In an era characterised by rapidly advancing technology, the intersection of healthcare and tech is undeniably a crucible for progress. With this ethos in mind, Bio Farma, Indonesia’s state-owned pharmaceutical company, partnered with MIT Hacking Medicine to host a transformative Hackathon from August 24 to 27, 2023, in Bali, Indonesia. This four-day event witnessed the convergence of 200 exceptional participants representing 11 countries, carefully selected from a pool of over 1,000 applicants hailing from G20 nations and ASEAN member states.

Also read: This e-commerce platform is building sustainable growth in rural Indonesia

Bio Farma’s collaboration with MIT Hacking Medicine underscores the imperative of leveraging technological innovation to bridge gaps in healthcare delivery, ensuring accessibility, quality, and efficiency for all. The theme, “Real Problems, Real Solutions: Innovating for Healthcare” set the stage for a series of profound discussions on pivotal healthcare issues, showcasing the magnitude of challenges faced and the potential for groundbreaking solutions through innovation and tech.

A series of panel discussions on key healthcare issues

Apart from the hackathon proper, the project also featured a series of panel discussions on some of the most pressing issues surrounding healthcare today. These topics include the following:

Innovation Gap in Healthcare: End-to-End Healthcare Ecosystem: The inaugural panel discussion delved into the critical issue of innovation gaps in the healthcare ecosystem. Eminent figures including Tedi Bharata, Deputy for Human Resources, Technology and Information Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises; Zen Chu, Senior Lecturer at MIT Entrepreneurship; David Utama, CEO of PT Kimia Farma Tbk; and Christine Hutabarat, CEO of Hotel Indonesia Natour shed light on the challenges and opportunities in propelling innovation across the healthcare landscape.

The Digitalization of Healthcare: The second panel explored the digital transformation sweeping through healthcare. Experts like Agus Rachmanto, Deputy Chief of DTO Kemenkes; Anang Efendy, Country Manager of Google Cloud Indonesia; and Paul Soegianto, Chief Group Digital Strategy of PT Astra International Tbk, highlighted the seismic shifts brought about by technology in revolutionising healthcare delivery, from telemedicine to data-driven diagnostics.

Navigating Disruption in Healthcare: Balancing Policy, Ethics, and Regulation: Navigating the complex landscape of healthcare disruption was the focus of the third panel. Industry stalwarts including Mohan Belani, Co-Founder and CEO of e27, Bayu Wibisono, Director of Production Supervision of Drugs, Narcotics, Psychotropics and BPOM Precursor R1; Ahmad Gamal, Director of Innovation & Science Techno Park at the University of Indonesia; and Doddy Lukito, Co-Founder and CIO of Halodoc, offered insights into striking the delicate balance between policy, ethics, and regulation in an evolving healthcare landscape.

The Future of Medicine: The concluding panel examined the future trajectory of medicine. Visionaries like Sudesh Kumar, Chief Digital Officer of Hello Health; Prof. Benjamin C.K. Tee, Associate Vice President of NUS Enterprise; Jasmin Wong, CEO of Nextkidney SG; and Ardhy Wokas, President and Director of Kimia Farma Diagnostics, envisioned a healthcare landscape propelled by cutting-edge technologies and innovative approaches to treatment and prevention.

Bio Farma’s vision: Fostering innovation and talent

The Hackathon witnessed the participation of luminaries in healthcare and technology, including Budi Gunadi Sadikin, Indonesia’s Minister of Health, who emphasised the need for more entrepreneurs and innovators in the healthcare sector. The event’s international appeal was evident, with a diverse cohort of participants bringing their unique perspectives to the table.

“Indonesia needs more entrepreneurs and innovators. I hope such events become more common given healthcare’s significant growth potential due to priority and government support,” stated Budi Gunadi Sadikin, Indonesia’s Minister of Health.

