APAPA Hosts the Startup World Cup, a Different Kind of Sport
APAPA Hosts the Startup World Cup, a Different Kind of Sport
SACRAMENTO –The Startup World Cup Competition is a unique competition that provides a platform for talented tech innovators under one roof to compete for a once-in-a-lifetime prize of $1 million!
The Asian Pacific American Public Affairs Association (APAPA) recently organized and sponsored this regional competition at the Rock & Brews Restaurant in Sacramento, California, where innovators pitched their creative business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists, CEOs, and entrepreneurs. More than 50 innovative and promising start-ups applied to this regional competition, and 10 were selected to compete. The prominent judges from this competition included: Kevin Nagle - CEO of Sacramento Republic FC; Lokesh Sikaria - Moneta Ventures Managing Partner; Mark Haney - Growth Factory Founding Partner; and John Peters – Chairman and President of the Sacramento Angels.
The voting was close, but in the end the winner of the Sacramento Startup World Cup was Matthew Magno, a Filipino-American CEO of JAPA (Just A Parking APP), which transforms parking lots into SMART parking lots. Using this convenient app, a user can identify where available parking is located using real time data.
“What an amazing night for APAPA, our sponsors, and the spectators who had a chance to hear from these great innovators under one roof! APAPA is honored to be the organizer and a partner with Pegasus Tech Ventures for this regional event, as we continue to expand our partnerships in the community,” said Henry Chang, APAPA National Director.
Next stop for is the Global Grand Final, which is billed as the largest startup competition around the world. Mr. Magno of JAPA earned a coveted spot to compete in the Global Grand Final, which will be held from September 28-30, 2022 in San Francisco. The grand finale event is a three-day fanfare with more than 2,500 investors, 500 speakers, and 50,000 attendees from around the world. The winner of the Global Grand Final will walk away with a $1 million prize. Truly the real prize is the opportunity to be in a room to network with corporate sponsors, Venture Capitalists, entrepreneurs, and CEOs.
APAPA recently launched its tech initiative which seeks to highlight the critical role of Asian Americans have played in the development of tech and innovation in the United States and to the develop the next general of AANHPI tech and innovation leaders. Over 58% of engineers in Silicon Valley (Bay Area) are Asian American, yet only about 8% are high level managers and CEOs. This shows a great opportunity for advancement for our community.
The Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association (APAPA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit headquartered in Sacramento with 53+ chapters throughout the U.S. with a mission of advancing the AANHPI communities through leadership development and increasing civic engagement.
