SINGAPORE - It's called BASH - as in Build Amazing Startups Here - and it's Singapore's biggest all-in-one startup facility.
An initiative by the Infocomm Investments Pte Ltd (IIPL), the investment arm of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), BASH will allow members and partners of the tech building community across the entire value chain - from accelerators, investors, incubators to entrepreneurs - to meet under one roof.
Minister for Communications and Information, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, launched BASH on Wednesday at Block 79 JTC LaunchPad @ one-north.
Spanning across more than 25,000 square feet on Level 3 of Block 79, IIPL will leverage the extensive space and provide all the necessary facilities including a prototyping lab, valuable mentorship and community networks to grow promising, innovation driven tech product startups from ideation, acceleration, incubation to expansion.
Said Mr Steve Leonard, IDA executive deputy chairman and chairman of IIPL: "We have made great progress in having global partners such as the European accelerator Startupbootcamp set up a FinTech-focused operation here in Singapore.
"As part of Singapore's journey to be a Smart Nation, we are also working on some really tough global challenges brought on by the inevitable trends of ageing population and urban density. That's the purpose of having BASH, the go-to-place for tech builders, investors and innovators to do more great things together."
At the launch, Dr Yaacob announced that IIPL has signed a memorandum of understanding with Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) and US-based global accelerator Plug and Play to run a corporate accelerator programme that will build high growth, innovation driven Singapore-based digital media startups. The first run is targeted to commence by the middle of this year.
The success of Singaporean tech startup team, Glints, in closing a seed funding round from various key investors including Infocomm Investments was also shared by the minister at the event.
Glints, a career discovery and development platform for youths founded by three 21-year-old Singaporeans, graduated from the Joyful Frog Digital Incubator, one of IIPL's accelerator partners, in July last year. In a span of less than seven months after graduation, it successfully secured venture capital funding totalling $475,000, led by early stage venture fund East Ventures.
The Glints founders will also be the first startup team to benefit from BASH, where they will continue building their product and business under the mentorship of IIPL and other partners.
Said SPH chief executive officer Alan Chan: "The media industry is undergoing many changes today. It also presents opportunities for young entrepreneurs to contribute their ideas and create an impact in the industry. We are delighted to work with IIPL and Plug and Play on an accelerator programme to discover and support outstanding start-ups that will make a difference to our media scene.
"We have also invested in Glints through our SPH Media Fund, which would continue to fund promising early stage ventures."
