SmartCityX accelerator programme names “early start-up acceptances”

Source: Smart Cities World Published: November 2nd, 2020

Smart city initiative SmartCityX has announced the initial 18 start-ups that will be part of its inaugural global innovation programme.

Led by San Francisco based VC firm Scrum Ventures along with eight other Japanese partner companies, the programme seeks to redefine ‘antiquated’ accelerator models by creating a business incubator community that focuses on “revenue and relationships”.

According to Scrum Ventures, these “early start-up acceptances” reflect the diversity of the SmartCityX community – representing nine countries across the world.

The start-ups offer technologies, which aim to make cities more equitable and inclusive and fall into five sub-categories within the smart city space ranging from mobility, energy, connectivity, smart building and consumer products and services.

Spanning from seed to growth stage, the 18 start-ups have raised a combined total of some $250m dollars and show great promise in becoming the world’s next market leaders in this sector, claims Scrum Ventures.

“These initial members of the SmartCityX start-up community illustrate why I’m so excited to be part of the leadership circle,” said John Rossant, chairman of NewCities Foundation and co-founder and CEO of CoMotion.

“Innovation in the city space is not only white-hot, it is also happening on a global basis. And this initial group of start-ups will likely grow to over 100 through the duration of the application and evaluation phase. I’m truly looking forward to getting to know these companies and others that will be applying prior to the deadline.”

The start-up highlights include: Click here to read more

Photo by Takashi Watanabe on Unsplash