Malaysian start-up Klean gets their big break at Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0

SINGAPORE, 6 June 2018 - Klean has won the first ASEAN edition of Pitch@Palace, catapulting them to a global audience of investors and mentors.

With their plans to turn waste into money, Klean received the most votes from an invited Audience of CEOs, Influencers, Angels, Mentors and Business Partners during Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0 powered by AirAsia.

Klean’s reverse vending ecosystem, rewards people for recycling PET bottles and aluminum cans through an innovative points scheme. They are aiming to secure USD $3 million in funding to allow further research and development and to launch 50 machines across Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Singaporean start-up Alchemy FoodTech, a food med-tech company working to reduce the increasing number of diabetes suffers, secured the second highest number of votes while Thailand’s Globish Academia, an online English learning platform in Thailand that aims to develop soft skills for the next generation of learners, won third place.

Indonesia’s GoFit which virtually connects individuals with personal trainers and coaches won the Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0 People’s Choice Award, selected through public vote held at peopleschoice.pitchatpalace.com.

Winners will get a chance to participate in Pitch@Palace Global held at St James’s Palace in London, UK in December 2018. Held at Marina Bay Sands yesterday, Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0 was held in partnership with IMDA, innovfest unbound and AirAsia, a Strategic Partner for Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0.

The Duke of York, Founder, Pitch@Palace said, “People don’t realise how Entrepreneurial this part of the world is, I am privileged to bring Pitch@Palace to ASEAN and to take Entrepreneurs from this region around the world.”

AirAsia Group CEO and AirAsia X Group CEO Tony Fernandes said, “We know ASEAN can produce unicorns like Grab, Garena and Traveloka, but the region hasn't always received the attention it deserves despite being the world's third-largest market. It was therefore very far-sighted of the Duke of York to provide a platform for start-ups here, and judging from today’s pitches, I have no doubt ASEAN will continue to lead the start-up charge.”

Co-Founder and CEO, Daniel Seal said “When meeting HRH and hosting Pitch@Palace at Unbound London 18 months ago, I recognised the importance of Pitch@Palace and knew how well it would be received at our Singapore event, Innovfest Unbound. Pitch@Palace Asean 1.0 uncovered incredible entrepreneurs who are tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges and I’m excited to see them flourish with the connections made here.”  

Founded by HRH The Duke of York in 2014, Pitch@Palace serves as a platform to amplify and accelerate the work of Entrepreneurs.

This year’s theme “Innovation and Technology” attracted entries from businesses in the categories of Biotech and Medical Technology, Consumer Technology and Internet of Things, Cyber Security, Data Management and Analytics, Educational Technology, Energy, Environmental and Renewables Technologies, Fintech, Fitness Tech, Health and Wellbeing Tech, Industrial Technology, Materials, Substances and By-products, Media, Communications and Entertainment Technology, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality and Smart Cities.

A total of 132 Applications were received from across ASEAN, with submissions ranging from start-up to scale up.

A total of 19 finalists were shortlisted to attend a Boot Camp held at Facebook’s regional office in Singapore, where they received one-on-one mentorship on how to perfect their Pitch.

Mentors comprised technology leaders from multinational companies, startup founders, academia and Pitch@Palace alumni, including AirAsia Group Chief Information Officer Declan Hogan, The Development Bank of Singapore Limited, Regional Fintech, Ecosystems & Innovation Lead David Ding, B Capital Group’s Janelle Teng and Vidi CEO Aaron Ram Sarma, a Pitch@Palace Alumnus.

At the conclusion of the Boot Camp, 10 Entrepreneurs were selected to deliver a three-minute Pitch at Pitch@Palace ASEAN 1.0, while the remaining nine will deliver a 1 minute Pitch.

The Boot Camp also saw key industry leaders such as Aireen, Omar, AirAsia Deputy Group CEO (Digital, Transformation and Corporate Services) and high-tech entrepreneur and investor Yossi Vardi, share tips and insights into building a successful business from the ground up, including how to identify opportunities, secure funding and market their products or services.