Chinese SME Accelerator and Fund of Funds Platform Shengjing, along with Israeli venture capital firm JVP, have announced the launch of the new “Global Innovation Award,” the first ever international startup competition of its kind.
The top prize is $1 million and a global spotlight. The international competition is being held simultaneously in China, Israel, the US, Europe and Latin America, with the finals set to take place in Beijing in August, 2015.
Startups involved in cyber-security, Big Data & Data Science, Internet and Mobile, Enterprise Software, Storage, FinTech, IoT – Internet of Things, Wearable Computing and Digital Health qualify.
“We congratulate our Israeli partners, including many of the leaders of the Israeli high-tech industry,” said Xueling Cao, Director at Shengjing Technology Co. at Shengjing360. “Israel has quickly become a global hub and model for an innovation driven culture. The goal of the competition is to identify the most promising, innovative startups globally, to open doors and support them, and to help them become groundbreaking, market-leading companies.”
Twenty companies will be selected from the competition to compete for prizes totaling $1.5 million in the Beijing finals.
For Israeli startups, the competition presents an opportunity to compete against innovative companies from around the world, gain significant exposure in the global market, liaise with leading industry partners, and raise capital from leading growth- market-focused investors.
The Israeli segment of the competition is being led by JVP, Deutsche Telecom, EMC, Yissum (the Hebrew University technology Technology transfer Transfer company Company), The IDC Executive Education, and Herzog Fox & Neeman law firm.
“We are proud to lead the Israel segment of the Global Innovation Awards competition,” said JVP Partner, Yoav Tzruya. “Israel is world-renowned for creating innovative, market-leading startups. This is a unique opportunity for companies to achieve a significant breakthrough in both global growth markets, including China, and to liaise with industry leaders. I’m sure this global competition will only generate even more interest in Israeli startups.”