During the final of the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE accelerator’s autumn edition, five technology companies were selected – Amorphis Pharma Development, Cyberstudio, Hashiona, Minte.ai, and Revdebug. The winners will be awarded a weekly Bootcamp in Boston. In the cradle of technological innovation, surrounded by business angels and potential investors from the MIT ecosystem, entrepreneurs will present their solutions.
Acceleration at MIT Enterprise Forum CEE has been implemented for over 5 years under the patronage of the world-famous research center and the American unicorn forge – Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). It is there, on the other side of the pond, that we can find technological gems that grow into powerful organizations over time. In Poland and the CEE region, the startup market is constantly and dynamically developing, as evidenced by the number of applications sent to the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE accelerator. More than 250 startups from all over the world applied for the autumn edition. To get into the program, entrepreneurs went through a multi-stage selection process, held a series of meetings, interviews and talks with partners, the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE team and independent judges. At the beginning of November, 11 innovative, ambitious and very high-aiming startups started accelerating. For two months, they worked intensively on the development of their business with the support of Polish and international mentors. They gained access to the unique know-how as well as the technical and technological facilities of the program partners.
“Despite the difficult market situation, our team worked very hard. And all this to give new, creative entrepreneurs a chance for a better start for their business, especially in such unpredictable times. Changing the work mode to online a few months ago, and the implementation of trainings also in this formula, showed us that nothing is impossible. We are able to do even more to achieve the intended goal, ” says Łukasz Owczarek, Head of Acceleration at MIT Enterprise Forum CEE.
The online final of the 4th edition of the program took place on January 20. During DemoDay, 11 best entrepreneurs presented their skills in front of the audience of over 200 guests. On that day, five finalists were selected and awarded with tickets to the weekly Bootcamp in Boston. “The choice was not easy, the startups represented a very high level,” adds Owczarek. Here are the winners:
Amorphis Pharma Development is a company that develops generically improved amorphous drugs that will become more accessible to patients. They will also be more effective, less toxic to the body and cheaper.
CyberStudio is a supplier of selected IT security solutions. It ensures protection of the organization against external and internal cyber threats 24/7, all year round.
Hashiona is an app and a virtual clinic that helps patients suffering from Hashimoto’s disease and hypothyroidism improve their quality of life.
Minte.ai is intelligent B2B software for insurance companies that allows them to reduce the time and cost of settling a personal claim, increase customer satisfaction, and provide structured medical data.
RevDeBug is an IT systems monitoring platform that takes the guesswork out of identifying and fixing software bugs. Thanks to that, it shortens its time by as much as 50%.
“So far, we have carried out nine editions of the program, five were aimed at the Polish market, and the remaining four at Central and Eastern Europe. Each of them was unique, we were joined by teams whose technological ideas were just waiting to appear on the market. The past acceleration showed us once again the potential of entrepreneurs, gems that only need to be polished. Technologies that the world has just seen will find their place on the market quickly. I strongly believe in this and heartily congratulate all participants and those who were also awarded,” says Owczarek
The end of last year was a crucial period for the accelerator, as it celebrated its fifth anniversary in December. From the very beginning, the organization’s goal was to build an ecosystem comprising of dynamic and active community. That is why it is so important that the gathered audience and the constantly growing group of alumni, already numbering 330 entrepreneurs, always have their say during the MIT’s events. Therefore, by the decision of the audience of the DemoDay 4th edition, startups were also awarded in additional categories:
Hashiona received the Audience Award.
Cyberstudio was awarded in the Alumni Award category, granted by entrepreneurs-innovators who participated in previous editions.
As every year, also the CVC Young Innovator Awards competition was held during the event, and Hashiona became the beneficiary of PLN 100,000. Their solution, according to the jury and the award founder, showed the highest social utility.
“The CVC Young Innovator competition has three simple criteria – youth, courage and their positive impact on the environment. We want to support young ambitious entrepreneurs who have a unique business idea or technology that can not only be commercially successful but also improve our reality and the lives of people around us. This year’s winner, Hashiona, whose virtual clinic supports people suffering from thyroid diseases (in Poland it may be up to 25% of the entire population!), fits perfectly into the idea of the CVC Young Innovator Award. The fresh, fifth edition of our competition took place in the special conditions of the coronavirus pandemic, which in the blink of an eye turned one of the key areas of the country’s infrastructure – the health care system upside down. Hashiona has a real chance to structurally change and popularize the system of care for people with thyroid diseases. We, the society, need such young entrepreneurs, especially in the post-pandemic world,” says Krzysztof Krawczyk, Partner of CVC Capital Partners.
The main partners of the program are three organizations: Adamed, a Polish pharmaceutical and biotechnological company, a leader on the new generation drug market; a system of Coca-Cola companies in Poland – the leader of the soft drinks market, as well as the MCX company – the core of a strong group of specialized companies, which are a supplier of comprehensive solutions in the field of Fintech, renewable energy and the broadly understood smart city. The supporting partners are: CVC Capital Partners, HubHub, MDI Energia, Nationale-Nederlanden, PZU, Sollers Consulting and TVN Grupa Dicovery. The implementation of the program is co-financed by a grant awarded to the Foundation for Technological Entrepreneurship by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development under Measure 2.5 POIR Acceleration Programs.
