HKSTP Crowns Overall Champion Skyland Innovation at EPiC 2023 Pitching Competition Beating Over 610 Global Startups
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) today successfully held its 7th Elevator Pitch Competition (EPiC), naming Hong Kong startup, Skyland Innovation, as the overall 2023 champion, beating over 610 startups from 55 economies around the world. The signature event has partnered with the city’s leading corporations: Cathay, HSBC, MTR Lab, plus global accelerator Plug & Play, to become a true iconic mega event that has hit a global scale.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230428005353/en/
Mr Albert Wong, CEO of HKSTP (Centre), alongside EPiC 2023 Top 10 overall finalists. (Photo: Business Wire)
As Hong Kong’s flagship and largest pitching contest, 50 Grand Finale semi-finalists joined the city’s most eagerly anticipated pitch event this year at sky100 at the top of the International Commerce Centre in West Kowloon to re-create a real-life 60-second elevator pitch experience.
The EPiC 2023 judging panel of the region’s top entrepreneurs, investors and innovation ecosystem leaders selected Skyland Innovation from Hong Kong, as this year’s overall champion. The winner of the grand prize of US$ 90,000, helps property owners and contractors to coordinate and communicate seamlessly on construction sites through the use of robotics and AI. The local proptech is also a spinoff from the Hong Kong Center for Construction Robotics (HKCRC) within the HKSAR Government backed AIR@InnoHK research cluster located at Hong Kong Science Park.
Along with all 50 semi-finalists, Skyland Innovation also qualifies to be considered by the HKSTP Venture Fund for additional investment deals. If selected, each company can potentially receive up to a maximum investment of US$5 million.
EPiC 2023 competitors were split across the two themes of FinTech and PropTech with FinCrime Dynamics from the UK named as the overall FinTech category winner, and Skyland Innovation Company Ltd named the overall PropTech winner from Hong Kong. This year, Canvasland, a FinTech startup from Hong Kong was also voted by the public as the “My Favourite Pitcher" winner, taking away US$10,000 and 200,000 Asia Miles. The top 10 overall finalists also won US$10,000 each (Full winners and finalists list below).
Paul Chan, Financial Secretary of Hong Kong SAR, said: “Hong Kong has a strong, thriving startup ecosystem with 4000 startups, up more than 50% from 2018. Hong Kong is also a natural gateway to the GBA, which offers tremendous growth opportunities. Successful products and services will surely have an edge in the GBA, the whole of the nation and around the world. I am truly excited to be here at EPiC 2023 where startups strive to make their 60-second pitch truly count. I congratulate all the EPiC 2023 winners and invite startups from all over the world to join us in Hong Kong where the future is built.”
Sunny Chai, Chairman, HKSTP, said: “EPiC 2023 showcases the most exciting innovations from the world’s star-studded next-generation global tech ventures. Together with the Hong Kong Government's solid commitment, as reinforced by the Hong Kong I&T Development Blueprint, our city provides the ideal platform to expand into the vast Asian market. Hong Kong is also Asia’s world city and a bridge between the mainland and the world, making us a magnet for global innovation talent and enterprises.”
Albert Wong, CEO, HKSTP, said: “This year’s EPiC competition features a record international turnout and shows Hong Kong is truly back with a strong show of unicorns and soonicorns from around the world among this year’s finalists. But EPiC is more than just a competition, it is a prime example of Hong Kong’s unique ability to help startups grow fast and go beyond by providing a network of global investment opportunities and innovation talent to turn cutting-edge science, technologies, and ideas into game-changing solutions."
A magnet for global investors and innovation talent
EPiC 2023 surpassed all expectations, attracting over 610 entries from 55 countries and cities across five continents. Over 75% of contestants come from overseas, a record high proportion of overseas contestants and economies participation since 2016. Startups joining EPiC 2023 can fully leverage the largest I&T ecosystem in Hong Kong and HKSTP’s direct connections to over 1,000 investors and more than 300 corporate partners.
