Boustead unit launches startup programme

Singapore

MAINBOARD-listed engineering company Boustead Singapore's geospatial subsidiary Esri Singapore has launched a startup programme to help startups develop sustainable Smart Nation solutions. It does this by equipping them with sophisticated location analystics capabilities.

The company's startup programme provides promising businesses - that have been established for less than three years and generate less than S$1 million in revenue annually - with a bundle of technology support and services worth S$250,000 for three years, it said on Tuesday.

Esri Singapore will select a maximum of 10 businesses to participate in this programme for the next 12 months, said Clarice Africa (media liaison) for Esri Singapore.

Designed to empower emerging businesses with foundational technology, the programme provides the selected startups with three years' complimentary access to Esri Singapore's ArcGIS platform, allowing business owners to "leverage new dimensions of data and visualisation capabilities" to create innovative solutions.

The programme also supplements eligible start-ups with three years of free software development tools, training and technical support, global partnership opportunities, and co-marketing to help them build mapping and location analytics capabilities into their products and businesses.

Since the programme was first introduced in the United States of America in 2012, hundreds of startups from around the globe have enrolled in the initiative. Examples of featured companies include Mapillary, Snaptrends, Quorum, and Vricon.

"Through this programme, we look forward to playing a part in the development of sustainable smart nation solutions that address real-world challenges in our communities," said Thomas Pramotedham, CEO of Esri Singapore.

In Singapore, the first local startup to benefit from the Esri Startup Programme is Neuron Mobility, a transport technology startup.

Similar in concept to oBike, a local bike-sharing firm, Neuron Mobility provides multi-modal mobility sharing solutions, allowing for users to book both bicycles and e-scooters through the same mobile app.

Neuron Mobility will launch its shared-use mobility system on Wednesday.

Since May 2016, Neuron Mobility has leveraged the ArcGIS platform while working towards its launch, analysing commuter behaviour in order to understand the best distributional means for bicycles and e-scooters to optimise consumer usage.

"The Esri Startup Programme has provided us with a full-suite software platform and professional support, which a startup would typically not be able to afford. By participating in this programme, we have now been equipped with powerful tools that enable us to make informed decisions for the initial years of our business," said Zachary Wang, founder of Neuron Mobility.

Following the roll-out, location analytics will continue to guide Neuron Mobility's decision-making for its multi-modal sharing system, as it looks to improve last-mile connectivity for local residents.