Start IT with Etisalat are on the lookout for this year’s batch of aspiring Egyptian entrepreneurs.

The initiative, held by the Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (TIEC) alongside Etisalat, aims to provide constant support to young Egyptian startups whose products or ideas are innovative in the fields of Internet of Things (IoT) or Big Data.

Interested applicants have the option of choosing one among six main challenges to tackle during the boot camp phase, where a maximum of 20 teams will elaborate their ideas with the help of experienced mentors and coaches so they would meet market demand.

The Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data take center stage in the following challenges:

• Gamification: Create an innovative game on social media/application encouraging users to subscribe and engage.

• Smart Electricity Meter: Build a platform allowing users to better monitor their energy consumption (UX, notifications, payments,etc…)

• My Organizer: Create an app/platform that suits today’s mobile citizen by providing him with curated news and media content.

• Fitness and Healthcare: Build the next activity tracker application; people with a healthy lifestyle have more data at their hands on their activity rates and daily physical behavior.

• Smart City: Implement IoT technologies in urban designing the cities of the future.

• Smart Silos: Find ways IoT can reduce losses in postharvest processing in a way that ensures proper distribution.

Only 10 teams will be chosen from the bootcamp to proceed with the pre-incubation phase which is only a secondary step towards the full-fledged ten-month incubation period at TIEC’s premises.

During the pre-incubation phase, startups will continue to work on their innovations, as experts and mentors from Etisalat and TIEC provide closer assistance to improve the participants’ performance by giving technical support with tools and devices provided by Etisalat.

The final part of the initiative includes a ten-month incubation period, where only 2 participating finalists are given the opportunity to realize their projects over at TIEC’s offices with the expertise and equipment needed, totaling in-kind services value up to 120,000 EGP.

The deadline for this year’s round is June 30 2016.

There is more information on eligibility criteria and evaluation process on the website, make sure to register here.