A one-stop digital logistics platform, a biofuels producer and a company offering autonomous shipping using artificial intelligence were among the winners of Singapore’s latest round of its Smart Port Challenge.
GotSurge, GreenCOP and Seadronix emerged victorious from a field of 146 entrants to claim first, second and third places in the annual maritime start-up event run by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the National University of Singapore (NUS).
The winning teams walked away with cash prizes of SGD 10,000, ($7,270) SGD 5,000 and SGD 3,000 respectively, but are now eligible to apply for a grant of up to SGD 50,000 from the MPA to embark on pilot projects with maritime companies.
“The winners were selected from 18 finalists following an evaluation by a panel of judges on their proposed solution, business model, market potential, impact on the maritime industry and overall team capability,” the MPA said.
“This year’s finalists have a strong focus on green technology, addressing the need for more sustainable energy and waste management.
“Solutions also include use of data and artificial intelligence to optimise safety and efficiency in vessel operations and supply chain management,” the maritime regulator said.
Eric Chean, managing director, GotSurge, said the Smart Port Challenge had already connected the start-up to potential partners and clients.
“In fact, the validation we received by participating in SPC allowed us to secure our first investor,” he said.
“With their financial support, together with the SPC prize money, we shall be accelerating the development of our suite of apps to efficiently manage the fast-moving nature of goods in the marine supplies sector.
“We are now finalising the execution plan of our ‘Green Marine Supplies’ supply-chain, including setting up a consolidation centre. This should be up and running by first half of 2023,” he added.
Chean said supply chain management in the maritime sector is still bogged down by paper-based documentation, deliveries coordinated by phone and multiple middlemen.
“GotSurge aims to change this through its one-stop digital logistics platform, where customers and suppliers benefit from end-to-end visibility of all deliveries from a single dashboard,” he said.
“This will result in greater efficiencies, reduced costs of up to 30% and an improved customer experience.”
Speaking at the event, Chee Hong Tat, senior minister of state, ministry of finance and ministry of transport said Singapore was a “choice location for maritime innovation and development”.
“We also have a leading International Maritime Centre, home to over 150 of the world’s largest international shipping groups, and more than 5,000 maritime organisations, spanning functions such as shipping, maritime law, maritime finance, and maritime technology,” he said.
“These provide an excellent environment for start-ups to work with maritime companies to tackle practical problem statements, pilot and test-bed proposed solutions using the Port of Singapore as a Living Lab.
“If companies are able to demonstrate that their solutions work well in Singapore’s busy port waters and complex maritime ecosystem, it would be a clear vote of confidence recognised by the rest of the world,” he added.
