Top 5 startups for Sunway iLabs 2021 Super Accelerator chosen

• Create more corporates and startups collaboration to drive innovation
• Key criteria include social impact & sustainability, as a metric of success

Leading Malaysian conglomerate, Sunway Group’s innovation arm, Sunway Innovation Labs (Sunway iLabs), has announced the top five startups from its one-month pre-accelerator phase of the 2021 Sunway iLabs Super Accelerator programme.

Sunway iLabs facilitated over 60 hours of introductions to Sunway’s business divisions, coaching and mentoring sessions for the startups throughout the one-month pre-accelerator phase. Local entrepreneurs and business experts like Naluri CEO and founder Azran Osman-Rani, Dropee CEO and founder Lennise Ng, and LAW Partnership Partner Raphael Tay shared their experiences and advice with the 23 participating startups.

“It was an honour to work with the startup for the pre-accelerator stage. Our goal is to create more strategic collaborations between corporates and startups to drive innovation across Sunway iLabs’ six focus verticals,” said Head of Sunway iLabs Ventures Dr Melissa Foo.

The accelerator programme, kicked off together with Pan-Asian venture capital firm Gobi Partners last month, was completed with 23 startups in a pitch competition to a panel of judges. The top five startups of this third cohort come from various industries, specifically Agrifoodtech, Fintech, Proptech and Travel & Hospitality Tech. They are: 

Loop Foods

An Agrifoodtech startup operating as a multi-brand F&B, developing unique access to real and healthy food. Loop Foods currently has Spargo Eats, a farm-to-fork healthy meal delivery service, as one of its brands operating since March 2021.

Rent Guard

A Proptech startup that automates property management for property managers, individual landlords, and homeowners with a platform connecting tenants.

Singular

A Fintech startup that is an investment management app, which aims democratize active and sophisticated wealth management for the mass affluents.

Trabble

This Singapore-based Travel & Hospitality tech startup is a guest engagement SaaS platform that empowers travel and hospitality businesses in adapting to return to post-Covid tourism.

Wise Crafters

An Agrifoodtech startup that wants to make healthy eating easy through personalised meal plans and kits for customers.

Sunway Group Chief Innovation Officer and Sunway iLabs Director Matt Van Leeuwen (pic) said, “We’re excited to work closely with the selected startups, which show great growth potential as well as alignment with our Sunway business divisions and ESG goals. One of the key criteria we adopted in selecting the top startups included social impact and sustainability, which we continue to measure as a metric of success. We look forward to supporting these founders in their entrepreneurial journey to grow their company through the mentors, market access and funding as part of our iLabs Super Accelerator Programme.”

Gobi Founding Partner and Chairman Thomas G. Tsao (pic) said, “Congratulations to the five companies who have been selected for the 2021 Super Accelerator! These impressive founders are poised to take Malaysia and Southeast Asia by storm with their innovative ideas and unique ways of solving everyday problems. Gobi is looking forward to supporting their growth for the next three months and beyond!”

Over the next three months of the Super Accelerator programme, Sunway iLabs will help these five startup founders connect with Sunway’s global network of partners, industry experts, mentors and investors.

The startups will work closely with the Sunway iLabs team to run an impactful pilot project to validate the product with one of Sunway’s business divisions and tap into Sunway’s regional market access of SMEs, residents, students, and employees, among others. The startup founders will also continue to receive mentorship and guidance from industry and technical experts. At the end of the three-month period, the startups will present their innovations and traction to potential investors through a final Demo Day.