In a four-day series of activities in Ho Chi Minh City, the creative platform and global incubator - Plug and Play Tech Center, referred to as Plug and Play, had an intimate meeting with businesses this morning ( July 3, 2023) revolving around the topic "How do Vietnamese startups become global technology unicorns".
At the meeting, speakers and businesses discussed and exchanged enthusiastically about innovative solutions to accelerate and expand the scale of businesses and access investment funds. In addition, speakers from Plug and Play also mentioned finding and discovering seed startups to promote them to become global technology unicorns.
With the main role of connecting startups with early-stage investors and the world's leading corporations, Plug and Play, with headquarters located in Silicon Valley in California, USA, currently has more than 40 offices in more than 20 countries, with the main activity of implementing business innovation programs for existing businesses and acceleration programs for startups.
In fact, Plug and Play is an ecosystem, and since its founding in 2006 has helped connect more than 35,000 startups with more than 500 corporations, hedge funds, universities, and government agencies, and helped mobilize more than 9 billion USD in capital for businesses.
In its series of activities in Ho Chi Minh City, Plug and Play sent high-level representatives to participate in three thematic working sessions, jointly organized by ISC-Innovation Services Center and Saigon Times Foundation, with the support of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, Department of Ho Chi Minh City Science and Technology, and some businesses such as VNFOCUS Communications Corporation and The Sentry.
Previously, on July 1, 2023 Plug and Play had a meeting and discussion with university leaders at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) with the topic "Start-up and inspire entrepreneurship spirit ” to help young talents come into contact with technology and nurture the spirit of innovation; Support for students to start a business and access internship programs abroad...
Attendees at the meeting included representatives of Ho Chi Minh City University of Science and Technology, representatives of the Department of Science and Technology of Ho Chi Minh City, representatives of incubators at universities... Talking with Plug and Play, Professor Dr. Nguyen Dong Phong, Chairman of the UEH School Council, said that by 2030 UEH will become a multi-disciplinary university with a reputation for academic excellence and sustainable development in the Asian region. He also expects that within the next six months, UEH will have specific cooperation programs with Plug and Play to find seed startups.
In addition, on July 4, 2023, Plug and Play also had a meeting with Ho Chi Minh City leaders. At this meeting, Plug and Play wishes to present solutions to promote startups and innovation in the city. The goal of this exchange is to build a sustainable startup ecosystem, supporting seed businesses to help them develop sustainably, not only in Vietnam but also in Asia and the whole world. demand, contributing to national brand positioning.
As a technology and innovation platform and incubator, Plug and Play also serves as a bridge between Silicon Valley and the business community in more than 30 localities globally.
And Plug and Play itself has also invested in several early-stage tech unicorns and helped these businesses in their acceleration phase, such as Google, PayPal, Dropbox, LendingClub, N26, Soundhound, Honey, Kustomer , and Guardant Health, in addition to investing capital in more than 1,600 other startups.
In Plug and Play's startup investment portfolio, up to 30 startups have become technology unicorns thanks to participating in Plug and Play's accelerator program, such as LendingClub, PayPal, or Dropbox. And, in 2021 alone, up to 12 startups in Plug and Play's portfolio became technology unicorns..
By the end of 2021, Plug and Play has supported acceleration activities for more than 2,500 startups, including 616 in the United States, more than 1,400 in Asia, and the remainder in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Fly.
Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hai, Research Team Leader of the STEM THRIVE education project, at the University of Missouri, USA, when joining the Vietnamese delegation to the US (from March 18 to March 27, 2023) due to Organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Information Technology Association with the content "Innovative startups and cooperation in education development", he recounted his impression when visiting Plug and Play in Silicon Valley.
“When we visited Plug and Play, the world's largest business incubator in Silicon Valley, where more than 30 unicorns have been born and raised. The story we heard is not about real estate investment, but about investing in technology-based innovation ideas," Mr. Hai said.
Before coming to Ho Chi Minh City, Plug and Play also organized a conference on startups and innovation in Singapore on June 21, 2023. The conference was attended by Government officials and business leaders of Singapore.
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A series of activities between Plug and Play and partners in Ho Chi Minh City, jointly organized by ISC-Innovation Services Center and Saigon Times Foundation, was initiated as part of the Start-up and Inspire Entrepreneurship Program to support Support student startups.
Previously, in early June, Innovation Services Center and Saigon Times Foundation also coordinated with relevant partners such as HCA, STEAMZone, VNFOCUS to organize Vietnam NASA Week (VIETNAM SPACE WEEK) in Hau Giang, Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Dinh. This Space Week features direct participation from former NASA astronauts.
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Resource: The Saigon Times
