Cisco, Deutsche Telekom, Intel team up for 'challenge up' program

NEW DELHI: Intel, Cisco and Deutsche Telekom have selected the 12 start-ups for the next phase of the Challenge Up Program, a four-month incubation program designed for young innovative companies building Internet of Things (IoT) solutions.

The winning teams were selected after five days of intensive mentoring sessions, workshops and pitching during the Challenge Up! Acceleration Week at hubraum Krakow, from July 5 – July 10. Out of more than 300 applicants, 20 start-ups from 13 countries were invited to meet over 100 international mentors, experts and entrepreneurs. The sessions were designed to help early-stage companies scale their business ideas for faster market entry.

Participants spent close to 40 hours in workshops refining their pitching skills, product development, business modeling, user experience (UX) design and sales strategy.

The incubation program will take place in Krakow, Berlin and London from July to November 2015. Start-ups that successfully complete the program will be eligible for potential co-investment from Intel, Cisco and Deutsche Telekom, as well as other leading corporate venture funds.

Challenge Up! is designed to help IoT start-ups enter the market faster by combining access to corporate resources and joint projects with mentoring and high-value networking. The program unites resources and experience from the start-up initiatives of the individual companies, including Cisco, Intel Business Challenge Europe and hub:raum powered by Deutsche Telekom. (see infographic).

“We are impressed by the high quality of teams and ideas of the startups and we are looking forward to work with them intensely and welcome them in September in hub:raum Berlin – when the teams will come together next time," says Elias Drakopoulos, Senior Vice President responsible for Europe B2B at Deutsche Telekom.

“We are excited to be part of this community and to support entrepreneurs in open innovation,” adds Mike Flannagan, Vice President and General Manager of Data and Analytics at Cisco.

“The Challenge Up! Competition has attracted some highly interesting innovations, addressing real market needs, with some of them already getting business traction. The program proves that the European start-up ecosystem is a source of pioneering developments in the IoT segment,” said Marcin Hejka, Vice President of Intel and Intel Capital EMAR Managing Director.