In addition to the EPiC final pitching contest, the 50 semi-finalists have also taken part in the "Grow Beyond Hong Kong" Immersion Programme. This exclusive 2-day programme ran from 25-26 April, immersed the EPiC 2023 semi-finalists directly into HKSTP’s innovation ecosystem. Participants will unlock growth opportunities through educational talks, business matching and networking with leading corporate partners and investors in our ecosystem.
Winners List:
|
Overall Champion |
Skyland Innovation Company Ltd. |
||
|
“My Favourite Pitcher” Winner |
Canvasland Limited |
||
|
FinTech Winner |
FinCrime Dynamics |
||
|
PropTech Winner |
Skyland Innovation Company Ltd. |
||
|
Top 10 Overall Finalists |
FinTech Finalists:
FinCrime Dynamics Homebase Ultipa VoiceAI Technologies
PropTech Finalists:
I2Cool Limited
Mimicrete VoltSafe, Inc. Skyland Innovation Company Ltd. |
Contestants Breakdown:
|
Category |
|
|
No. of applicants |
|
PropTech |
|
|
266 (43%) |
|
FinTech |
|
|
352 (57%) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
No. of applicants |
|
Overseas |
|
|
465 (75%) |
|
Hong Kong |
|
|
153 (25%) |
A record high proportion of overseas contestants and economies participation since 2016.
For more information on EPiC 2023, please visit: https://epic.hkstp.org/
About Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) has for over 20 years committed to building up Hong Kong as an international innovation and technology hub to propel success for local and global pioneers today and tomorrow. HKSTP has established a thriving I&T ecosystem that is home to two unicorns and Hong Kong’s leading R&D hub with over 13,000 research professionals and over 1,300 technology companies focused on healthtech, AI and robotics, fintech and smart city technologies.
Established in 2001, we attract and nurture talent, accelerate and commercialise innovation and technology for entrepreneurs on their journey of growth in Hong Kong, to the Greater Bay Area, Asia and beyond. Our growing innovation ecosystem is built around our key locations of Hong Kong Science Park in Shatin, InnoCentre in Kowloon Tong and three modern INNOPARKs in Tai Po, Tseung Kwan O and Yuen Long. The three INNOPARKs are realising a vision of new industrialisation for Hong Kong. The goal is sectors like advanced manufacturing, electronics and biotechnology are being reimagined for a new generation of industry.
Through our infrastructure, services, expertise and network of partnerships, HKSTP will help establish innovation and technology as a pillar of growth for Hong Kong, while reinforcing Hong Kong’s international I&T hub status as a launchpad for global growth at the heart of the GBA innovation powerhouse.
More information about HKSTP is available at www.hkstp.org.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230428005353/en/
Contact information
Media Contact:
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation
Betsy Leung
Tel: +852 2629 2300
Email: betsy.leung@hkstp.org
Edelman Public Relations
Lisa Tse
Tel: +852 3756 8632 / 6347 2009
Email: Lisa.Tse@edelman.com / Edelmanhkstppr@edelman.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
LTIMindtree Secures $450 Million Multi-Year Deal with Global Agribusiness Leader12.5.2025 11:30:00 EEST | Press release
LTIMindtree[NSE: LTIM, BSE: 540005], a global technology consulting and digital solutions company, today announced a strategic agreement with a leader in the global agribusiness sector. This is the largest deal in the history of LTIMindtree, valued at $450 million across seven years. As a part of this deal, LTIMindtree will implement an AI-powered operating model to deliver application management, infrastructure support, and cybersecurity services. This comprehensive suite of future-ready IT services, built on platforms such as SAP S/4HANA, ServiceNow, Microsoft Azure, as well as proprietary AI frameworks, are aimed at enhancing the client’s operational efficiency, scalability, and global growth. "Securing this large deal marks a pivotal milestone as we transform to an AI-driven business model, helping our clients enhance productivity," said Venu Lambu, Chief Executive Officer (Designate) and Whole-Time Director, LTIMindtree. "We are proud to be the trusted partner for one of the world
KCx Integrates Proprietary Data into FlexTrade’s AI Assistant, FlxAI12.5.2025 11:04:00 EEST | Press release
