The Colombian capital has been chosen to host the first edition of the Pacific Alliance South Summit, attracting innovative startups from Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru on November 30.
The Pacific Alliance South Summit will act as the regional version of the South Summit, leading platform that brings together key players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem in southern Europe. Spain Startup and IE University, home to the prestigious IE Business School in Madrid, are supporters of South Summit. They’ve helped launch the new Pacific Alliance South Summit in effort to promote their international development strategy in the region.
The event will run alongside Héroes Fest, Colombia’s most important entrepreneurship and innovation festival organized by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism and iNNpulsa Colombia. It’s chance for startups in this region to share ideas, network and collaborate within the Pacific Alliance.
Each country in this bloc (Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru) will participate at the summit with 10 startups. These startups have to fulfill the stringent requirements set forth by the IE Business School, including a disruptive outlook, dedicated full-time team, potential for scalability and a certain amount of previous funding and current revenue.
Once selected, the lucky cohort will have the opportunity to showcase their startup, attend keynote speaker conferences on access to smart capital, pitch their product to investors and connect to new players in the Iberoamerican scene.
“The Pacific Alliance has become a platform for business attraction,” said Natalia Bayona, Vice President of International Development for Spain Startup in a statement. “The alliance currently receives 41 percent of direct foreign investment in Latin America, evidencing opportunities for investors and international companies to engage in strategic partnerships with entrepreneurs in a show of support for innovation in all four member countries,” she continued.
The top disruptive startups that hail from this region will be selected by their country over the next month.
Peru appears to be the first to have announced their lineup which comprises of some of the country’s leading innovations. Among the selected, one that stands out is Arrivedo, Peruvian startup offering a distinct experience in the hospitality industry. The company differentiates itself from market competitors by offering a platform where travelers can find authentic neighbourhood experiences when booking a hotel. It recently won “Best International Startup” at the 2017 TechFestNW in Portland.