OPPO has recently concluded its 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge Regional Demo Event in Bangkok at Chulalongkorn University which saw five teams advancing to the Global Final Demo Event in Singapore next year.
"We are delighted to see the enthusiasm and dedication of teams from across the world, presenting their innovative proposals for the 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge," said Jason Liao, Head of OPPO Research Institute. "Having seen so many fascinating ideas this year, we are excited to witness and help kickstart some truly innovative inventions, thereby positively impacting the lives of people through virtuous innovation.”
The 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge received 687 innovative proposals from 66 different countries. OPPO continues to invest in technology for social good and has allocated a substantial amount of US$440,000 to support and incubate the innovative technological solutions submitted. Each was judged by a jury which included distinguished representatives from various industries and institutions, including OPPO, Amazon Web Services, Chulalongkorn University, and Deloitte. The diverse expertise and perspectives of the jury ensured a fair and rigorous evaluation of the proposals.
Winners of the 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge stand to receive a US$50,000 grant, further incubation support from OPPO and its partners, empowering them to bring their innovations and ideas to life, and partnership opportunities such as production and commercialisation of the winning proposal, an incubation fund totalling US$190,000 (tax included), strategic partnership and investment opportunities, a chance to participate in global technology events, and to receive cloud service and technical support from Amazon Web Services.
Aligned with OPPO’s mission “Technology for Mankind, Kindness for the World”, the 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge focuses on supporting innovators, entrepreneurs, and technology professionals around the world to develop innovative solutions in two main categories: Inspiration for People which focuses on making technology accessible and beneficial to everyone, and Inspiration for the Planet: which focuses on technological innovation in environmental protection and carbon neutrality that can be applied to consumer electronics products.
The 5 winning projects presented at the 2023 OPPO Inspiration Challenge Regional Demo Event in Bangkok were:
From the Inspiration for the People category:
● ERTIGO, Online Therapy Program for Preventing Myofascial Pain Syndrome And Chronic Pain, by Benew Tech, from Thailand
ERTIGO is a mobile application solution for myofascial pain syndrome and chronic pain, offering ergonomic interactive self-care animations, muscle and posture check-up with AI, gamification, and connection to physiotherapy clinics for personalised self-care plans.
● EZSpeech, by Mila4AI Inc., from Uzbekistan
A software that helps people with speech disorders improve their speech without the physical presence of a therapist during treatment.
● Impulse - Non-Surgical Hearing Aid, by Backyard Creators Private Limited, from India.
An externally wearable ear-device that helps those with congenital hearing loss regain the ability to hear without surgery.
● Precision Psychiatry at Scale, by Mobio Interactive, from Singapore
AmDTx is an AI-powered digital therapeutic platform that provides objective data on mental wellness, which physicians use to prescribe clinically validated interventions and improve health equity, without requiring wearables or constant connectivity.
From the Inspiration for the Planet category:
● Flint Paper Battery, by Flint, from Singapore.
Flint's paper batteries offer a sustainable and safe energy storage solution to the lithium-ion battery industry, with the benefit of being compostable, versatile, and thus addressing critical issues within the industry.
The Flint Paper Battery and Impulse - Non-Surgical Hearing Aid proposals were also selected as the Media Choice Award.