Accenture has recognized leading startups from around the world at the inaugural Accenture Innovation Awards, held during GITEX Technology Week 2017. The awards are part of an initiative that aims to support up-and-coming talent and identifies the best ideas that use technology to solve tomorrow’s problems, today.
Startups from around the world applied for the Accenture Innovation Awards, with winners identified by a jury comprising of senior executives from Accenture, Expo 2020 Dubai, Fintech Hive at DIFC and Etisalat Digital. Venture capitalists and Accenture leadership were also present to examine the creative proposals.
The overall winner of the all-expenses-paid trip to Silicon Valley, with Accenture assisting them in investor meetings: “ZEOPI” for their clean water technology which provides clean water to those in need.
The winner of the Artificial Intelligence category with a fast track access to Accenture’s Global Connected Hackathon in mid-November 2017: “Smart Medical” for their voice analysis technology that can identify emotions in real time regardless of language.
The winner of the Fintech category with an automatic placement at the Fintech Hive Investor Day in mid-November 2017: “Smart Crowd” for their digital real estate platform that allows users to invest and access the real estate market from a simple online portal
The winner of the Social Impact category with a fast-track to the live presentation stage of Expo Live’s Innovation Impact Grant Programme in March 2018 “ZEOPI” for their clean water technology which provides clean water to those in need.
Xavi Anglada, Managing Director and Accenture Digital Lead in the Middle East and Turkey said: “Innovation has become a critical engine of our economy which is why Accenture strives to enable and encourage the development of cutting-edge talent that will be prepared to meet the growing needs of the region. As the first Accenture Innovation Awards come to an end, we are proud to be able to recognize the startups and celebrate their success with them. These awards have further confirmed what we already knew to be true; that there is an incredible amount of talent in the region.”
“We are thoroughly impressed by the depth and quality of the ideas presented during this competition and are confident that the Accenture Innovation Awards will help catapult our innovators to success by giving them access to invaluable tools and opportunities. Through this unique startup ecosystem, startups will be able to bring their innovation to a wider audience and showcase the region’s ingenuity,” said Raja Al Mazrouei, Acting Executive Vice President of FinTech Hive at DIFC.
Francisco Salcedo, SVP of Etisalat Digital said: “We are proud to have partnered with Accenture for this forward-thinking initiative that looks to support up-and-coming start-ups. At Etisalat, we are always looking for ways to spark innovation and inspire local talent in line with the vision of our nation’s leadership. Long gone are the days where innovation was led by large, powerful companies. Today, we are witnessing that most of the game-changing technology is coming from small, enterprising start-ups. By making the nurturing of innovative talent a top priority, we can unlock a world of opportunity.”