{"id":38171,"date":"2023-10-20T14:54:39","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T14:54:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/two-australian-startups-selected-to-take-part-in-huge-global-pitching-competition-this-is-an-incredible-opportunity-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T14:54:39","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T14:54:39","slug":"two-australian-startups-selected-to-take-part-in-huge-global-pitching-competition-this-is-an-incredible-opportunity-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/two-australian-startups-selected-to-take-part-in-huge-global-pitching-competition-this-is-an-incredible-opportunity-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Australian startups selected to take part in huge global pitching competition: “This is an incredible opportunity” – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/div>\n

Two Australian startups using gaming to try to improve the health of children have been selected to take part\u00a0in a large pitching competition in China, offering an \u201cincredible opportunity\u201d for the companies.<\/p>\n

Sound Scouts, an app gamifying hearing tests for children, and wearable tech startup Elanation took out the top two spots at the local Phoenix Pitch Competition and will be competing at the Overseas Talent Entrepreneurship Conference in China later this month.<\/p>\n

The competition is one of the world\u2019s largest events for VC, with startups competing for an equity-free prize of nearly $210,000.<\/p>\n

This is the first time that Australian companies have been eligible to compete in the global competition which is set to bring together more than 2000 startups from over 19 countries.<\/p>\n

Using gaming for good<\/h3>\n

Sound Scouts is a smartphone game designed to test hearing, allowing children to follow the story of a bionic-eared dog and solve a series of challenges to identify any potential hearing problems.<\/p>\n

Sound Scouts\u00a0founder Carolyn Mee says the conference will provide the perfect opportunity to test the waters in the China market.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re definitely looking at China as a major growth opportunity,\u201d Mee tells StartupSmart<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a focus on good educational outcomes and hearing is a major component of that. If you struggle to hear then you\u2019ll struggle to learn.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re really excited about the opportunity to pitch in China and see what interest it elicits.\u201d<\/p>\n

She says her startup is offering a new and effective way to detect hearing problems in school-aged children.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019ve created is something quite unique and very forward-thinking,\u201d Mee says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a health issue that currently doesn\u2019t have an accessible and affordable solution.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re using technology to deliver a solution to that problem \u2013 that\u2019s what every startup is looking to achieve.\u201d<\/p>\n

She says this initial win provides much-needed validation in her idea and business.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you go through the journey of growing, learning, iterating and building up as a business these opportunities encourage and validate what you\u2019re doing,\u201d Mee says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the nod that you do have a global business. Looking at the journey so far, I have felt like people didn\u2019t appreciate the true value and global applications for what I\u2019ve been doing, so being chosen to represent Australia is great validation.\u201d<\/p>\n

“An incredible opportunity”<\/h3>\n

Investible helped run the local pitching competition, and CEO Creel Price says OTEC will present enormous opportunities to the two Aussie startups.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is an incredible opportunity for these and other emerging Australian startups to access one of the biggest markets in the world and elevate the local mix of innovation and talent on the world stage,\u201d Price says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is exactly the type of initiative that the local startup ecosystem needs to encourage more founders to think globally rather than focusing solely on the domestic market.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Mee, patience and perseverance have been crucial to her eventual success.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe journey is relentless,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you start you have to have the resolve and the energy that\u2019s going to see you through the journey. There\u2019s rarely a quick fix.\u201d<\/p>\n

Follow StartupSmart on\u00a0<\/em>Facebook<\/a>,<\/em>\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<\/em>SoundCloud<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two Australian startups using gaming to try to improve the health of children have been selected to take part\u00a0in a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61776,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38171"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}