21 July 2023, Singapore – Studio 30 50, a pioneering initiative aimed at building a more sustainable and evolved maritime industry, completed its first-ever sprint on the 7th of July.
Studio 30 50 is a unique partnership between Hafnia, Microsoft, Wilhelmsen, IMC Ventures and DNV, deriving strength from a collaboration model. Incorporated by partners who believe in the power of innovation and entrepreneurship, the innovation studio is committed to providing a forum for testing, validating and scale-up of eligible concepts within their own organisations and their wider ecosystems. Through this venture, Hafnia and its partners aim to help new founders in their journey of raising sufficient capital, bridging the product-market fit, providing a successful point of entry, and building scalable, sustainable business models that offer unique added value in a competitive and strict regulatory maritime landscape.
Launched in April 2023, the program attracted over 200 applications from founders and 60 from start-ups eager to join the first sprint. After a rigorous selection process, ten diverse founders and five promising start-ups were selected.
The sprint for founders started on June 19th in Singapore and, over three intense weeks, the founders combined creativity, craftsmanship and industry insights to create new innovative ventures.
Following a structured approach, the program began with exploring problem areas and identifying current gaps in the maritime landscape. The founders then focused on validating their ideas and gaining a deeper understanding of customer needs whilst the final stage was dedicated to refining business models and bringing ideas to life through prototyping. At the end of the program, six teams of founders showcased their pitches, demonstrating their progress and vision to a panel of potential investors.
Throughout the three weeks, founders received industry support from resident maritime and start-up experts, behavioural scientists, product managers, and storytelling specialists. Consortium partners also provided valuable guidance to validate ideas and enhance the founders’ pitches.
At the start of week two the founders were joined by the start-ups and, together, they had the opportunity to engage in different sessions to support their concept development and validation. These sessions included networking with venture capitalists, industry pioneers, established founders and pitching specialists. The cohort took full advantage of these interactions, refining their understanding of their existing customer base, exploring new market hypotheses, and even securing new customers and investors. It was an invaluable experience that supported their growth and opened doors to exciting possibilities. A snippet of the founder and start-up recordings can be found here.
Following our initial Demo Days, investor interest in the program remained high, leading to an investor debrief where potential investors had the opportunity to learn more about the founders and start-ups. Multiple meetings are currently being scheduled with interested investors, and expressions of interest are in the process of already being received.
Further information regarding investor details and funding for the start-ups and founders will be shared in the upcoming weeks.
Shanker Pillai, Head of Innovation and Change Management & Head of Studio
30 50: “Studio 30 50 is a first-of-its-kind venture builder program targeted at founders who want to make a mark in the maritime industry. As with any new initiative, there is an inherent risk of how it’s perceived by the industry. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of the newly built studio team, we are happy to announce that the program was well received by the participants, investors, and partners alike. We have initiated several conversations with investors, both inside and external to Hafnia in evaluating early investment interest in our start-ups and founders. At Hafnia, we are looking forward to kick-off new collaborations with founders and start-ups in the coming weeks as well as planning our next cycle. “
James Kellet, Spot Ship’s Founder & CEO: “The experience of joining the first Studio 30 50 cohort, was one of the best ones experienced within Spot Ship. I think that the studio’s establishment is a game-changing step forward for the wider shipping tech ecosystem”.
Ayşe Aslı Başak, founder of Charterly, “Studio 30 50’s innovation sprint in Singapore was a transformative and empowering experience, allowing me to collaborate with remarkable mentors and tech-founders, learn extensively from their expertise, and merge my 15 years of industry experience with innovation to generate digitalization ideas and shape a sustainable future for the maritime industry.”
For further information, please contact:
Shanker Pillai – Head of Innovation and Change Management
Email: spi@hafniabw.co m
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