An interesting fact from dtac accelerate was the increasing participation from Myanmar-based startups or big companies with stake in the country

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Last Friday, one of the region’s most important Demo Days was held in Bangkok, Thailand as the dtac accelerate batch 4 pitched to an audience of investors, entrepreneurs and media.

The event is a big day for the participating startups because it attracts an audience full of VCs ready to give the companies their attention (dtac accelerate says 65 VCs expressed interest in participating in this year’s event).

It also has a high hit-rate for investment down the road. The last batch saw seven of the 11 companies receive seed funding for a total of US$1.9 million. Investment came from well-known VCs like 500 Startups, Golden Gate Ventures, KK Fund, Galaxy Ventures and Ookbee.

According to dtac accelerate, 6 of the ten companies in this year’s group are already considering term sheet offers.

One notable anecdote from this year’s Demo Day was the influx of participation from Myanmar startups and Telenor (a Norwegian telco with a large presence in the country). It is yet another sign that Myanmar’s startup ecosystem is starting to show signs it is moving towards the runway.

Sadly, not everyone can dedicate a few days away from the homebase to rub shoulders with the who’s who of Southeast Asia tech in Bangkok (although wouldn’t we all love to).

Also Read: Fellowship of the seed: 7 dtac accelerate startups receive over US$1.9M of combined funding

For those who could not attend the event, here is a breakdown of the 14 companies that pitched.

Batch 4 companies

CloudCommerce

A startup building cloud-based solutions for e-commerce companies. It targets front-end user applications, back-end enterprise services and digital marketing and analytics. The company’s mission is to become a full-service provider, implying it can be relatively flexible to the customer’s needs.

Event Pass

A marketing platform for event organisers and exhibitors, the startup has built a CRM Platform to help improve the recognition of the occasion. It also builds custom access badges for attendees (for example, helping distinguish between VIPs and the general public).

It is the sister company of Bag Tags Inc.

FABBRIGADE

FABBRIGADE lets users make home appointments for beauty appointments, massages, yoga and pilates classes. The company advertises that it draws its beauticians from Bangkok’s top studios.

The app lets users book an appointment as close as two hours away from the desired time, making it ideal for spontaneity.

Fastwork

Freelance workers in Southeast Asia are a diverse and vibrant community. Fastwork is a growing marketplace to connect freelancers with potential jobs (and companies with reputable temporary employees). It targets SMEs, startups and entrepreneurs for its target market.

Finnomena

A market insights company, Finnomena wants to help Thai people make smarter investment decisions. It publishes content on macro-trading tips and advice, specific market insights, a ‘Guru’s Pick’ section and insights from world renowned investors like Warren Buffet.

It also publishes the ‘ideal portfolio’ based on the current market trends.

Freshket

Everyone knows grocery delivery startups are a hot trend, but Freshket is tackling the B2B vertical.

The company is a marketplace for restaurants to get connected with fresh food suppliers in Thailand. It operates 24/7, which one would think would open up opportunities for buyers to patch over supply emergencies and sellers to find unexpected clients.

Health and Home

This startup helps people take care of their sick or elderly loved ones at home. It uses backend technology to build an ecosystem of high-quality home care professionals so people can find the right match with greater ease and peace of mind.

Also Read: Thailand’s 500 Tuk Tuks hits the gas, expands investment fund to US$15 million

It also has a mobile app feature that helps people stay in closer contact with doctors should an emergency arise.

PlanforFIT

A weightloss and fitness tracking company, PlanforFIT offers a ‘Personal Coach’ and ‘Blueprint’ to help people along their fitness journeys. The website also has a host of articles, exercise tips and a ’60 day challenge’ to help get people inspired.

Visionear

This startup is building a wearable device to help visually impaired people learn more details about their surroundings through audio assistance. Basically, the user can hold up an object to the Visionear device (the video highlights a yellow shirt, or a bottle of Coke) and it provides details about the object to the person.

Furthermore, it can detect whether or not the light is on in a room.

WEARandSHARE

Need a dress for that hot date? Or something fancy to impress clients at a corporate event? Not everyone can afford to, or would like to spend their money on, buying a hundred dollar dress for one-off occasions. WEARandSHARE has women in Thailand covered with an online dress rental platform.

The UX looks like a standard e-commerce company, except the difference is users mark the dates they need the outfit. Just be careful with that wine!

Seed companies

Giztix

The winner of Echelon Thailand’s 2015 pitching competition,  Giztix is a logistics marketplace which includes Trucks, Freight and Customs Clearance. The idea is a one-stop-shop for companies to find the cheapest shipping prices while facilitate more sales for logistics providers. Companies can search through an international list of logistics options.

The company received funding from KK Fund and 500 TukTuks.

Piggipo

A credit card management company, Piggipo helps people budget and manage their credit card spending. It is especially useful for multiple credit cards as it keeps everything in one place so users can grasp how much they are spending each month.

Also Read: [Updated] Numbers speak: Thailand experiences 29 times growth of tech investments in past 4 years

Piggipo has participated in fintech accelerators in both Malaysia and Thailand and received seed funding from Golden Gate Ventures and 500 TukTuks.

Skootar

Need to send a package or contract across the city? Don’t have the time to visit the office in person? Skootar helps companies order and book bicycle-messengers to deliver documents, invoices, packages and other business materials on demand. The company targets SMEs as its main clientele.

It raised funds from Galaxy Ventures and 500 TukTuks.

Series A

Claim di

Having raised a US$2 million funding round last November, Claim di is the furthest along of the companies presenting at dtac accelerate. The company is a mobile app for car owners to file accident claims quickly, efficiently and through a clear process. Because it guides the user, it helps speed up the process for insurance agencies as it cuts down on the mistakes made by the claimant.

The Series A was led by CyberAgent Ventures with participation from Golden Gate Ventures, 500 Startups and dtac accelerate.

Photo courtesy of dtac accelerate.

 

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