Deadline: 1-Mar-22
BOOST: Women Innovators is an open call for women-led startups in Turkey to scale innovations that leverage the power of emerging technologies and digital tools to accelerate the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
To help close the gender gap in innovation and entrepreneurship, UNDP and Koç Holding launched BOOST: Women Innovators in Turkey to boost women-led startups with powerful innovations that can change their future and strengthen the startup ecosystem of women innovators. Investing in women’s empowerment and diversity will fuel innovation, improve business performance, and unlock growth and economic opportunities.
What they’re looking for?
The call is open for tech-driven innovations in any industry, such as consumer electronics, e-commerce, education, energy, finance, health, logistics, manufacturing, retail, transportation, or others. Innovations should harness technology, including but not limited to: artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), Internet of things (IoT), Software as a Service (SaaS), cloud computing, blockchain, wearables, augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR), robotics, cybersecurity, fuel cell, battery technologies, nanotechnologies, and material technologies. Start-ups working on innovations addressing challenges related to gender inequality are encouraged to apply.
Eligibility Criteria
- Type of applicant: Startups
- List of eligible countries: Turkey
Selection Criteria
- Company registration: The applicant must be a startup registered in Turkey.
- Innovation stage: Idea, minimum viable product (MVP), pre-or-post revenue stages.
- Women leadership: Women-led or women-founded startups are eligible to apply.
- Language skills: Due to the requirements of the program, the participants should be proficient in English.
- Innovation novelty: Technological novelty and/or use of technology to create repeatable and scalable impact. Business model innovations and social innovations are also eligible as long as technology is used or developed.
- Sustainable development impact potential: Business models that can help accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
- Management: Established team with clear roles and responsibilities. Experts with technical backgrounds to develop prototypes or products must be present in the team. The start-up should demonstrate it has the capacity to implement the innovation within 6-9 months. Viability and scalability: Innovations that can be feasibly implemented and are scalable within or even beyond Turkey.
For more information, visit https://boostimpact.org/challenges/boost-women-innovators-turkey/