Also read: 15 startups are raising $100M across Early and Growth stage at DDay

CEO Shadiq Akasya articulated Bio Farma’s mission to nurture the next generation of healthcare innovators. He highlighted the dual purpose of the event — not only as a platform for innovative solutions but also as a networking ground for identifying talents for state-owned enterprises. “Bio Farma facilitates young generations to observe real problems and provide innovative solutions,” said Shadiq Akasya, CEO of Bio Farma. “This event serves not only as a solution-finding effort but also as a platform for identifying talents for state-owned enterprises networking,” added Soleh Udin Al Ayubi, Deputy CEO of Bio Farma

The birth of Mediverse: A revolutionary super-app

A significant milestone emerged from the Hackathon: the launch of Mediverse, a healthcare super-app by Bio Farma. Designed to offer promotive, curative, and preventive healthcare services, Mediverse envisions a modern, healthy lifestyle for users.

In a nutshell, Mediverse is a super app in the health service sector that includes services such as prevention, healing, and health promotion. Mediverse was developed by the BUMN Pharmacy Holding in collaboration with pharmacies and health facilities spread throughout Indonesia.

The winning teams: Championing healthcare innovation

The culmination of the event saw the victory of three teams from the upstream category (1st: Colony.jpeg, 2nd: RPs, and 3rd: Sunset Team) and three from the downstream category (1st: CEXME, 2nd: AQut, and 3rd: 1ClickAI). These teams demonstrated exceptional ingenuity and problem-solving prowess, earning them a total of 10,000 USD Google Cloud Voucher and 6,000 USD cash.

Also read: Unlocking growth in tough times with Aiven and e27

In addition to the winning teams, participants Anggit Wignya Adi Prasati and Anis Rohmasari were acknowledged for their outstanding contributions. They were awarded golden tickets to join the MIT GrandHack 2024 in Boston, further solidifying their position as future leaders in healthcare innovation not only in Indonesia but across the globe.

The Bio Farma x MIT Hacking Medicine 2023 Hackathon stands as a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation, and technology in redefining healthcare for all. By bringing together global minds, fostering talent, and championing innovative solutions, this event has set a new standard for healthcare innovation, paving the way for a future where accessible, high-quality healthcare is a reality for every individual.

To learn more about the Hackathon, visit https://hackathon.biofarma.co.id/

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Bio Farma

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Techsauce Global Summit 2023, a two-day technology conference in Southeast Asia, concluded in Thailand on August 17. Around 16,000 visitors from 50 countries attended the event, with an international participation rate of over 40 per cent.

Over the course of two days, numerous business deals, amounting to 1,000 deals, were sealed.

According to Techsauce Media CEO and Co-founder Oranuch Lerdsuwankij, the summit is the key platform for leading companies in Thailand and abroad to showcase their products and services and create business deals.

Below is the list of Southeast Asia’s leading VCs/investors who attended the event in Bangkok.

Beacon Venture Capital

Beacon VC is a wholly-owned corporate VC arm of Kasikornbank PLC, one of the leading commercial banks in Thailand.

Based in: Thailand
Investment locations: All/any
Verticals: Blockchain, consumer, e-commerce, enterprise solution, finance, marketplace
Stages: Series A, Series B, Series C and above
Investment range: US$500K to US$3M.

SCB10X

SCB10X is a subsidiary of The Siam Commercial Bank that invests in exponential technologies, championing passionate entrepreneurs

Based in: Thailand
Investment location: Thailand
Verticals: Not specified
Stages: Not specified
Investment range: Not Specified

SparkLabs

SparkLabs is a business incubation company providing investment solutions and mentoring for startups who wish to expand to the global market.

Based in: South Korea
Investment locations: Not specified
Verticals: E-commerce, gaming, healthtech, media, mobile
Stages: Angel, seed, pre-Series A/bridge
Investment range: Not specified.

AC Ventures

AC Ventures is an early-stage technology venture fund focusing on investing in Indonesia’s digital disruptors.

Based in: Indonesia
Investment locations: Indonesia
Verticals: All/any
Stages: Angel, seed, pre-Series A/bridge, Series A
Investment range: Not specified.

Gobi Partners

Gobi is a leading investor in early-stage digital media and technology companies.

Based in: Malaysia
Investment locations: China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, the UAE, and Pakistan
Verticals: Advertising, Big Data, consumer, e-commerce, education, entertainment, finance, healthtech, ICT, media, SaaS, and travel.
Stages: Seed, pre-Series A, Series A, Series B, Series C and above
Investment range: Not specified.

