Sustainability Open Innovation Challenge 2022

You can sign up at https://sustainability.innovation-challenge.sg/en/challenges/round-2?lang=en using a valid email address. Then click ‘Participate’ to create your participation and submit your deliverables. Feel free to reach out to the Admins through the chat feature if you have any questions or concerns.

Once you have become a participant, announcements will be made via the platform chat on a regular basis to provide the latest updates about the challenge. Participants also have access to a dedicated chat with the Admins. Feel free to ask any questions there.

The Agorize platform’s customer support can answer any questions pertaining to the challenge.

You will receive an email confirmation upon successful registration for the Sustainability Open Innovation Challenge. If you do not receive anything after registering, please reach out to ridhika.chopra@agorize.com.

To update your details, log in at https://sustainability.innovation-challenge.sg/en/challenges/round-2?lang=en and go to your participant profile to edit or change your details. Please note that you will not be able to change your email address. If you need to change your email address, you need to delete your account and create a new one with the desired email address.

In this challenge, only one person acts as a representative for his/her respective company. If your company is entering the challenge with an IHL partner, please reach out ridhika.chopra@agorize.com 

This challenge is open to all Startups, SMEs, Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) and Research Institutes (RIs) across the world. IHLs and RIs may participate either through registering a spin-off or submitting a joint proposal with a startup/SME (with the startup/SME as the lead applicant). For more details, you may refer to Clause 3 to 6 of the Rules of the challenge. 

Please take a look at the challenge statements tab to learn more about each challenge statement’s specific requirements and expectations.

You are free to submit as many solutions as there are problem statements. Check the complete list HERE.

For all challenge statements under the Sustainability Open Innovation Challenge 2022, the Organiser may support local SMEs* with the Enterprise Development Grant (“EDG”) (for eligible enterprises). Awarded participants are required to submit a proposal for the grant through the Business Grant Portal (“BGP”). More information on documents required for submission can be found in the application form in BGP. The submissions will  be reviewed by the Organiser to determine the eligibility for funding under the EDG.

*The definition of local SMEs, for the purposes of the EDG, shall

• Be a company that has a group annual sales turnover of not more than S$100 million; OR 
• Have group employment size of not more than 200 employees; AND
• At least 30% local shareholding (i.e. 30% local equity held directly or indirectly by Singapore Citizen(s) and/or Singapore Permanent Resident(s), determined by the ultimate individual ownership)  

Awarded innovators may receive a POC development grant from Enterprise Singapore for selected challenge statements as indicated under the respective challenge briefs. Eligibility for the grant, actual quantum, early stage POC milestones tied to the grant and payment tranche(s) will be assessed by Enterprise Singapore, in consultation with the challenge owner and the awarded innovator.

Eligibility criteria and conditions apply.*

*The POC Development grants will be awarded to startups/SMEs incorporated in Singapore for projects with overseas pilot deployment potential. Foreign startups/SMEs may be considered if developmental activities are based in Singapore and only if a Singapore office is incorporated. For applications by a consortium or group of companies, the grant will be awarded to the lead applicant.

More details are to be shared at a later date.

More details are to be shared at a later date.

For the Application Phase, your startup/SME must fill in an application form and submit a 5-10 slide PDF that addresses the following:

• Details of Applicant 
• Executive Summary: In less than 500 words, provide a summary of the solution, technology and deliverables. This should include the tangible and intangible outcomes of the project.
• Detailed project proposal, including: 
• Technical feasibility of solution and unique facets. 
• Effectiveness in addressing the challenge. 
• Potential benefits (e.g. how is this solution unique? How is the solution different from what is currently on the market? Also consider potential cost and manpower savings).
• Operational feasibility: How will the solution be utilized by end users/stakeholders?
• Business feasibility of solution.
• Capacity and expertise to execute.
• Details on POC/MVP if applicable; Desired deliverables/milestones and outcomes of projects.
• Ability to Execute: Provide details of your organisation’s expertise and experience along with a commercialisation plan if applicable.

Refer to the timeline and guidelines tab for more information HERE.

A template is available to download on the participation space. You are highly encouraged to use it as it includes the breakdown of information required for our assessment. 

If you don’t use the template, make sure that your PDF is 10-slides max and is written in English. Furthermore, please ensure that you’ve previewed your project, to ensure it is displayed correctly, prior to submitting it.

The deadline of the application is Monday, February 28, 2023 23:59 SG time (GMT +8).

All submissions will be assessed based on the following criteria:

> Technical Feasibility of solution and novelty (40%)

> Business feasibility of solution (30%)

> Capacity and Expertise to execute projects (20%)

> Clarity and Comprehensiveness of proposal and test plans (10%)

The shortlisted Innovators will be connected with the challenge statement owners for further clarification and discussion.  

The announcement for the shortlisted innovators will be made via the platform chat on March 29 2023, end of day.

The selection phase consists of 2 broad steps: Shortlisting and Evaluation. Shortlisting will commence from March 1, 2023 to March 28, 2023, with results announced by March 29, 2023. 

From there, Evaluation will commence from March 30, 2023 to April 20, 2023 where 1-on-1 clarification meetings will be organised by the respective challenge statement owners with shortlisted innovators. 

Results announcement to the awarded innovators will be done on May 11, 2023. 

The announcement for the winning innovators will be made via the platform chat on May 11, 2023 end of day.

The Final Ceremony will be held in Early June, 2023. More details will be shared at a later date.