Fast-forwarding businesses

• Two 500-backed startups, Grab and Bukalapak, have joined forces with Indonesian technology and media conglomerate Emtek to launch an accelerator program. It is aimed at benefiting micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) across the country.
• The program covers three areas: vaccinations, the acceleration of digital adoption by MSMEs, and entrepreneur empowerment via training and mentorships.
• The goal? To reach 10,000 MSMEs by the end of this year. Participants will be able to reach millions of Grab and Bukalapak users and be better prepared for the digital economy.
• In addition, 100 selected MSMEs will receive special training on business management mentored by Grab and Bukalapak, one month of free mentoring on design, packaging, and marketing, as well as free advertising on the Grab and Bukalapak platforms.
• More details on The Jakarta Post.

Predicting the future

• 500-backed artificial intelligence startup FireVisor is among eight startups selected for the ninth cohort of the NetApp Excellerator.
• According to the program, selected startups have reimagined data usage and integration and are demonstrating the future of innovation in solving diverse business challenges.
• Launched in 2018, Singapore-based FireVisor provides an AI-driven platform that helps manufacturing businesses harness their data to reduce product failure and increase productivity.
• “Our goal is to predict defects even before they happen,” says Surbhi Krishna Singh, co-founder and CEO. “This saves engineers 37-50% of the time and enables defect root cause analysis much faster.”
• Read more here.

New school

• “MBAs tend to be accessible to only the top 1% of the population,” said Will Fan, co-founder and CEO of 500-backed edtech startup NewCampus in an interview, “We’re targeting the remaining 99%. These are people who haven’t considered doing an MBA in the first place, and we’re solving business education and leadership training issues among this group.”
• He added that NewCampus specializes in working with companies undergoing exponential change and growth. He believes for such companies to realize their potential, they will need to invest in developing the capabilities of their middle management. That’s where the startup steps in.
• It is currently in the process of acquiring a business school license so that its courses can be accredited. The goal is to become a licensed global business school at the end of the year.
• NewCampus learners will be globally recognized. This is also the starting point for a full alternative MBA program that the startup is designing.
• Read the full interview here.