Finalists announced in tech competition

The top 10 finalists of the 2016 #Hack.Jozichallenge were announced on May 3.

Mr Ravi Naidoo, the executive director for economic development for the City of Johannesburg (CoJ), said they were overwhelmed not only by the number of entries for the 2016 #Hack.Jozichallenge, but also by the quality of entries.

“The 2016 short-list of 10 finalists is an impressive list of young people with new and innovative ideas in the digital arena. After a rigorous process that has been playing out over the past six weeks, we now have 10 superb businesses which have fought through three rounds of the competition and have been judged on the technical feasibility of their venture, scalability and the wow-factor,” said Mr Naidoo.

One May 13, a demo day will be held where all the 10 tech-preneurs will present their ideas which earned them a spot in the top 10.

This year’s top 10 ideas are:

•  Tuta-Me, a mobile application that looks to connect tutors with students for tutoring services.
•  TimeWize Parental Control, a tool for parents to address screen-time issues with their children and their android devices.
•  Mensch, an online marketplace where the demand for sound, pragmatic and sustainable advice by businesses is matched to the supply of high quality business experts from South Africa’s top business schools and business consultancies.
•  LCERT -LCERT (Low Cost Educational Robotics Toy) Kit, which includes hardware, software and activities;
•  Spotless, a pick-up and drop-off of laundry service that ensures clothes are cleaned and dry-cleaned to the highest standards.
•  Advicement, building an online platform which aims to automate the functions of a traditional financial advisor.
•  DUEPROP, an integrated online due-diligence portal, available on multiple platforms and designed for all property sector stakeholders.
•  eSubmit, an online platform on which building plans and other related documentation can be uploaded and/or downloaded for the purposes of obtaining building approval from local authorities.
•  Gradrr, this system prepares and automatically marks multiple-choice questions. Advanced features are being offered to educational institutions to analyse and report on the information.
•  TechnoVera, smart lockers that reduce the average waiting time for patients collecting chronic medication at primary healthcare collection facilities.

Judges will now make a decision on which aspiring business will win R1-million. Two runners up will win R350 000 each.

All three will be supported by a business mentor who will guide them on how best to use the prize money and further develop their idea into a successful, profitable enterprise.

The #Hack.Jozichallenge is a project of the CoJ and the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering (JCSE) at Wits University.

The top three winners will be announced on May 19.