Cocoon Capital

Cocoon Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm focusing on early-stage, B2B enterprise tech companies across Southeast Asia.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Cambodia
Verticals: Enterprise solution, ICT, media, real estate, agritech, AI, biotech, healthtech, medtech, SaaS, smart cities, robotics, logistics/supply chain, insurtech
Stages: Pre-seed, seed, pre-Series A
Investment range: US$500K to US$750K.

Asia Partners Fund

Asia Partners is a growth equity firm focusing on investments in technology and technology-enabled companies.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Singapore and Malaysia
Verticals: Agritech, biotech, cleantech, govtech, healthtech, ICT, insurtech, medtech
Stages: Pre-seed and seed
Investment range: US$5M to US$50M

Openspace Ventures

Openspace Ventures makes investments in early-stage technology companies based in Southeast Asia.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia
Verticals: Agritech, consumer, education, finance, hardware, healthtech, SaaS
Stages: Series A and Series B
Investment range: Not specified.

EDBI

EDBI invests in shaping the future industries of Singapore for a better world.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: The UK and the US
Verticals: Agency & consulting, Big Data, biotech, cybersecurity, energy, ICT, IoT, medtech, robotics
Stages: Series A, Series B, Series C and above
Investment range: Not specified.

500 Global

500 Global is a multi-stage VC firm that invests in founders building fast-growing tech companies across 30+ sectors.

Based in: The US
Investment locations: All/any
Verticals: Advertising, agritech, architecture & construction, AI, automotive, Big Data, biotech, blockchain, blockchain games, chemical, cleantech, cybersecurity, consumer, DeFi, design, e-commerce, education, energy, enterprise solution, entertainment, finance, F&B, gaming, healthtech, ICT, IoT, insurtech, logistics/supply chain, manufacturing, marketplace, metaverse, medtech, NFT, productivity & CRM, retail, robotics, sharing economy, smart cities, transportation, travel, SaaS, Web3, media, aerospace
Stages: Pre-seed, seed, pre-Series A/bridge, Series A, Series B, Series C and above
Investment range: US$5M.

Headline Asia

Headline Asia is an early and seed-stage venture capital firm with an eye for winners.

Based in: All/any
Investment locations: Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia
Verticals: AI, Big Data, e-commerce, Web3, robotics
Stages: Seed, pre-Series A, and Series A
Investment range: US$1M to US$5M.

Cocoon Capital

Cocoon Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm focusing on early-stage, B2B enterprise tech companies across Southeast Asia.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Cambodia
Verticals: Enterprise solution, ICT, media, real estate, agritech, AI, biotech, healthtech, medtech, SaaS, smart cities, robotics, logistics/supply chain, insurtech
Stages: Pre-seed, seed, pre-Series A
Investment range: US$500K to US$750K.

Infinity Ventures Crypto

Infinity Ventures Crypto is a token-only venture fund that invests in early-stage crypto companies worldwide.
Based in: Taiwan
Investment locations: All/any
Verticals: Cryptocurrency, blockchain, blockchain games
Stages: Seed
Investment range: US$2M.

Animoca Brands

Animoca Brands develops and publishes great mobile games based on globally loved popular brands like Garfield, Doraemon etc.

Based in: Hong Kong
Investment locations: All/any
Verticals: Entertainment, gaming, mobile, agency & consulting
Stages: Not mentioned
Investment range: Not mentioned.

CyberAgent Capital

CyberAgent Capital actively invests in early-stage startups in Japan, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Based in: Japan
Investment locations: Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States of America, Japan, Singapore
Verticals: Automotive, consumer, e-commerce, education, finance, healthtech, HR, ICT, insurtech, marketplace, platform, social enterprise, SaaS, transportation
Stages: Seed and Series A
Investment range: Not mentioned.

The Radical Fund

The Radical Fund is an early-stage VC firm investing in the climate tech sector.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Southeast Asia
Verticals: Cleantech and climate-tech
Stages: Pre-seed, seed, pre-Series A
Investment range: US$250K to US$800K.

Insignia Ventures

Insignia Ventures Partners is a Singapore-headquartered early-stage technology venture capital firm primarily focusing on Southeast Asia.

Based in: Singapore
Investment locations: Singapore
Verticals: All/any
Stages: Seed, pre-Series A/bridge
Investment range: US$1M to US$2M.

