Macau, China, Oct. 10, 2024 (Lusa) - Portuguese startup Connected won an innovation and entrepreneurship competition in Macau on Thursday for technology companies from Brazil and Portugal, which could open doors to the Chinese market.
Connected, founded in 2023, has developed communication modules between objects and devices (known as the Internet of Things) via the 5G network, which can be included in Earth observation satellites.
The Porto-based company's technology could have vast applications in areas such as agriculture, maritime monitoring, motorway infrastructure and renewable energy installations.
The technology was tested in space in 2022 and Connected secured a contract with the European Space Agency, which includes Portugal, in 2023, the year in which it managed to attract a total investment of €2 million.
A panel of investors, academics and financial experts also selected two Brazilian projects for the podium: SleepUp, a digital therapy platform to improve sleep, and Pix Force, which specialises in artificial intelligence and data analysis.
The 2024 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition (Macau) for Technology Companies from Brazil and Portugal received 64 applications from both countries and selected 17 finalists in areas such as biomedicine, medical devices, new energies and agricultural technology.
The seven winning projects received monetary prizes, worth a maximum of 150,000 patacas ( €17,100), and guaranteed support to facilitate access to Chinese funding and the China market, namely the Greater Bay Area.
The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is Beijing's project to integrate Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in Guangdong province into a region with more than 86 million inhabitants and an economy worth more than €1 trillion by 2023.
The competition was organised by the Macau Government's Economic and Technological Development Services and run by the Macau Parafuturo incubator and the Macau Young Entrepreneurs Incubation Centre.
The organisers stressed that the winners will be able to participate in exchanges, exhibitions and negotiations in mainland China, to "promote the joint development of technological innovation industries between China and Portuguese Language Countries".
Already today, the finalist teams have been invited to attend business networking with investors, companies, higher education institutions and incubators in Shanghai, China's economic capital, the neighbouring province of Jiangsu, and Shenzhen, the metropolis next to Hong Kong.
JYW/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
