National startup brand Startup Island TAIWAN launched NEXT BIG to shine the globe, director Jan: Our first stop is Japan

The national startup brand Startup Island TAIWAN, powered by the National Development Council (NDC), has launched the NEXT BIG project, pushing further to promote Taiwan startups through cooperation. The project is committed to increasing the visibility of startups in international markets, taking the startups to Japan on the first attempt.

A roster of nine startups including Gogoro and Kdan Mobile have been nominated as NEXT BIG representatives which symbolizes potentials and strengthening of Taiwan’s innovation, also a list recognized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Science and Technology and a panel of experts.

As NEXT BIG representatives, the startups will cooperate with the national startup brand Startup Island TAIWAN, building international images through diplomatic ties and business forums. The startups joining the programs are prominent in the fields including AI technology, SaaS, Clean energy, e-commerce, blockchains and other pivotal industries, each of which has excellent performance in funding, sales and awards.

Kdan Mobile Software announced that it raised USD$16M Series B funding successfully this July. / Photograph : Kdan Mobile

They will arrange the startups to visit targeted markets in groups, aiming Japan as their first stop, said FG Jan, director of Department of Industrial Development. Besides making acquaintances, the groups led by Ministers present as the quality assurance of the startups, realizing the partnership in the Japan market.

NDC plans to host Demo day in the second half of 2021 and publish the Startup Island TAIWAN magazine, reporting depth interviews of the NEXT BIG.

Startup Island TAIWAN is the national startup brand co-created by the NDC and the startup communities. Its primary goal is to promote Taiwan’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and to assist startups in expanding to international markets. Going forward, the brand will continue to bring the startup communities together to enhance Taiwan’s visibility to the world as the “Startup Island”.

The nine NEXT BIG are:

CoolBitX: founded in 2014, CoolBitX is committed to blockchain security technology’s innovation and development. They produced the world’s first cold wallet “CoolWallet” and provided tailor-made software services for simplifying the compliance process.

Gogoro: founded in 2011, Gogoro has become an innovation leader in vehicle design and electric propulsion, smart battery design, battery swapping, and advanced cloud services that utilize artificial intelligence to intelligently manage battery availability and safety.

Greenvines: established in 2011, Greenvines is a skincare brand, also the only B corp in Asia that has won the "Best for the World" environmental award for five consecutive years due to its sustainable attempts.

iKala: established in 2011, iKala provides AI-driven solutions for companies to achieve business transformation, acceleration, and creation of new business models. They currently provide services to more than 400 companies and 15,000 advertisers and brand owners across 8 countries in Asia.

KDAN MOBILE: established in 2009, KDAN MOBILE provides enterprise cloud solutions and now has their product achieving more than 200 million downloads. They have accumulated more than 10 million registered members worldwide, 65% of who are based in Europe and America.

KKday: established in 2014, KKday has become Asia’s largest in-depth travel e-commerce platform covering more than 30,000 itineraries in 92 countries, and 550 cities around the world.

Pinkoi: established in 2011, Pinkoi is the leading design e-commerce platform in Asia, providing digital transformation online, and brand experience offline, they continue to make an impact on the current and future generations of designers.

17LIVE: established in 2015, 17LIVE is the largest live streaming platform in Asia, combining AI and machine learning technology applications to provide more authentic, zero time difference streaming services. Starting from Taiwan, it has expanded to Ja
pan, the United States and other regional markets.

91APP: established in 2013, 91APP is the first to provide Online Merge Offline (OMO) new retail software cloud service in Taiwan, aslo the first SaaS company listed in Taiwan. Providing three self-developed retail software to brand, 91APP now has a market value exceeding NT$40 billion.

〔Original :Meet Global〕
https://meet.bnext.com.tw/articles/view/48026