WIT at 9 mature? Yes. This year the WIT team made a run at bridging the gap between fantasy and reality with the WIT Developer & Designer Challenge. 

The first crop of 9 – auspicious number – revealed a sense of maturity. We had three student teams, one of whom went on to win the overall Challenge. (Me with one of the student teams at the Bootcamp)

But in the other Challenges, we saw a sense of reality that is often lacking from start-up pitches and new ideas. This is a good idea and post WIT, I can see several of them being seriously looked at for development as viable products and indeed some as independent businesses.

During the Challenge and into the main WIT conference, I did look around the room and noted a number of interesting facts.

Approximately 40% of the audience at WIT main conference were WITVirgins. Newbies, fresh blood. The enthusiasm with which the audience largely comprising millennials embracing the WIT theme of “The Asia Factor” coincided with the political battle that was raging last week as the US influence declines in favor of an Asian-centered universe.

And perhaps this is what is indeed a microcosm of the world of travel we now inhabit.

The cultural and economic hegemony switch from Baby Boomers (brought up in the post war USA almost perpetual boom cycle) to the educated, focused, hardworking Asian Millennials is a fascinating social change.

As a polypartisan with loyalties to many countries, I believe that we are witnessing the changing of the guard. What drove the US model consumer doesn’t work any more. Not here, not there either. Yet travel still draws us together.

The WIT Challenge had entries whose participants came from Beijing, Amsterdam, Auckland, Ho Chi Minh, Germany and Singapore. We had teams who were hoteliers, students, rocket scientists and videographers. Good to see that there were GDSers amongst the crop.

So here’s to the changing world – those who are driving the new travel economy. As Asia rises – there are still some tricks left that the old dogs can teach the new. But watch out. The consumer of today is vastly different from yesterday. Tapping into him is new territory. Be prepared and challenge yourselves to step up.

Congrats to the winners and indeed all of the participants in the very first WIT Challenge 2013. Next year – let’s see what real problems we can solve and make money.

The winners of the Challenge are:
• Travelport  – Nemesis
• Abacus Ventures  – xSegment
• Vaultpad/WIT – Project Lighthouse
• Brand Karma/WIT – SMU Team Currency

Each team wins a 3-month mentoring/coaching stint with the sponsor. The overall winner, SMU Team Currency, won a S$1,000 cash prize from Vaultpad and WIT.