Disruptive Ideas on Extended Reality, UAV Tech and IoT Win the Boeing HorizonX India Innovation Challenge.
· After a 3-month accelerator program, Boeing and T-Hub will now help selected companies take their ideas to market
· Winners HUVIAiR, Merxius and ZestIoT working on emerging business models in Extended Reality, unmanned aircraft technology and Internet of Things
· Three teams from Boeing’s engineering center also showcased their innovations
Hyderabad, India, July 30 2018 – T-Hub and Boeing today showcased disruptive business ideas at the ‘Demo Day’ of the Boeing HorizonX India Innovation Challenge, held at Boeing’s India Engineering & Technology Center (BIETC). Three Indian startups – Merxius, HUVIAiR and ZestIoT – joined three teams from BIETC in presenting to an audience of prospective investors and customers, as well as government stakeholders.
The Demo Day marks the culmination of a 3-month accelerator program launched in collaboration with T-Hub, a global startup catalyst that powers entrepreneurship. Following a stringent evaluation process, six teams from a competing pool of more than 1oo ideas and applications, have won the opportunity to join the cohort.
“Never before have corporates and startups collaborated as much as they do now. T- Hub is a key cog that enables this and Boeing has been an instrumental partner of ours that embraces that philosophy. To keep pace with the rapid growth of emerging technologies, companies in sectors like aerospace, healthcare, banking, and others will have to focus on building a sustained culture of innovation. The collaborative ecosystem of corporates and startups like the one T-Hub is driving in the country, will become a common trend in a few years. Boeing brings a strong legacy of technological breakthroughs, and we are immensely pleased to collaborate with them in exploring the right startup talent to support its innovation goals,” said Jay Krishnan, CEO of T-Hub.”
Boeing will continue to collaborate with the three external startup teams to help further their businesses. The ideas presented by the Boeing teams are under evaluation as potential future company offerings.
“Innovation can happen anywhere and startups around the world have the potential to bring disruptive capabilities to aerospace markets and drive our industry forward,” said Brian Schettler, Managing Director of Boeing HorizonX Ventures. “Boeing HorizonX is proud to partner with and invest in startups to help them mature and scale their products and services and create value for Boeing customers.”
The ideas presented by the three external finalists range from Extended Reality (XR) applications to the use of Internet of Things (IoT) for aerospace. Merxius develops a product that enables the creation of XR environments to save cost and reduce training time in aerospace manufacturing. HUVIAiR refines custom unmanned aircraft services and software solutions for survey and workflow management. ZestIoT explores solutions that connect the airport and airplane ecosystem using IoT to optimize ground handling at airports and improve on-time performance of airplanes.
The six shortlisted startups took part in a 3-month accelerator where thirty subject matter experts from Boeing and T-Hub mentored them and exposed them to potential customers, while strengthening their offerings and capability.
“Both external startups as well as internal ideas promise to disrupt business models and service delivery in aerospace. We are excited to tap into a new pool of ideas from India which will surely change the global aerospace industry,” said Pratyush Kumar, president, Boeing India. “I am especially proud of our three Boeing teams from India that have made it to the finals with their ideas and technological breakthroughs”.
Boeing continues to evaluate disruptive startups in India, apart from the Boeing HorizonX India Innovation Challenge finalists, for potential future investments.
About T-Hub:
T-Hub is a global startup catalyst that powers entrepreneurship and deal flow. Incorporated in Hyderabad, India, in 2015, it has provided more than 350 national and international startups with access to mentors, corporates, venture capitalists and global investors. T-Hub is on a mission to scale startups globally, offering entrepreneurs a world-class scaling platform to help them generate revenue and get access to new customers, capital and markets. T-Hub supercharges corporate innovation by enabling an out-of-the-box approach and fosters entrepreneurship by accelerating startup initiatives by governments. T-Hub also advises investors on deal flow.
About Boeing
Boeing is the world’s largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners, defense, space and security systems, and service provider of aftermarket support. Boeing is focused on delivering value to Indian customers with advanced technologies and is committed to creating sustainable value in the Indian aerospace sector – developing local suppliers, and shaping academic and research collaborations with Indian institutions. Boeing has strengthened its supply chain with over 160 partners in India, and annual sourcing from India stands at $1 billion. Boeing currently employs 1700 people in India, and more than 7000 people work with its supply chain partners. Boeing’s employee efforts and India country-wide engagement serves communities and citizenship programs to inspire change and make an impact on more than 150000 lives.