FlexTrade Systems, a global leader in multi-asset execution and order management systems, and Kepler Cheuvreux, a leading independent European financial services company through its KCx execution services, today announced the availability of KCx’s sophisticated analytical suite directly from FlexTrade’s AI assistant, FlxAI, to deliver intelligent, high-value insights into client workflows. With rapid advancements in AI, large language models are reshaping how financial firms interact with data. Trading desks are increasingly embracing conversational AI to streamline decision-making and extract actionable insights faster than ever before. In response to market drivers, the new workflow has been developed as part of a collaborative initiative between KCx’s and FlexTrade’s teams. Through the new collaboration, users of FlxAI, which is seamlessly embedded in FlexTrade's FlexONE OEMS and FlexTRADER EMS solutions, can actively query KCx liquidity drivers through natural language commands, su
Shin-Etsu Chemical Develops New Silicone Products for Personal Care Use That Will Improve Texture and Functionality in Cosmetics12.5.2025 09:30:00 EEST | Press release
Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Tokyo; President: Yasuhiko Saitoh; hereinafter, “Shin-Etsu Chemical”) has developed new silicone products for personal care applications as part of its silicon chemistry-driven solutions (Shin-Etsu Silicones Solution-EngineeringTM). In the personal care industry, research and development activities are being carried out on various themes such as addressing diverse consumer demand and environmental issues and improving production efficiency. In response to these needs, Shin-Etsu Chemical has added new products to its lineup. [New Products] KF-6070W and KF-6080W are silicones in which some of the methyl groups in the molecular structure of dimethyl silicone oil (INCI name: dimethicone) have been replaced with hydrophilic functional groups. Both products combine high affinity with water due to their hydrophilic functional groups, while also imparting the excellent characteristics of silicone—high fluidity and smooth, non-sticky feel—to cosmetics
Cooler Master Launches Hyper 612 APEX: Compact, High-Performance CPU Cooler for Modern Builds12.5.2025 09:05:00 EEST | Press release
Cooler Master, a global leader in PC components and tech lifestyle solutions, today unveiled the Hyper 612 APEX, an all-new CPU air cooler engineered for users who demand cutting-edge thermal performance in a streamlined footprint. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250511858017/en/ Cooler Master Hyper 612 APEX air cooler Featuring in-house developed superconductive composite heat pipes and the high-powered Mobius 120P fan, the Hyper 612 APEX delivers exceptional cooling efficiency while being 30% smaller than its predecessor, ensuring enhanced compatibility with large memory modules and tighter system builds. Ideal for gamers, content creators, and overclockers, the Hyper 612 APEX is meticulously designed to balance elite performance, user-friendly installation, and sleek aesthetics. “The Hyper 612 APEX is designed to meet the needs of users who want efficient cooling without the bulk,” said Jimmy Sha, Cooler Ma
Zeon and Sino Applied Technology Join Hands to Expand Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Conductive Paste Product Line and Promote the Application of Next-Generation Lithium Batteries in Electric Vehicles12.5.2025 09:00:00 EEST | Press release
Zeon Corporation (Zeon) and Sino Applied Technology (SiAT) are thrilled to announce the signing of a strategic partnership in Taoyuan, Taiwan. As part of this collaboration, Zeon will lead a $20 million USD Series C fundraising round in SiAT to support the expansion of its production capacity for single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) conductive paste, a critical nanomaterial for next-generation battery technologies. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250511242604/en/ ZEONANO®, Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube produced by Zeon Super Growth Method The global demand for lithium-ion batteries is surging across consumer applications—such as electric vehicles, drones, and EVTOL aircraft—as well as industrial sectors, including AI server BBUs, renewable energy ESS, and automated robotics. This growth has intensified the need for SWCNTs, which can significantly enhance battery energy density and cycle life. Unlike tradition
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom