(Editor’s note: This post about the COVID-19 Call challenge to startups includes information from an Antler news release. Thanks to Hayden Young for keeping Dispatches up-do-date.)
Global venture-builder/early-stage VC Antler has issued a challenge to startups to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Antler, which has operations in Amsterdam, plans to invest a total of $500,000 – potentially $100,000 in five teams. But you must apply by 15 April, which you can do here.
Antler is inviting startups to propose solutions in:
• Mitigation (e.g. masks, contact tracing, surveillance, data infrastructure)
• Medical Equipment – test kits, protective devices, ventilators
• Remote Health – telehealth, remote patient monitoring, symptom checkers
• Digital Tools – remote work, smart delivery, e-learning
The COVID-19 Call is global, remote and meant to happen quickly, according to the release. The purpose is to contribute towards the path to recovery from the crisis. Selection criteria will consider each proposal’s relevance towards mitigating COVID-19, as well as how the startup works in a post-coronavirus era.
After a screening process, selected teams will be invited to a video pitch session. Following that, the finalists will pitch remotely to Antler’s Investment Committee, according to the release.
The top teams will each receive an investment of $100,000 as well as the opportunity to join an Antler venture-building program at the location closest to them, though most modules will be remote. Select teams will get full access to the Antler platform and network. They will also be able to participate in Antler Demo Days. Check out FAQs here.
From the release:
“Great necessity inspires great innovation,” stated Magnus Grimeland, founder and CEO of Antler in the release. “As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt human life around the world, now is a time when innovators need to come together for the greater good. That’s why we believe it is our time to do our part at Antler.”
Companies receiving the investment will receive access to Antler’s global network of entrepreneurs, investors and industry experts, as well as coaching by Antler’s leadership. Antler will help startups get their solutions off the ground and make them accessible to those who need them as quickly as possible.
“It has long been a mantra of the tech ecosystem that entrepreneurs are building the world of tomorrow,” Grimeland stated. “We are calling on the brightest to create solutions that help guarantee the global community can recover, and grow, following the crisis.
“We believe that the technologies created during this crisis will have the potential to create a fairer and better future.”
About Antler
Founded in Singapore in 2017, Antler is a global early-stage VC. With the mission to turn exceptional individuals into great founders, Antler aims to create hundreds of companies globally by selecting the world’s most exceptional and determined people, helping them find the right co-founder and connecting them to a top tier network of advisors and experts worldwide.
Antler has 8 locations: Singapore, London, New York, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Sydney, Nairobi and Oslo.