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Vietnamese insurtech firm Saladin has announced the completion of its Series A funding round led by Monk’s Hill Ventures.

Saladin’s pre-seed investors Peak XV Partners, Venturra Capital, and Patamar Capital, besides a group of angels, also joined the round.

The size of the deal remains undisclosed.

Saladin plans to use the capital to accelerate the development of technology and insurance products and expand its marketing, sales partnership networks, and customer support services.

Also Read: DELOS sparks ‘Blue Revolution’ in Indonesian aquaculture with Series A led by Monk’s Hill Ventures

Founded in 2021, Saladin is an online platform that utilises a multi-channel distribution system to provide a single destination for personalised insurance solutions.

Saladin claims it has integrated traditional insurance processes with modern technology and a user-friendly design. This includes using API integration, modular design principles, and the harnessing of big data intelligence to recommend tailored and cost-effective insurance solutions.

“We believe that an effective solution for insurance services should offer end users protection from prevalent risks through fair insurance terms and fees. By employing cutting-edge techniques like predictive modelling, along with innovative product design and robust data analytics, we can create and implement such solutions at scale,” said Vivien Le, Co-Founder and CEO of Saladin.

The company has connected with nine leading insurers in Vietnam to date and claims to have served about 600,000 unique customers with nearly 10 million policies sold.

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Image credit: Saladin

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Math is known to be one of the most feared school subjects for many students. According to ZEZEDU CEO and Founder Jujin Lee, in South Korea, the high rate of math dropouts and the expanding private education market are major social issues.

This is the problem that the startup aims to tackle with its product CherryPot.

“We use AI to recognise and diagnose how students are solving problems. Then, we provide accurate feedback based on students’ responses, making the highest level of personalised learning experience affordable with AI technology,” he explains in an email to e27.

According to Lee, the traditional approach to personalised learning in edutech is to predict performance based on a student’s history of correct answers per question. However, this doesn’t work in secondary school math because it takes a long time to solve a single problem, and each problem itself is complex.

“When you think about the way we receive 1:1 tutoring, it is quite obvious to utilise the solving process. However, until now, there has been no publicly available dataset or model to create a math-specific AI technology to recognise and diagnose the process, so existing services have only been able to use the correct or incorrect answer. We built our own data and models from the ground up to focus on the solution process,” he explains.

Also Read: AI Blocks, revolutionising education with easy and effective AI technology learning

“In our app, a student solves three to five problems per day from the chapter of their choice. That’s a very small number, but it’s enough to provide personalised, process-based learning. Even for students who don’t like to do math, five problems are not overwhelming. A simple scenario for our service would be to give feedback on how they did on these problems and provide them with personalised problems the next day. We also provide a dashboard and assignments feature for school teachers.”

ZEZEDU primarily targets secondary school students, with most of them using the service through public schools, with the budget from the government.

Teaching math to the world

According to ZEZEDU, its CherryPot platform has been used in more than 160 schools in South Korea with various scenarios, from in-class activities to after-school programmes. The company went from having three schools using their service in the first year of its launch to signing an MOU with schools affiliated with Seoul National University to expanding its work with the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education and Ministry of Education.

“Our biggest strength is our AI; since there were no publicly accessible resources for constructing process-oriented AI models, we have been started by creating our proprietary dataset for model development. It hasn’t been long since AI automation of the whole learning process became possible with our technology,” Lee says.

“We integrated our AI into our service as ‘Cherrypot 2.0’, and we started sales to schools. We remain committed to advancing our AI model even further, elevating our AI capabilities.”

Prior to founding ZEZEDU, Lee was the youngest full-time member at Kakao Brain as an AI research Engineer, being awarded a Minister Award and SW Maestro Certificate. He was also awarded a SW Maestro Mentor.

Also Read: Why GoImpact believes that education is the key to promoting ESG investment

“I am … fortunate enough to have with me Minji Cha, an award-winner in multiple autonomous driving competitions as our R&D Director, Jaehyung Baek, who was awarded by the Ministry of Science and ICT in an AI competition as our AI (Natural Language Processing) research engineer, and Sunah Kim, our learning material design and platform operation,” he says.

