BERLIN, GERMANY – The Philippine Trade & Investment Center- Berlin, in collaboration with Unifier Ventures and the Philippine Embassy in Berlin, organized the virtual 3rd Philippine StartUp MeetUp on 24 September 2020 as part of AsiaBerlin Summit’s Embassy Day program. The meetup, using a hybrid online-onsite format, featured the opening and panel discussion live streamed from the Philippine Embassy, with the keynote and the pitching session done partly online.
Germany, which was also identified as an area of cooperation at the recently concluded inaugural Philippines-Germany Joint Economic Commission meeting.
Dr Rainer Seider, founder of the AsiaBerlin Summit and who heads the Foreign Trade, European Economic Policy and Development Cooperation at Berlin Senate echoed Ambassador De Vega´s
commended the continuity of the relationship between Manila and Berlin startup ecosystems following two previous Startup AsiaBerlin delegation visits to Manila.
DTI Undersecretary Rafaelita Aldaba elaborated on developments in the Philippines’ start-up and innovation scene, highlighting Manila’s inclusion in the top 100 start-up ecosystems in the world
according to the 2020 Global Startup Ecosystem Report and the Philippines’ cracking the top 50 in the Global Innovation Index for the first time this year. Further, Usec. Aldaba invited the participants to
the 2nd PH Startup Week, which will be virtually held in November 2020.
As a new part of the event this year, a panel was organized to highlight Filipino talents in Berlin-based scale-ups and unicorns and featured Ms Liz Bautista, formerly of Zalando, an online fashion retailer; Mr Matthew Gaw of Adjust, which provides mobile measurement and fraud prevention services to businesses; and Mr Joefree Semilla from GetYourGuide, which allows users to browse and book travel experiences. The panelists shared their experiences and insights coming from different perspectives, i.e. creatives, human resources, and marketing backgrounds.
The panel sought to highlight that while PH may be better known at present as a global provider of healthcare workers and customer support, it is also rich in tech talent that can be tapped by start-ups who want to set up in the country or those who wish to employ them abroad. The panel also wanted to give inspiration to Filipino tech professionals an overview of the tech landscape in Berlin, should they intend to enter the Berlin start-up scene.
Another feature of this year ́s event was the keynote by Mr Joseph de Leon, Founding Member of the Manila Angel Investors Network and Director of Gravitas Prime entitled “More than Fun in the Philippines: Your Gateway for Growth”, where he laid out other competitive advantages offered by the Philippines for foreign startups, including its huge demographic potential. Mr de Leon further reiterated that among ASEAN countries, PH is one of those with the most room for growth in terms of the digital industry, enjoying demographic dividend with relatively young productive population, and significant cost advantages.
Taking off from the success of last year ́s pitch event, this year featured 5 Filipino founders in the pitching event as examples of start-ups that have already tapped into the Philippine advantage:
Aide – an app which allows people to book doctor visits, lab tests and other medical services to be done in the comfort of their home
OneWatt – offers AI-enabled diagnostic services for industrial machinery maintenance
Plentina – an alternative lending system that provides online credit for consumers at partner businesses
uHoo – provides solutions to measure indoor air quality
Sakay – a digital app that allows passengers and providers to navigate trips using multiple modes of formal and informal transport.
The 3rd PH StartUp MeetUp Berlin was co-moderated by PTIC-Berlin Commercial Counselor Althea Antonio; along with Unifier Ventures’ Miguel Encarnacion and Manuel Biermann, who facilitated the panel discussion and pitch event respectively.
♦Date of Release: 14 October 2020