2015’s People’s Choice Startup, 42Race, pitching at the Grand Finals.
The winner of the WIT Startup Pitch competition, held in conjunction with the WIT 2016 Conference in Singapore this October, will win a place in the Travelport Labs Accelerator programme, which comes with seed funding of US$30,000.
Travelport Labs Accelerator, which is sponsoring this year’s competition, was set up by Travelport earlier this year to spur innovation by offering travel-related technology companies access to its resources and funding.
Nathan Bobbin, Senior Director, Product Innovation for Travelport who runs Travelport Labs, said, “At Travelport, we’re serious about redefining travel commerce – and we know there are very talented travel startup teams out there who are looking to do similar things. By working with these startups we believe they have a better chance to reach customers, achieve growth, and realise our mutual goals of having a positive impact on the travel commerce landscape.
“We’re excited to partner with WIT to give the startups taking part in this year’s competition an opportunity to be part of our programme.”
He said that the programme would provide “a unique environment to help the winner get the best possible start on realising their business vision”.
“The incubator enables founders to focus solely on their startup for the four month class with the guidance and mentorship of experienced entrepreneurs and the support of Travelport’s open platform, and products and expertise,” he added.
The WIT Startup Pitch competition in Singapore is in its eighth year and is held as part of the annual WIT 2016 Bootcamp & WIT 2016 Conference, set from October 17-19, 2016. The competition attracts entries from startups all over the world, seeking access and funding to a fast growing Asian market.
With increased interest in the Asian market and the region becoming a source of funding, last year saw entries from North America, Europe and South America.
Winners and participants in the competition have gone on to secure funding and some have grown to become substantial businesses. Among them are Japan’s Trippiece and Voyagin (acquired by Rakuten), South Korea’s Daily Hotel and MyRealTrip, Hong Kong’s Klook, Singapore’s BeMyGuest and Tripzilla, and Malaysia’s Lagisatu which has been rebranded Tripfez.
According to Phocuswright, between 2005 and 2009, 25% of global travel startup funding went to startups in APAC; in 2015, it was 51%.
“We are delighted to have Travelport Labs as a partner this year,” said Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder of WIT. “Our mission is to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in Asia and it’s been gratifying to see how our competition has grown.
“Startups who take part tell us how valuable and useful the exercise is to them in not only getting exposure to an influential audience but also in getting personal coaching and mentoring time from our panel of judges.”
The WIT Startup Pitch is also held as part of WIT Indonesia and WIT Japan & North Asia.
The deadline for entries is August 20. Shortlisted startups will pitch live at the WIT Bootcamp on October 17 and finalists will go on to the Grand Finals on October 19.
