As you're probably well aware of by now, we were recently chosen as one of four finalists for the IBM ANZ Smart Camp in Sydney. We were elated to find out that we had been selected from a group of 100+ potential startups across the Australia, New Zealand region and looking forward to sharing our business solution with the hugely experienced, not to mention successful group of mentors and judges.
The theme for this one day, intensive competition was 'smarter cities'; meaning all of the finalists in some way, shape, or form helped in the formation of a 'smarter' city. The day kicked off with introductions and some comedic relief in the form of James OLoghlin, after which we got straight into presentations and 'the pitch'. Scott was up first, leading the way with his 6 minute pitch (with one second to spare!). I have included images of his presentation below.
Next up was the mentoring session, which consisted of four rounds of 30 minute discussions with a panel of industry leaders, investors and judges. These intensive sessions provided a one-on-one atmosphere, whereby the mentors could host a bit of a Q&A (some referring to it as a 'grilling'), and get to the very core of the solution and what our vision for the future is. This is where we got the chance to talk to some of the most respected names in the business; all whom had great things to say about our progress to date. We have definitely been reassured after speaking with the mentors that we're more than on the right track, who confirmed where we're needing to push over the coming months in order to expand even further and make our service even more valuable to you our loyal customer.
After delivering our last (second) pitch of the day, the four judges were excused to deliberate, and after what was referred to as "the closest decision ever made" at Smart Camp, the verdict was given. We unfortunately did not take out first place; that instead going to Australian contender Temando- we congratulate them on their success, yet of course would have loved to come away with the win. Runner up will have to do for now, although we're keeping our fingers crossed for a wild card entry into the next round in Istanbul!
We had such a great time, Sydney put on an amazing day and the view was second to none from The Sebel looking out across the Harbour (we even spied a pirate ship) . A big thanks to IBM and to all of the mentors for taking the time to lend an ear. Also a huge congratulations to all of the finalists, we have no doubt you'll all continue on to do great things.
