UAH 100 thousand for an idea: who won the first IT start-up competition in the east
A competition for IT startups was held in Mariupol: 7 teams presented their projects to the jury. The winners received UAH 100,000 for the project. This was reported by one of the organizers of the event USAID Project “Economic Support to the East of Ukraine”.
What startups presented
Winner of competition
Vahta – a mobile application that, using a QR code, counts the number of visitors to the event, and can also count the number of people in the enterprise at a particular moment. The head of the development team, Matvey Vasilenko, said that the startup already has two clients. From September 1, an advertising campaign begins in Mariupol, and from December 1, IT specialists enter the all-Ukrainian market.
Other contributors:
- Vynko – a service for the delivery of eco-products. Designed for mothers with children who do not have time to go shopping.
- InCity – a chatbot that quickly searches for information about businesses and services in Mariupol. In two weeks, developers attracted 2 thousand interested private users and 85 enterprises.
- SSG (Social Smart Guide) – a service for those who find themselves in a difficult situation: domestic violence, loss of property and the like. Both public and private consultants help solve the problem.
- MBC Bundles – a service for e-commerce on the Shopify platform that collects product leftovers and allows you to quickly monitor them.
- Sell Serial Keys – e-commerce service on the Shopify platform for booking, selling and accounting for digital goods – movies, games, tickets.
- ProBattle – a platform for online battles for bloggers, musicians, public figures. Soon the first rap battle will be organized here. They are going to monetize a startup through advertising sales.
Why in Mariupol
In October last year, the 1991 Mariupol IT hub was opened in the city. Dmitro Istomin, Director of the Department of Information Technologies of the City Council, commented on the event: “Startups provide additional opportunities for the implementation of innovative solutions. They can become the basis for the rapid development of Mariupol, as well as motivate young people to stay working in their hometowns. We are ready to support innovative solutions and cooperate to develop information projects for city residents”.
USAID supported the idea of helping young and talented IT specialists. Project Director Michael Pillsbury noted that IT is the future, not to mention the fact that this sector showed the best adaptability even under quarantine conditions.
“Today is an important event for the IT-sphere of Mariupol, – said Michael Pillsbury about the competition. – This is the first time this happens in the east of Ukraine. Previously, in order to develop their own startup, young people left for Kyiv and other cities. Thanks to the USAID project and our partners, we have changed this situation – now they can do it in their city. I hope that this city on the shores of the Sea of Azov will become a magnetic point for the further development of the IT sector of Mariupol and Ukraine”.
How it was
The teams worked on their projects for four months. They attended 20 classes – 75 hours of information on design thinking, lean canvas (a method of designing a business model), as well as business planning, artificial intelligence and pitching. Young people were told how to turn an idea into a product and then calculate its profitability. A mentor worked with each team.
The teams were given three minutes to pitch. The judges of the competition were representatives of USAID, the Mariupol City Council and IT companies, they followed the pitching online. The winners of the competition received UAH 100 thousand for the implementation of their project.
Source: svoi.city
