KUCHING: Twenty startups are currently taking part in a one-week second cohort Pre-Accelerator Bootcamp (TPAB) by Tabung Ekonomi Gagasan Anak Sarawak (Tegas), said a press release yesterday.
The programme, held at the SMA (Sarawak Multimedia Authority)-Tegas Digital Innovation Hub (DIH) here, is organised in collaboration with Tegas strategic partner, WatchTower and Friends Accelerator from yesterday until April 20.
For the record, Tegas was established in 2012 as a Charitable Trust dedicated to promoting STEM, TVET and Entrepreneurship amongst Sarawakian youth in the state while SMA is a regulatory body established pursuant to Section 3 of Sarawak Multimedia Authority Ordinance 2017 with the primary objective to spearhead, oversee and facilitate the development and implementation of Sarawak’s Digital Economy Initiatives, the press statement said.
The participating startups are Fouracle, Hello Gabby, Circle Tech, Get Hero, Soaring Games, Miracolo, Vroom Delivery, Mariadra, Edaberan, Family Bus, Jorvel, Landmiles Mobile, Lit.cn, Naru Film, The Bery, Uncle Green, Volume, Timogah, Hedjraa and Foodhero.
Urban Planning, Land Administration and Environment Assistant Minister, who is also Tegas chairman Datuk Len Talif Salleh said the programme was designed to take early-stage startups to the next level, from validating ideas into creating a minimum viable product (MVP) and a go-to-market strategy.
Industry experts and seasoned entrepreneurs have been invited to deliver talks and share their experiences on various topics such as business fundamentals, customer and product development, marketing, operations, fundraising and pitching.
“We’re really excited to collaborate with WatchTower & Friends Accelerator to run this bootcamp.
“This could be a great springboard to take early-stage startups to the next level,” he said through the media statement.
Len said Tegas’s mission was to provide growth opportunities for early-stage startups and to build a strong startup community across Sarawak.
“This initiative is in line with Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg’s agenda to increase the number of successful technopreneurs and subsequently drive the state’s digital economy,” he added.
The bootcamp prepares participants for the Demo Day to select the top three winners and a chance to pitch investors as well as green lane to pitch for Tegas Startup Lab, Sarawak Shell LiveWIRE and WTF Accelerator.
Demo day winners are set to receive an attractive package that includes company incorporation support and three-month access to DIH.
WatchTower and Friends Accelerator (WTF) has produced a number of notable alumni which include startups such as TheLorry, MoneyMatch, MyCash Online, PostCo, ParkIt, Lapasar and Omnimatics, to name a few.
Participants of the programme will get a first-hand account from some of these leading founders on their road to success in their startup journeys.
“We are happy to join forces with Tegas and SMA, and work towards creating a vibrant startup ecosystem in Sarawak. We believe Sarawak will have their own startup success stories soon,” said WTF chief executive officer Sam Shafie.
The programme is supported by SMA and is one of the key programmes in the Sarawak Digital Village Ecosystem.
Tegas is also collaborating with SMA in operating the DIH in Kuching, Miri and Bintulu. DIH serves as an inclusive avenue to nurture talents, support entrepreneurs and create innovators for Sarawak.
DIH offers access to co-working space and shared amenities, funding opportunities and facilitation, incubation and acceleration programmes as well as an entrepreneur-friendly ecosystem.
“Together with all our partners within the digital ecosystem, we know that this initiative will create success stories that will be the pride of our state, and our nation,” said SMA general manager Dr Zaidi Razak.
The bootcamp is open to all Sarawakians or startups with at least one Sarawakian co-founder.
