Apr 14 2017
FIBRES: Startup Autobahn is about direct sales opportunities
This time we go behind the scenes of Fibres’s innovation journey at Startup Autobahn Program #2. Panu Kause, the founder and CEO gave us an insight into their groundbreaking AI development which will be showcased at our EXPO Day on July 25th.
One month ago we started ourAcceleration Program #2at Startup Autobahn. 300 startups applied for the program andthe best 28 startups were acceptedto shape the future of mobility with Daimler, HPE, Porsche, BASF, ZF and Murata.
FIBRES – one of our startups selected for Startup Autobahn Program#2- is a user-friendly business application for collaborative trend management and strategy execution. TheFinnishstartup aims to become the world’s favorite platform for hybrid foresight and smart strategies. FIBRES is now set to combine crowd collaboration with world-leading artificial intelligence for identification of emerging trends and new opportunities.
Why did you join Startup Autobahn (SA) and what are your expectations from the program?
We applied after already being in discussions with one of the corporate partners, who suggested we’d apply to join in Program 2. We feel they saw the potential of FIBRES not only for themselves but for the other corporate partners as well, since our software is industry-independent and helps in tracking market trends and identifying new opportunities at any corporation.
Based on our experience, the problem with building true strategic foresight really is not about too little data, but about how to analyze and summarize vast amounts of information such as trend reports and research papers, newspieces, weak signal observations, and so on. FIBRES can truly help with that and I trust this ultimately is the reason why were accepted into the Program.
Our primary expectations are in line with the above: we wish to engage in commercial arrangements with some of the other partners as well, and to get a further boost for our international growth.
What do you like the most about the SA program?
From our point of, the possibility to meet and discuss with top executives of such great companies – the corporate partners and beyond – is the program’s key value for us. This is both about direct sales opportunities, and about getting honest immediate feedback from world-class corporations. Being part of a Startup Autobahn offers a chance on having discussions with organizations that would be difficult to get in contact with directly otherwise.
Also I must add, we’ve already had the great pleasure of meeting really cool people from the other startups and mentors alike: seems to me some of these may be friends for life, and some will most likely result in partnering in some development areas for mutual benefit.
In your opinion what makes Startup Autobahn different from other accelerator programs?
We’ve never been part of other programs, so a bit hard to tell. However, repeating what I just said, the possibility to instantly meet and discuss with top execs of several corporations is not something every program can bring to the table.
What are you planning to showcase on the EXPO Day?
We will be showcasing a whole new release of our FIBRES software, developed with the support from at least one of the corporate partners. FIBRES is then the first strategic management software enabling ‘hybrid foresight’: combining human insight and AI capabilities for the purposes of better understanding of on-going and emerging trends and their expected impacts onto one’s own business. We will show a tool for those who want to stay curious, to understand the potential futures for their businesses, to find new opportunities in the rapidly changing business environment.
Do you want to learn more about Startup Autobahn Program #2 startups? Check out our interviews withJetliteand KREATIZE!