The Philippine startup scene is a rapidly growing ecosystem that has been gaining traction over the past few years. With a young and tech-savvy population, a growing economy, and a supportive government, the country is poised to become a hub for innovation and entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia. The increasing number of entrepreneurs and investors setting up shops in the country has led to the emergence of a vibrant community of startups, incubators, accelerators, and venture capitalists, all working together to create a dynamic and innovative ecosystem.
Despite the challenges of starting and scaling a business in the country, such as limited access to funding and a relatively small market, the local startup scene has continued to attract both local and foreign entrepreneurs. This is largely due to the growing interest in digital technologies, as well as the country’s growing middle class, which presents a huge potential market for startups.
One of the key players driving the growth of the Philippine startup scene is 917Ventures, an incubator and venture studio that has been investing in and building innovative companies in the country. With a focus on leveraging digital technologies to create disruptive solutions, 917Ventures has been at the forefront of the country’s startup revolution, helping to transform the way Filipinos live, work, and play.
Established in 2019, just before the pandemic, 917Ventures is poised as the future growth engine of Globe Telecom. Acting as a separate entity from the telecoms giant, the incubator creates new businesses to solve Filipino pain points and create the next generation of great companies in the Philippines.
I had the chance to sit down and talk with Vince Yamat, the Managing Director of 917Ventures and talk about exciting things about the general landscape of startups in the Philippines and updates about their company.
“At 917Ventures our goal is to uplift the lives of the Filipino people, and by doing that, we create new businesses to serve our customers. We are a startup that builds startups. Building a company is all about talking to the customers to be able to know their pain points,” according to Yamat.
In a bid to support the growth and development of high-potential startups in the Philippines, 917Ventures recently collaborated with the global venture capital firm, 500 Global. Together, they launched a 10-week accelerator program, aimed at providing the selected startups with resources and support to help them scale and thrive. Founders of participating startups had the chance to be mentored by experts from 500 Global on how to scale their respective businesses.
500 Global (formerly 500 Startups), is a global venture capital firm that provides early-stage funding to startups across various industries and regions around the world. Founded in 2010, 500 Global has invested in over 2,500 startups in more than 75 countries and has become one of the most active venture capital firms in the world. The company has so far 49 unicorns (including Canva and Twilio) under its belt.
This partnership between 917Ventures and 500 Global underscores the Filipino incubator’s commitment to creating a lasting impact in the Philippines by supporting early-stage startups with the resources they need to accelerate the development of digital solutions that improve the lives of our citizens.
The accelerator program culminated in a Demo Day held last 18 January 2023, where the participating startups had the opportunity to present their ideas and solutions to key players in the ecosystem, with the hope of securing potential partnerships.
917Ventures has produced some of the most successful digital pioneers in the Philippines and the Asia Pacific region namely HealthNow, KonsultaMD, Rappit, RUSH, m360, Inquiro, KodeGo, EdVenture, DeepSea, AdSpark, and the Philippines’ leading mobile wallet and payments app GCash.