Mar 2
Korea’s 1st pitch tournament attracts a global audience
Last week, hundreds of people from 35 countries joined live to watch Korea’s first tournament-style pitch competition. It was Podium Star’s 16th pitch event since 2019, and the first for Industry 4.0 solutions, including those in the smart city/smart factory/metaverse space. The full video recap of the event can be watched here.
Tournament style with 4 rounds
The decision to turn the competition into a tournament was made in order to support as many startups as possible with pitch training. The tournament consisted of four rounds, with each round based on different judging criteria.
- Initial evaluation: After the application period closed, 16 startups were chosen based on Industry 4.0 relevancy by an internal selection committee. All 16 teams received pitch training.
- Preliminaries: Six weeks before the event, 8 startups were selected by marketing experts based on messaging ability. The teams received additional support including 1:1 pitch consulting, deck design and intro video filming.
- Semi-finals: At Podium Star, the audience voted for the top 4 startups based on 1-minute elevator pitches.
- Finals: 15 investors chose the winning team based on investability.
The winning team
In the end, the judges chose Teknobuilt as the Industry 4.0 winner. Teknobuilt is a cloud-based solution that reduces schedule delays and cuts costs for construction projects. As a Podium Star winner, they will be receiving a $15,000 scholarship to join Draper University’s Hero Training program in Silicon Valley.
The 8 semifinalists
Thanks again to all eight teams who pitched at Podium Star. We hope you continue to build great solutions for customers, and relationships with potential investors.
- Gentle Energy — Know your factory
- Port — Telepresence for remote work
- Shh-wit — Online protection from toxic language
- Teknobuilt — Drive to build better
- Tiny Wave — Improving the safety of structures and facilities
- WeRide — Get paid to ride
- XQuant — Bringing data intelligence to financial companies
- Zephrame — AI-powered smart doors to cool the future
About Podium Star
We scout Korea’s best startups, help them craft their pitch, and put them on a global stage. Since 2019, we’ve helped dozens of startups join major accelerators, raise funds, and exit. Learn more at www.podiumstar.org
