Intelak names winners of Cohort 5

Dubai - Avendy, Bonflite, Cargonow and Hotel Data Cloud are announced winners of Cohort 5 of the aviation, travel & tourism-focused incubator led by GE, the Emirates Group and Dubai Tourism

By Staff Report

Published: Tue 19 Feb 2019, 4:48 PM

Last updated: Tue 19 Feb 2019, 7:00 PM

Intelak, the UAE's aviation, travel and tourism-focused incubator, has announced the winners of Cohort 5, the fifth edition of its Incubation programme. Intelak is led by Principal Partners the Emirates Group, GE, and Dubai Tourism.
Avendy, BONFLITE, Cargonow, and Hotel Data Cloud were selected from 16 short-listed innovative startups from around the world. Each team, comprising five members each, will receive Dh50,000 as seed funding, in addition to intensive mentoring and workshops to take their startup ideas to the next level. In all, Cohort 5 received more than 100 applications.
A team of judges from the Emirates Group, GE and Dubai Tourism, as well as from the Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre (DTEC), a tech startup hub located in Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO) where Intelak is hosted, selected the four winning teams. Each team will also have space at DTEC for the three-month program that will culminate with their graduation and Demo Day in April.
The four winners presented innovative ideas that will add to the efficiency of the aviation, travel and tourism sectors. Cargonow has solutions for freight forwarders that face challenges navigating a complex and strongly fragmented air cargo market; Hotel Data Cloud helps hotels win back control of the descriptive content on their booking channels; BONFLITE is an innovative digital retailing platform that combines the distribution channel & traveler knowledge of the airline with the operational expertise of the airport duty free operators to elevate the shopping experience for air travellers; and Avendy is a chatbot that answers travellers' questions within 10 minutes with quality input and verification from local experts.
STEP Conference - The Lean Design ChallengeAs a continued supporter of the startup community, Intelak was present at the 2019 STEP Conference which concluded last week in Dubai. Startups participated in the Lean Design Challenge, which included lean design workshops hosted on the Intelak booth. Mentors from the Emirates Group, GE and Dubai Tourism, provided young innovators with an opportunity to present and receive feedback on their ideas. - business@khaleejtimes.com