Nordic invasion over at Singapore’s JFDI.Asia

By Digital News Asia August 19, 2015

6 Norwegian startups set up gateway in Asia to go global
Part of TINC Asia programme between JFDI.Asia and Innovation Norway

Nordic invasion over at Singapore’s JFDI.Asia

SIX early-stage businesses from Norway arrived in Singapore on Aug 17 to start the Tech Incubator (TINC Asia) programme operated by Joyful Frog Digital Incubator (JFDI.Asia) working in partnership with Innovation Norway.

TINC Asia offers a three-week mentoring experience that will help the teams align and connect their businesses with Asian markets, for distribution and development of future products and services, JFDI.Asia said in a statement.

Innovation Norway is a government agency that looks into innovation and the development of Norwegian enterprises and industry.

“Both Norway and Singapore are similar in terms of population size as well as strong government support for innovation and entrepreneurship,” said Adrian Tan, who leads TINC Asia at JFDI.Asia.

TINC Asia began with a three-day briefing session in Oslo in June, after which participants researched target markets in Asia remotely and prepared to meet with potential business partners in Singapore while they are in the country from Aug 17 to Sept 4.

Participants in the programme will receive strategic guidance for global expansion, delivered by mentors on an individualised basis for each company, JFDI.Asia said in its statement.

They will have the opportunity to connect with the local community every day as they work from BASH, part of Singapore’s tech cluster at Blk 79 in the JTC Launchpad at One North.

For six months after the programme, teams will be able to use JFDI.Asia facilities to follow through on all the connections they have made.

This is the second time that JFDI.Asia and Innovation Norway have worked together to deliver TINC Asia. The new programme builds on the relationships developed over the last two years, and expands the range of industries which the programme covers, JFDI.Asia said.

“Norway is similar to Singapore in the sense that the home markets are small – this means that high-potential startups need to focus on international expansion early,” said Innovation Norway regional director Torunn Aass Taralrud.

“TINC Asia offers access to some of the best local startup resources in Asia and provides a unique learning experience for these companies,” he claimed.

The six Norwegian teams joining TINC Asia are: