Uber, MaGIC, and Digi launch ideation lab for entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia

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A new initiative wants to help aspiring entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia turn their idea into a funded company.

Uber together with the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC) and telco Digi just launched an ideation lab, which will help entrepreneurs fine-tune their business concepts and make them investment-ready.

Interested individuals may apply starting today until September 17. A panel from Uber, MaGIC, and Digi will then handpick the top 20 entrepreneurs who will participate in the two-week program at MaGIC’s campus in Cyberjaya, Malaysia.

Chosen entrepreneurs get to meet Uber execs and early-stage investors.

Those selected will learn about the three key aspects of developing a business: customer, product, and market, MaGIC says in a statement.

After the ideation lab, the entrepreneurs will pitch their refined ideas at the Global Entrepreneurship Community event in Kuala Lumpur on November 2 to 3, and the best ones will have the opportunity to meet early-stage investors, Uber executives, and other key players in San Francisco.

The initiative is part of MaGIC’s recent efforts to connect big corporations with startups. CEO Ashran Ghazi says, “Through collaboration, corporates can benefit from fresh, impactful, and innovative ideas from the startups while the entrepreneurs could benefit from mentorship and industry-specific experience from the corporates.”

Digi, for one, is looking for new ideas to better serve its 12.3 million customers. “Startups are key to our future. They have and I believe they will continue to play a big role in shaping every aspect of the way we live, work and play,” notes its chief digital officer, Praveen Rajan.

Apart from the ideation lab, the telco runs its own pre-accelerator program for startups called Digi Incub8.