CALLING ALL STARTUPS! 
Great opportunity for you to get some funding if you’re passionate about doing something for the hospitality industry.

MICE coLAB 2014 is a hackathon to encourage collaboration between the MICE industry, the technology / developer community and anyone with a great idea. The aim is to develop solutions that utilise technology to enhance connectivity and improve visitor experience, while driving MICE productivity and overall profitability of the industry.

Many of us may not be familiar with the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions) industry, but it is big business. In our very own Singapore, Business Travel (BT) and MICE visitors numbered 3.35 million visitors in 2012, who spent an estimated $5.73 billion! While Singapore is rated as the number one MICE destination in many surveys, it faces increasing competition within the Asia-Pacific region, as well as challenges from rising costs. Competition from other destinations in Asia is on the rise, with investments in upgrading of technology and infrastructure.

So come to the hackathon and collaborate with people from diverse networks on new ideas to help Singapore maintain its world-leading position. Also, hear from travel and MICE industry experts, and learn from technology specialists.

Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is inviting innovators, entrepreneurs and startups to MICE coLAB 2014, a 2 day hackathon from 21-23 February. The coLAB aims to encourage collaboration between the MICE industry, the technology/developer community and anyone with a great idea to develop tech solutions for the industry. Due to strong demand from the startup community, we are announcing a special category for startups that are less than 2 years old to participate in the hackathon and showcase your ideas. You are free to make use of your existing technology to create your prototype but do note, that you will be required to build the prototype itself during the course of the weekend. You can as creative as you like – come build something as an add on to your existing technology or create one based on a new idea! COMPETE to win $1500 in cash and showcase your prototype to our panel of judges that include : Jeannie Lim | Executive Director, Conventions, Meetings & Incentive Travel, STB Arun Madhok | CEO, Suntec Oscar Cerezales | COO, Asia Pacific & Americas at MCI Group; Board Member at PCMA Ong Wee Min | Hon Secretary, SACEOS (Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers);  Executive Director of Expo Sales, Marina Bay Sands. Ng Boon Hwang | Associate (HR & Corporate Development), Meeting Matters International. PITCH your idea to the Singapore Tourism Board and tap into the Technology Tourism Fund. MEET with the Tourism Technology Fund team on Sunday, 23 February before you pitch your idea. The team will be holding a networking and Q&A session for all the startups attending the coLAB. NETWORK with heavyweights from the tourism and MICE industry as well as like-minded people from the startup community in Singapore. This is also fertile ground to recruit talented individuals to join your team. To know more, visit : http://www.upsingapore.com/mice-colab-2014/#/home Looking for prototype applications that : Enhance YourSingapore experience Develop a Singapore app or city guide to connect and enable a seamless and memorable experience for MICE travellers. Improve your MICE event experience Develop a technology-enabled solution – whether a mobile app, software application or process – to maximise the experience for visitors to MICE events. Know more about our visitors Develop technology to track and collect the visitor’s preferences, movement and transactions real-time. Pre-MICE coLab Workshop Date(s): 18th February, 2014 Time : 6.30 pm to 9pm Venue: Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre, 1 Raffles Boulevard Fee: FREE MICE coLAB 2014 Date(s): 21st to 23rd February, 2014 Time: 6.30pm, 21st Feb to 4.30pm, 23rd Feb Venue: Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre, 1 Raffles Boulevard Fee: FREE ($15 refundable deposit)