Rise, a Bangkok-based corporate venture builder (not to be confused with the annual conference organized by Ireland-based Web Summit), is ramping up its flagship Global Accelerator Program by introducing new features to entice more startups to join their initiative.
“We have redesigned the whole experience this year in response to the pandemic with a bold ambition to be [the] number one accelerator program in Southeast Asia with three new elements,” said CEO and co-founder of Rise, Supachai “Kid” Parchariyanon, in a statement.
First, the program is accepting participants from three new sectors—food tech, agritech, and biotech or health tech. Previously, the company only accepted startups that focused on fintech and artificial intelligence.
Secondly, Rise has also tailored its program to address the challenges posed by the COVID-19 outbreak sweeping through Southeast Asia. The accelerator launched a hybrid program for activities to be held via online and offline channels, including virtual roadshows in 20 countries across Asia and face-to-face meetups between companies and investors.
Lastly, the program is adding more government agency partners. After linking up with Enterprise Singapore in July last year, the program is now also supported by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation and Thailand’s Digital Economy Promotion Agency. Rise claims to be the only accelerator program in the world that receives support from these government bodies.
Parcharianon believes this partnership will be beneficial for the startups that are involved, as they will be able to expand their business across the region. “Furthermore, interested corporates can also reach out to us to join our program as a corporate partner to provide specific problem statements they want startups to solve,” he said.
Rise’s Global Accelerator Program is open for applications until May 15. The selected participants will work intensively with corporates and mentors for 12 weeks.
Alumni from the previous programs include fintech robo-advisor Finnomena, Thailand-based queuing app QueQ, Singaporean energy efficiency startup BBP, and Malaysian lead management system provider Sales Candy. Each company scored notable deals with corporations in Thailand and other countries after completing Rise’s program, the accelerator said in its statement.
Last month, Rise secured USD 8 million seed funding to expand its presence in Southeast Asia. According to the statement, the company has built a global ecosystem that includes more than 400 corporations, over 2,000 startups, and upward of 20,000 corporate investors.