Filipino startup wins
in global pitch competition
By
DTI-TPG-Export
Marketing Bureau
October 27, 2020
MAKATI CITY –
Filipino startup Edukasyon.ph emerged as the overall winner in the
Wildfire Pitch Competition, held during the Ignite 2020 Cyber
Conference on 13-15 and 20-22 October 2020.
Receiving US$5,000
equity-free cash, Edukasyon.ph is an education technology platform
that connects students to education opportunities. The startup was
among the five startup finalists – four of which were founded in the
Philippines.
The six-day conference was
organized by Brainsparks, Dentsu, and TechShake and was supported by
the Department of Trade and Industry-Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB).
“DTI-EMB, as IGNITE’s
partner since their first conference in 2017, has always been a
supporter of IGNITE’s vision of bridging the gap between startups
and corporates or non-tech industries, and at the same time
promoting the PH startup ecosystem to the rest of the world,” said
DTI-EMB Director Senen Perlada, during his opening remarks on 22
October.
“This year’s edition of
IGNITE is a perfect example of how technology and innovation can
address the needs of today and the post-pandemic world,” he
continued.
The conference featured
several international speakers and a pitch competition for startups
in the education tech, health tech, fintech, e-commerce, and
workplace tech sectors. Winners for each sector delivered their
three-minute pitches on the final day to determine the overall
winner.
The other finalists were:
• MyGolana, a health tech
startup providing affordable and accessible counseling solutions
• Nextpay, a fintech
startup providing an easy solution for small businesses to manage
and track their finances.
• 1Export, an e-commerce
startup that is a one-stop, end-to-end platform helping small
businesses in the Philippines export, by addressing concerns in
terms of compliance and market access.
• PEAK, a Thai workplace
tech startup that offers online accounting software that allows
businesses to track business information instantly.
“Out of the five
finalists, four of them are Philippine startups. It shows that the
Philippines is not lacking in talent and potential as a startup
ecosystem. The challenge now is creating an environment that will
not only help startups survive but also thrive and take advantage of
the new opportunities brought about by the pandemic,” said Perlada.
DTI Undersecretary
Rafaelita Aldaba said during her opening remarks on 13 October that
"as the virus is contained and as [physical support] bolster the
economy, along with global recovery we will be able to take
advantage of emerging opportunities and challenges from shifting
trade and investment preferences and changing forms of international
productions in the wake of Covid-19 by fast tracking innovation and
adapting new technologies with greater focus on more resilient,
inclusive, and sustainable industrial recovery toward the post
pandemic future."
Since 2017, Ignite
Philippines has gathered the stakeholders from the startup ecosystem
under one roof. The online event was attended by more than 1,200
participants from 25 countries.