Participants of the TINC Batch #9 programme
Last week, Telkomsel Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Indonesian mobile operator Telkomsel, unveiled the commencement of TINC Batch #9, a startup accelerator programme in collaboration with AppWorks, the foremost startup community in Greater Southeast Asia.
TINC Batch #9 will spotlight five to six tech startups primarily focusing on the Indonesian market, spanning Seed to Series A stages. Startups participating in the programme are encouraged to operate across diverse sectors, particularly focusing on companies developing solutions for Consumers, Data (AI, data analytics, cyber security), SaaS/Enterprise, B2B Services, and Fintech.
TINC is renowned for its close collaboration with dynamic startups in Indonesia, leveraging Telkomsel’s ecosystem, assets, and expertise to nurture innovation. The programme, which is both cost-and-equity-free, aims to facilitate intimate collaboration between Telkomsel and synergistic startups.
As one of the longtime players in the Indonesian startup ecosystem, Telkomsel Ventures has seen significant changes and progress in the community. In this interview with e27, Mia Melinda, CEO of Telkomsel Ventures, shares her insights about Indonesian startups.
What significant changes have you noticed in the local startup community recently? How does it affect your investment strategy in Indonesia?
There is more activity in the early stages than before. Startup founders are more experienced and savvier than before, with many founders having management experience at other startups or being second-time founders. They understand how to work with corporations such as Telkomsel and are building new and interesting solutions for the digital economy.
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Building off the maturation of the Indonesia startup ecosystem, we are more excited than ever before to work with startups and create lasting value and synergy.
As a critical conduit connecting startups with consumers and businesses, Telkomsel Ventures offers a powerful value proposition for startups through Telkomsel’s large user base and business clients. We aspire to establish collaborative relationships with startups, guiding them to create innovative and sustainable solutions for the digital economy.
Partnering with AppWorks for TINC Batch #9 is part of our increased commitment to supporting Indonesian startups, allowing us to provide outsized support and extend our reach.
What are your most notable milestones in recent years?
We have partnered with many exciting Indonesian startups in recent years, working with startups from early to later stages in fostering innovation. As Telkomsel acts as a portal to digital life in Indonesia, TINC is a conduit for emerging startups to tap into the Telkomsel ecosystem and thrive. TINC will be one of the main focus for Telkomsel Ventures in gaining access to the digital economy and creating positive outcomes for startups, and positioning us as a partner of choice for startups in seeking growth opportunities and value creation
What is your investment philosophy? What do you look for in a potential investment?
TINC’s investment philosophy is based on our mission to support the growth of Indonesian startups and cultivate the creation of inclusive and sustainable solutions for Indonesia’s digital economy. As a corporate accelerator, TINC is dedicated to fostering collaboration helping startups take their business to the next level, utilising Telkomsel’s ecosystem, assets, and expertise to foster innovation.
We look for startups who can demonstrate a clear value proposition in partnering with Telkomsel for our users and customers and ones that we can help bring to their next level of development.
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What kind of support do you give to your portfolio? What sets you apart from the rest?
Startups that partner with TINC gain exposure to Telkomsel’s ecosystem, assets, and expertise. Telkomsel knows what the users need and can help startups develop solutions to meet those needs, having startups partner directly with Telkomsel business units and helping them create new streams of business revenue. Telkomsel wants to innovate and co-create new things with startups, combining its assets and startups’ ideas and creativity beyond telco.
When other businesses see that a startup can partner with Telkomsel, it changes how they look at the startup, providing greater legitimacy to startups and helping them attract even more businesses to work with them–and that’s a huge badge of honour for us.
How do you plan to make a difference with this accelerator programme?
We are a collaborative player in Indonesia’s startup ecosystem. The accelerator programme is cost-and-equity-free.
We aspire to work closely with participating startups to leverage our proprietary resources to help startups grow while offering new innovative products and services to our users. We provide opportunities for startups to test out their ideas with a captive audience with the goal of helping startups generate revenue and achieve sustainable business growth.
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Image Credit: Telkomsel Ventures
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