04 October 2018, Singapore
Diverse startup technologies from Germany looking to expand to vibrant ecosystem of Southeast Asia.
Continuing on the mission to support German startups that want to enter the Southeast Asian market, German Accelerator Southeast Asia will be welcoming four new companies to Singapore in November. Ranging from various future-defining industry sectors, the startups will be reaping from Singapore’s highly vibrant and diverse startup ecosystem.
After entering the final application round, four high-potential German startups were selected to participate in the German Accelerator program in Singapore. The startups that prevailed to form the accelerator’s Class of Winter 2018 are Hackerbay (software for AI solutions), NOS (cryptocurrency), uberall (location marketing) and Wagawin (digital marketing) from the cities Berlin and Munich. While all of them provide applications for different market sectors, they are united under one common goal: to develop a value proposition for the Asian market.
Opportunity in Southeast Asia
With its vibrant startup community, growing entrepreneurial spirit and its high amount of government support initiatives, Singapore stands as the gateway to Asia for many startups. Claus Karthe, Founder and CEO of German Accelerator Southeast Asia, describes the region as an incredibly important market for startups to place their products. “German Accelerator supports innovative startups from Germany that have the potential and the determination to enter the Southeast Asian market. The aim is to empower high potential German startups to set up a sustainable business here, and become part of Germany’s future digital mittelstand,” he said.
Even though the startups participating in this year’s Class of Winter come from very different industry sectors, all of them are convinced that Singapore is the right place to start. The AI software solutions company Hackerbay sees huge potential in the Southeast Asian market, which, thanks to a rising consumer market and large workforce, has grown into a leading manufacturing powerhouse.
“We at Hackerbay are redefining the possible by giving people the tools to make better, more informed decisions. Southeast Asia, and in particular its industrial sector, provides a data-rich environment with a relatively low degree of automation perfectly suited for our solutions to make workers more valuable,” says Marc Seitz, CTO at Hackerbay.
NOS Co-Founder and CEO, Daniel Neetzel, is keen to expand his cryptocurrency startup to the Southeast Asian market. He believes that his startup can be especially successful in a “crypto-hub” like Singapore and has set plans to evaluate a potential launch of his company’s stablecoins in Southeast Asia.
Wagawin, a marketing-tech startup that creates so-called LivingAds for the mobile advertising industry, has its focus set on Southeast Asia as a region with an extremely high rate of internet usage. CEO and Co-Founder Nicolas Leonhardt is convinced that the German Accelerator program “can help Wagawin accelerate its growth as well as penetrate new countries in the region. The rapidly growing mobile network coverage, combined with a high affinity for mobile devices, offers Wagawin tremendous conditions to grow in Southeast Asia.”
Diverse Startup Ecosystem in Southeast Asia
With the Class of Winter 2018, German Accelerator Southeast Asia will be commencing its third program cycle. Since its inaugural program in March 2018, German Accelerator has introduced a broad portfolio of startups to Southeast Asia, ranging from agritech, regtech, fintech, logtech, deeptech, sensor technology to publishing.
Thanks to the highly diversified innovation environment in Singapore, many of these startups have found opportunities to bring their business to the regional markets. Singapore has grown into the leading hub for technological change in Southeast Asia and offers great advantages for startups from various verticals. Government support, high willingness to invest, a leading position in tech talent and a dynamic startup community make Singapore the location of choice for many startups and scaleups.
To enter the German Accelerator program, startups must apply online and undergo a detailed assessment and pitching session in front of a selection committee comprising industry leaders, VCs, and representatives from German Accelerator in Singapore and Germany. German startups keen on expansion into Southeast Asia can submit their applications for Class of Spring 2019 on the German Accelerator website before 1 February 2019.
Press Contact German Accelerator Southeast Asia, Singapore
Ms Katinka Uppendahl
Phone: +65 8596 4800, Email: katinka.uppendahl@germanaccelerator.com
Press Contact German Accelerator Southeast Asia, Germany:
Ms Katharina Legge
Phone: +49 175 4130077, Email: katharina.legge@germanaccelerator.com