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Empower 2022 saw 40 universities, 100+ startup ideas and 1,000+ students bustling and networking in one umbrella event in Dubai.
After several rounds of screening, the top 20 startups with a combined potential investment of $100 million were shortlisted to be showcased at Empower. Last week, the Kregzo flagship event, co-hosted by BITS Pilani Dubai on the college campus, aimed to bring the University’s innovation to the forefront and recognize the efforts of student entrepreneurs.
Faisal Sajwani, Founding Member of Fate Capital and Dr. Srinivasan Madapusi, Director of BITS PILANI Dubai Campus, Ali Shabdar, Regional Director of MEA, Zoho, Mohammed Al Alami, Head of Corporate Business Development at Tap Payments and Roshal Mascarenhas, Co-Founder of Nitin Bhalla and Kregzo.
Innate entrepreneurial spirit
Speaking at the opening, Sajwani said: “Don’t give up, keep going – that’s the road to success. As students, we may back down at the first sign of difficulty, don’t give in. Keep going and you’ll see Results! This platform was built for all of you, make the most of it, do whatever you can, and keep going until you find success.”
Dr Madapusi said: “The younger generation is naturally entrepreneurial and adventurous, so we at BITS Pilani encourage our students to grow in this culture of trying new things and innovating. The goals of this event include a better understanding of how business ideas are shaped , expanding professional networks, nurturing peer-to-peer relationships and acquiring knowledge. I am very pleased to see that our goals have been achieved and that Empower has become a platform that enables startups to scale. I thank everyone who has contributed to making this event a success those who contributed, and all the students and staff who gave their best.”
The Pitchverse competition brings together innovators from different universities in the UAE. Teams such as Unitors, Macrolabel, Appetit.me, Robosafe come from universities such as SP Jain, University of Dubai, Canada, Heriot Watt and Emirates Institute of Hospitality. Relphacare, a social healthcare tracking platform that enables real-time communication with doctors, took home a whopping AED 10,000 ($2,722.5) as the winner of the Pitchverse after two intense rounds.
student collaboration
Nikitha Abigail, founder of Relphacare, said of the victory: “The only way RelphaCare Technologies can come alive in its way is through collaboration between students on different campuses. We have people on our team from Amity, BITS Pilani, SP Jain, Students at universities like RIT. It’s great to see how innovation brings people together to form communities that solve problem after problem.”
The winning team itself is a testament to how innovation thrives when the different players of the startup ecosystem work together.
Going forward, these select 20 startups will be backed by Kregzo for best business leaders, resources, virtual incubation and one-on-one mentoring with access to $150,000 worth of resources that college-level startups need to scale effectively.
Startup Ecosystem
Bhalla said: “One of the main pillars of Kregzo is bringing together the different players of the startup ecosystem. The Empower event itself is proof that miracles can happen when people collaborate and build on innovative solutions to solve problems. This is just the first An Empower must be held at my alma mater, BITS Pilani, and in the future, this event is planned to triple in size, allowing early stage entrepreneurs from all over the Middle East to collaborate and compete against the exclusive early stage startup platform in the startup space, namely Kregzo.”
Empower also showcases strategic business events such as the CEO Club judged by real-life CEO Malachi Halliday from Halliday Growth, stock trading competitions, real-life M&A simulation battles and finding solutions to challenges facing corporate organisations. There are also some fun interactive events like IPL auctions and money heists, where participants have to find all the clues and solve them to successfully complete the heist.
The event is sponsored by title partner Zoho, payments partner Tap Payments, catering partner Hunter Foods, printing partner Desco and bronze partner Revolution Swimming Academy. — arab trade news agency
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