Digi Accelerate a launchpad for homegrown startups

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March 22, 2016
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https://digi.com.my/media/articleURLhereWhichCanbeReallyLong

PRESS RELEASE

For immediate publication


Digi Accelerate a launchpad for homegrown startups

  • Regional 360 programme to fast-track startup development, beginning with two teams for year one.
  • Offers 4-month intensive bootcamp with global curriculum, mentors and networking opportunities, up to RM100,000 seed fund per team, potential for commercialisation and access to 200 million customers globally.


KUALA LUMPUR, 23 March 2016 - Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd ("Digi") today introduced Digi Accelerate, the company's first accelerator programme designed to strengthen efforts in supporting and developing the Malaysian startup scene. The 360 initiative will accelerate 2 startups in building entrepreneurship fundamentals and fast-tracking their development, positioning them for long-term success globally.

Partnering the company's regional Telenor counterparts, namely dtac in Thailand and Telenor Myanmar, Digi Accelerate offers Malaysian startups the opportunity to power-up their businesses through a four month bootcamp alongside startups from Thailand and Myanmar, gain experience from workshops with Silicon Valley experts and one-on-one mentoring with qualified, successful startup entrepreneurs from the region, opportunity to pitch to global and regional venture capitalists, and potential commercialisation opportunities with Digi and Telenor Group, opening doors to 200 million customers globally. A well-developed, proven accelerator programme the company believes Malaysian founders will relate to well.

Digi's Chief Executive Officer, Albern Murty said, "Malaysia has a lot of entrepreneurial talent and energy which is encouraging for a country aspiring to become a digital nation. Startups are key to our digital future. Given the right conditions for growth, they can become some of the largest, most successful companies of our time and this means big business as they contribute to innovation, new tech, job creation, economic growth and continuously change the way we live.

"Even with their limited resources, the fast and agile nature of startups edge out large, resourceful corporates in driving innovation and disruption across major industries. The current wave of digital disruption is already evolving the way Malaysians use technology and smart devices, and this uptrend will continue rapidly, fuelled largely by startups. While we aim to energise the startup scene, this is also a big opportunity for us to learn the way of digital from our startups, especially at a time when we are digitising our business to drive our ambition to be our customers' favourite partner in digital life.

"With Digi Accelerate, our focus is to expose startups to methods of entrepreneurship, with structured coaching and mentoring so that on graduation day our founders have the knowledge and tools to keep improving and evolving, which is needed in today's constantly changing market. We look forward to seeing the digital disrupt they will create, and market globally," said Albern.

Digi Accelerate is eligible for early stage start-ups at any point of the product maturity spectrum, from ideas or concepts, to market-ready products in one of the 12 categories: Financial services, M2M and Internet of Things, Education, Music, Video and Gaming, Healthcare, Fitness and Wellness, Communications, Productivity and Cloud Services, Security, Travel, Logistics or E-Commerce.

Submissions for business proposals are open until 17 April 2016, after which a selection of top 12 teams will be announced on April 22 and advance to Pitch Day on April 28. The final selected two startups will win up to RM100,000 in seed funding each, and attend Digi Accelerate's four-month intensive bootcamp from May to August 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand.

To apply and learn more about Digi Accelerate, surf to www.digi.com.my/accelerate.