IRISH TECH CHALLENGE FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

Spearheaded by the Embassy of Ireland in South Africa, the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct and Technology Innovation Agency, the Irish Tech Challenge programme aims to fuse Irish technology expertise with the innovation of South African tech entrepreneurs.

The Irish Tech Challenge is rooted in promoting innovation, fostering technology development, and ensuring effective technology deployment within South Africa and has a special emphasis on encouraging applications from women, young entrepreneurs, and startups aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs), including climate-focused start-ups.

The winning entrepreneurs will receive not just financial aid, but also premier access to Ireland’s vast technological expertise and influential networks to bolster their growth.

Winners receive:

• Up to €10,000 each in funding.
• A funded trip to Ireland to be part of a curated business networking programme with access to the country’s top business ​​leaders.
• ​​​​Access to the Irish tech ecosystem ​​with potential opportunities for further funding. ​
• Receive acceleration support to position your global scaling strategy in collaboration with Dogpatch Labs in Ireland.

After 350 entries were received seven finalists for the 2024 Irish Tech Challenge have been announced and include:

• Michelle Geere – AdBot is an automated digital advertising platform that provides optimised online advertising solutions for small business owners by handling all their digital marketing needs through its AdBot. It is a solution that gives small business owner a no-hassle advertising option that will optimise even small advertising budgets without requiring any know-how or professional input.

• Jabulani Nyembe –  Athena is a Health related Tech platform that provides for individuals to access Healthcare services with the ability to pay for healthcare in monthly instalments. It facilitates access to Healthcare professionals who are listed and then processes payments from clients to the Providers.

• Kgololo Lekoma – Credipple is a talent marketplace for trusted creative and digital professionals that aims to reduce the friction in the process of hiring remote work professionals by matching clients to trusted professionals and streamlining the admin processes.

• Ahren Posthumus –  Momint uses a proof-of-stake and layer 2 Blockchains that offsets 10x more carbon than it generates. Certificates on Momint are over 300x eco-friendlier than typical Visa transactions and millions of times more energy-efficient than transactions on Ethereum or Bitcoin blockchains. The platform uses blockchain technology to direct investments towards renewable-energy projects. It achieves this by fractionalising renewable-energy project investments.

• Prudence Simelane – Samanjalo is a fly ash beneficiation business that uses geo-polymer technology to turn coal waste (fly ash) into green products such as green cement, bricks, pavers and barricades, for use in construction and infrastructure environments.

• Charnté Marthinus – Smartview Technology developed software that leverages IoT sensor data to develop innovative solutions that promote digital transformation and enhance day-to-day business efficiency, ultimately driving sustainability through effective utility management, aimed at allowing businesses to effectively manage costs, improve efficiency and reduce their environmental impact.
• Priaash Ramadeen – The Awareness Company uses data to help organisations achieve operational efficiency and sustainability through its software product, Hydra that integrates with operational sensors and third-party systems, enabling automated data storytelling and insights in a agnostic system that integrates seamlessly across all systems.

30th of August 2024 will be the showcase day for the competition followed by the visit to Ireland by the winners towards the end of September.