For 2024, the big plan for ZEZEDU is to make a profit in the global market, including Southeast Asia (SEA), through its participation in the EduSpaze accelerator programme.

“We’re proud to say that we’re the only Korean company to be selected as one of the ASU+GSV Elite 200 companies that select promising edutech companies every year. We are also enthusiastic about our participation in the EduSpaze programme,” he closes.

“Our objective is to identify suitable markets and build effective strategies for the successful introduction of CherryPot in the SEA market. We are looking forward to accelerating our market entry by having a chance to collaborate with EduSpaze.”

The post ZEZEDU revolutionises math education with its AI-powered tools, helping students to excel appeared first on e27.

As we commemorate World Electric Vehicle (EV) Day 2023, themed ‘Driving Change, Together,’ Altair takes pride in highlighting our commitment to sustainability through cutting-edge AI solutions and acknowledging groundbreaking advancements in the field. The recent announcement of the recipients of the 2023 Altair Enlighten Award serves as proof of our unwavering dedication to driving sustainable change.

EVs play a key role in addressing climate change, and Altair is committed to making EVs more sustainable. In today’s world, sustainable practices are more crucial than ever, and we remain at the forefront of innovation by harnessing the power of computational science and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a greener, more efficient future.

The Altair Enlighten Award, now in its 11th year, serves as an inspiration for the industry. It encourages engineers, manufacturers, policymakers, educators, students, and the public to push boundaries by reducing carbon emissions, minimising energy, water, and material use, and championing material reuse and recycling efforts.

The winners of the 2023 Altair Enlighten Award epitomise sustainability. These innovators are revolutionising the industry by prioritising our planet’s well-being. One notable winner, Polestar, has set a new standard for sustainable passenger vehicles with their Polestar 2 model. With advancements in electric motor technology, charging efficiency, and range, the Polestar 2 boasts better performance and lower carbon emissions compared to their earlier models.

In terms of sustainable processes, ArcelorMittal stands out for its pioneering use of biomass in carbon-neutral steel production by embracing solutions that both decrease emissions and establish regional energy ecosystems.

Altair’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond the realms of products and processes. The Responsible AI category highlights our belief that technological progress should enhance energy efficiency, reduce waste, and streamline operations.

Volteras, this year’s Responsible AI category winner, gives businesses access to EV ecosystem data with a two-week integration that would otherwise take organisations years to integrate. Its products allow organisations to reduce energy waste and emissions, better manage EV fleets, optimise charging across home chargers using its smart charging algorithms, and more.

Also Read: The growth of electric vehicles is saving the planet, one trip at a time

The awards also featured other categories, including Enabling Technology, Module Lightweighting, and Future of Lightweighting. Toyota, BASF Corp., and US Farathane emerged as winners in these categories, showcasing exemplary innovation with their achievements – Toyota’s groundbreaking adoption of a resin frame for the IsoDynamic seat, Toyota, Adient, and Multimatic’s development of the IsoDynamic seat Accra® SuperStructure, and Marelli’s creation of a lightweight urethane for interior products. These accomplishments spotlight how the industry’s leading minds are harnessing cutting-edge technologies and responsible AI to create a more promising and eco-conscious future.

Empowering Malaysia’s journey towards electrified vehicles

According to the Road Transport Department of Malaysia, the number of fully registered EVs in Malaysia has exceeded 10,000 as of December 2022. This figure is a component of a larger pool of 100,000 electrified vehicles, which includes fully electric and hybrid vehicles – a remarkable stride towards greener transportation.

In its revised budget for 2023, Malaysia introduced various measures to further drive EV growth. These measures include extending tax exemptions for imported and locally assembled EVs until 2025 and 2027, as well as granting full tax exemption for EV charging equipment manufacturers from 2023 to 2032. These actions demonstrate the nation’s commitment to fostering a thriving EV ecosystem.

The recent entry of Tesla into the Malaysian market serves as an indicator of the viability of EVs in the country, supported by these supportive policies and incentives. This significant development shows that Malaysia is inching closer to achieving its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

In a world where sustainable practices are becoming increasingly essential, let us remember that a cleaner and more sustainable future is not merely a potential outcome but a responsibility we all share.

Happy World EV Day — Let’s drive change together!

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