Hot on the heels of Cyberport Venture Capital Forum (CVCF) 2019, the Final Contest of Intellectual Property Innovation and Entrepreneurship Contest Global (IPIEC Global) was successfully concluded on 6 November at Cyberport.  In this pitch final 10 start-ups competed head to head and the top two teams will now advance to the semi-final and take on 28 other regional winners at the ultimate Global Grand Final for the US$100,000 grand prize!

 

This was the first year that Cyberport co-organised the IPIEC Hong Kong Chapter Finals. The 10 finalists, including three Cyberport incubatees, were selected from nearly 100 contestants, whose projects spanned across wide tech areas of  FinTech, AI/big data, IoT, smart manufacturing, digital entertainment, health-tech, infrastructure software, new energy and more. 

 

Upon exciting rounds of power pitches by the competing teams and challenges by the panel of judges comprising 12 industry experts, Light Inno Tech Limited (LIT), which develops the Lightsheet Microscopy System, a biomedical imaging system, won the top accolade. Artro Digital Limited, a Cyberport incubatee and developer of the Infinity 3D – 3D holographic imaging system claimed the first runner-up position.

 

During the Final Contest, the IPIEC Corporate Innovation Investment Summit session was also staged. Moderated by Ms. Alice So, the Head of Entrepreneurship of Cyberport, the panel discussed around the theme of “Invest in Technovation to Drive Business Continuity of Enterprises” with panellists including  Dr. Samson Tam of Hong Kong Innoangel Fund, Ms. Maria Chiang of ACT Genomics, Ms. Julienne Yin of WTOIP and Mr. Ivan Shum of Angel Investment Foundation. .

 

Both LIT and Artro Digital will now join the other chapter winners from the UK, Australia, Switzerland, Malaysia, Russia, Korea, Germany, Israel, and ASEAN to take part in the roadshows in the Mainland for an opportunity to meet potential investors. In December, the two companies will represent Hong Kong in the Global Semi Final in Guangzhou and will vie for the championship in the Global Grand Final.

 

Additionally, IPIEC matches start-ups with Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese enterprises. Six entries were already identified by local enterprises, which pledged a total of HK$60 million in intended investments into the projects. Two out of these 6 companies matching the enterprises are from Cyberport community, including Vfluencer matching with Hung Hing Printing, as well as WOOM matching with WorkTech.

 

“We are glad to see many Cyberport solutions successfully matched with the digital transformation needs of corporations. We believe this type of symbiotic relationship will help integrate the old and new economy and allow more corporations to enjoy the benefits of innovation and technology. We are confident that the IPIEC will be a springboard for these start-ups to link up with venture and collaboration sources and help them capture further opportunities in the Greater Bay Area and beyond.” said by Mr Peter Yan, CEO of Cyberport.

 

For highlights of IPIEC 2019 Hong Kong Chapter, click Here.