Sumitomo pitch event and ‘Successful cross-border collaboration’ session
A day to remember
Last week, we held our second annual ‘Intralink Innovation Evening’ event, with the aim of fostering collaboration between western scalueps, Asian corporates and the venture ecosystem.
Expanding on last year’s theme of “technology for good”, we tackled the ever-important question: how do we commercialise the best ideas out there – from university labs to a global roll-out? Our thesis: it’s hard without appropriate collaborative models in place.
It was a buzzing evening in the heart of London, filled with more than 100 guests, pitches, talks and networking.
Powering up change
First on the agenda was the Sumitomo Corporation pitch event – a part of the UK government-sponsored UK-APAC Tech Growth Programme. Eight startups in the field of sustainable energy – Brill Power, Allye, Highview Power, Reactive Technologies, Elysia, Arenko, Pearlstone Energy and Piclo Energy – had 10 minutes each to present their transformative technologies and answer questions from a panel of discerning judges.
The winner will be announced soon – and will get a chance to collaborate with Sumitomo. All the pitches were extremely compelling, so we don’t envy the judges…
Collaborative models
Next up was a series of talks from Kunihito Kawase of Presidio Ventures, Daisuke Nojima of Yokogawa Innovation Switzerland, and Keith Wiggins of Econic. Each speaker talked about their perspectives on successful collaboration in tech – from the standpoints of an investor, a corporate and a startup, respectively.
When these parties work together, their goals tend to align – to create the best solutions, bring them to market and generate sustainable growth. But, from the anecdotes the speakers brought to the stage, it was clear that mindsets, working styles and expectations often vary, and that excessive friction can derail even perfect-on-paper projects.
That’s why, our speakers agreed, honest communication and tried-and-tested collaborative models are so important.
The subsequent panel discussion and audience Q&A may not have solved the problem once and for all, but we’re positive it inspired the startups, corporates and investors in the audience to work together more mindfully.
Networking
Finally, our guests had the chance to dive deeper into the topics of the day, in a more one-to-one fashion, at the networking session. We’re sure ample beer and wine helped.
It was a great day – and evening – for strengthening the ties between the Asian corporate world and western innovation ecosystem.
You can see the highlights for yourself in the video below.
If you’re interested in finding your own pathway to collaboration, don’t hesitate to contact Michal at michal.waszkiewicz@intralinkgroup.com.