The "Biban 23" forum, organized by the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monsha’at), has announced the launch of more than 13 competitions and hackathons with prizes exceeding 10 million Saudi riyals. The forum aims to motivate startups to showcase entrepreneurial projects and contribute to the development of innovative solutions that address various challenges. The forum will occur from March 9th to 13th, 2023, at the Riyadh Front for Exhibitions and Conferences.
"Biban 23" aims to promote technology entrepreneurship and discover young men's and women's digital capabilities, fostering the development of their ideas and spreading a culture of creativity and innovation. It also promotes to striving consolidate the value of teamwork and collaboration to bring forth creative ideas and new technological innovations.
The prizes include the Entrepreneurship World Cup, the Prince Abdulilah bin Abdulaziz Award for Entrepreneurship and Support of Productive Families, the She is Next Award in collaboration with Visa, the annual KPMG competition, the launch of the Women in Tech competition, and the announcement of the annual "Ebtker" award.
The competitions include challenges such as Digitizing the Customer Experience in the Real Estate Sector, launching a Cybersecurity Challenge in partnership with the Saudi Information Technology Company (SAIT), a startup competition in the technology field, a robot war, the "Azooma" Competition, a search for robots through virtual reality in intelligence centers, a programming field, and the Quiz U Competition for employment by "Oqqol" company.
The hackathons include the Robot Hackathon and the Cyberthon Thakaa Hackathon. The launches include the launch of Thakaa Plus, the launch of the Link application, the launch of the Sports Innovation Lab with Al-Hilal Saudi Club, the launch of the PT way agreement, the launch of the Saudi Post Innovation Centre, the launch of the UN competition, and the launch of the Innovation week.
The participating teams of entrepreneurs and project owners will engage in various training workshops, lectures, brainstorming sessions, and practical exercises provided by specialized speakers in entrepreneurship and innovation throughout "Biban 23." They will present their innovative projects to judging panels, experts, and business partners, culminating in the selection of winning projects based on specific criteria.
It is worth mentioning that the Biban 23 forum, which will commence on March 9th for a duration of five days, attracts more than 500 entrepreneurs and brings together over 120 enabling and supportive entities. It aims to enhance communication and enrich youth with entrepreneurial ideas and investment opportunities, thereby achieving one of the targets of Saudi Vision 2030 by increasing the contribution of small and medium enterprises to the local GDP to 35%.