, Dubai Holding, Shorooq Partners , Dubai Cultiv8, Aditum Venture, 8X Ventures, Thaely and KappAfrik Group.
The UAE Final will take place on October 6, 2022 at In5 Tech Dubai, which is the Title Sponsor and Ecosystem Partner. In5 is home to hundreds of tech startups and its tech innovation hub is strategically located in the heart of Dubai Internet City and enjoys access to other media and educational hubs.
Sharing about the plan for the UAE final, Swethal Kumar said that there will be a series of panel discussions and 3 kick-off sessions. The UAE final will feature speakers and judges from major corporations. Some of the confirmed speakers and judges are from Abu Dhabi Investment Office, Mubadala, Tencent, Dubai Future District Fund, Dubai Future Foundation, KPMG, Scality, Plus VC, India’s largest fund, IvyCap Ventures, and London Business School.
He added that the final UAE event will be unlike any other competition and will conclude with a Rock Show with a key message that age is a number when it comes to the startup ecosystem, and everyone is young and can start their company anywhere. moment. moment of his life.
Swethal Kumar thanked other sponsors who continuously supported throughout the trip. This includes Al Dafrah TV, Broadcast and Media Partner, Kapturise, Photography and Media Partner, Meraki Global Energy, WeWork, Intelak, and Biteme Burger.
