MySmartFarm wins at IBM SmartCamp

MySmartFarm will now represent Africa in the regional finals of IBM SmartCamp in Istanbul, Turkey on 30 and 31 October 2013. In preparation for this regional competition they will gain support and mentorship from IBM's team of experts as well as benefit from the exposure to the venture capital and IBM's Business Partner ecosystem.

IBM SmartCamp events are designed to spark innovation and help startups companies bring technologies that tackle some of the world's most pressing issues to market faster. The events are staged in more than 20 different locations around the world, bringing together investors, mentors and entrepreneurs.

Conducted within the Tech4Africa Conference the finalists of IBM SmartCamp Africa presented their innovative businesses aligned with IBM's Smarter Planet strategy to an accomplished panel of judges including Paul Brunet (IBM), Brett Commaille (AngelHub), Raluca Pauna (Institute of Inventors & Innovators) and Anton Potgieter (Huge Group Ltd).

High-tech agricultural services

MySmartFarm has been operating since 2012 and have developed the "first ever" consolidation of high-tech agricultural services. "Our cloud-based solution will mine agricultural data like weather, soil moisture, satellite data and more. Essentially, we have designed a system that collates and collects all the data that a farmer needs and then not only illustrate it appealingly, but also processes it to generate intelligence," says Wolfgang von Loeper, Founder and CEO of MySmartFarm

"MySmartFarm and all the finalists of IBM SmartCamp demonstrated the kind of great technology innovation Africa is becoming renowned for - initiative and get totally practical. MySmartFarm 's solution is sophisticatedly simple, addresses a unique need in the market and is infinitely scalable which demonstrates the global aspirations we'd like to encourage in our partner start-ups. What's more exciting is that their business model and future plans are solid and will definitely attract positive attention from the investment community to help accelerate their commercial aspirations," says Clayton Booysen, Ecosystem Development Lead for IBM South Africa.

"We are excited about being part of helping MySmartFarm and being able to take them to the next level in their business venture," adds Booysen.

Gareth Knight, founder of Tech4Africa commented that part of MySmartFarm success at IBM SmartCamp Africa was their ability to find something that provides value.

Elegant solutions

"There are many problems people face in emerging markets, and they all need elegant solutions. And despite the misperceptions that abound there is no shortage of investors or money, only shortages of good people, scalable and executable opportunities. MySmartFarm presented themselves as a company that can execute and scale, and have a solution that people will use. Good luck to them, " adds Knight.

Startups who participate in IBM's Global Entrepreneur initiative receive access to free software, as well as a team of dedicated project managers to assist in product development through the global network of 40 IBM Innovation Centers.

For more, go to www.ibmsmartcamp.com.