Santam Safety Ideas Season 3 finalists announced
<strong>By: Santam</strong>
Santam<strong>, </strong>South Africa’s largest general insurer, has announced the finalists of the Santam Safety Ideas Challenge Season 3. This challenge was derived from the notion that <em>"Simple, smart ideas have the power to improve the well-being of South Africans".</em>
LaunchLab together with Santam selected finalists based on their market-readiness at a Showcase Day, which took place on the 29<sup>th</sup> March. With focus on ideas that help to make South Africa a safer place, the ideas were judged in two categories: <em>mature Fintech and Insurtech startup companies, </em>as well as <em>early stage safety concept ideas</em>.
Mokaedi Dilotsotlhe, Santam’s Chief Marketing Officer, said that striving for innovation is part of Santam’s culture. “With increased risk and uncertainty catalysing an array of shared challenges, Santam is committed to giving South Africans the platform and incentive to find Safety Solutions. With this challenge, we strive to help South Africans safeguard what is important to them by investing in solutions-driven innovations. This challenge shows promising opportunities to secure a sustainable future and create safer communities, while focusing on our core business of providing insurance, good and proper. Our expectations were exceeded by the quality of the pitches and the relevance to our business,” he concluded.
<h3><u>The finalists of the Santam Safety Challenge Season 3</u></h3>
<strong>Mature companies that will engage with Santam with assistance from LaunchLab are:</strong>
<ol>
<li>Aerobotics SA: A pest and disease management platform providing tree crop farmers with aerial imagery and actionable insights on the health of their orchards and vineyards</li><li>Deep Data: Focuses on real-time video analytics and alerting using deep learning, internet-of-things, and cloud technologies</li><li>FinchatBot: Develops bespoke Artificial Intelligence-powered chatbots to help financial service providers acquire and retain customers</li><li>Virtual Drive: An auto-tech solution in the pre-owned automotive industry, benefiting buyers & sellers by streamlining the process of vehicle trade</li><li>Vizibiliti Insight: Specialises in alternative credit scoring platforms for consumers and companies</li></ol>
<strong>Early stage concepts that will receive further incubation support from LaunchLab:</strong>
<ol>
<li>Cloudline: Transforming unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) use cases with autonomous airships</li><li>Machine Kind: Provides driver behaviour insights and advice to first time car buyers and owners</li><li>Thryve: A niche insurance provider, targeting communities that are previously not covered or accessible by traditional insurers</li></ol>
Philip Marais, CEO of the LaunchLab, said: “The quality of the start-ups that pitched in this Showcase Day is an indication of the start-up ecosystem maturity and the opportunity for corporates to engage with local start-ups. We are very pleased that our incubation process has again delivered and exceeded the expectations of Santam."
Another Showcase Day will take place in August 2019 at which point one mature start-up and one concept will be selected as the overall winners of the Santam Safety Challenge Season 3 and will be awarded seed funding to assist with piloting with Santam. Altogether 123 entries were received since inception.
