iSpark Idea and Prototype Competition 


TAR UMT Hosts Two-Day International Pitching Competition Amidst the Pandemic Situation

Author: Dr. Bradley Ho Chee Yuen

Affiliation: Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT), Malaysia.


Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT) successfully organised and hosted the inaugural iSpark International Pitching Competition (IIPC) 2021 on 25 and 26 October 2021, in conjunction with the International Conference on Digital Exchange and Applications (ICDXA). The competition buzzed with an air of excitement despite it being held online as international borders remained closed amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.


This competition witnessed a total of 19 finalist teams from Iran, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam, presenting their ideas to a panel of 14 judges consisting of academicians and industry leaders. The participants were judged meticulously based on the criteria set by the IIPC Organising Committee.


Blowing the judges away with their novelty, scalability and close attention to the goals outlined in the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the team from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Vietnam was named the overall Champion of IIPC 2021 with their innovation “Edible Films for Instant Foods”. Second and third places were awarded to University of Indonesia, Indonesia (Mini Precision Agriculture Swarm Bots Services) and TAR UMT (Wanderer) respectively, while Universitas Tarumanagara, Indonesia (CUBE), TAR UMT (Roomus), and Universitas Tarumanagara, Indonesia (Kawan Jahit) were awarded consolation prizes.



The iSpark Idea and Prototype Competition – Final Competition was held on 9 May 2023. The event was graced by Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei, President of TAR UMT and Assoc Prof Dr Loke Chui Fung, Vice President, TAR UMT.

We celebrate this important entrepreneurship milestone with the following announcement:

Winners of the iSpark Idea and Prototype Competition 2023

Champion:

• Face Recognition for Kindergarten Security Application (FOET)

2nd Prize:

• Wastepaper Materials as Infill Material for Flush Door (FOBE)

3rd Prize:

• Organic Approach to Microgreens (FOAS)

Consolation Prizes:

• 4% Café (FAFB)

• AI Generated Ads Text for F7B Industry (FOCS)

• Codevio (Alumnus)

• Conversion of Nyonya Kuih Waste into Single Cell Protein (FOAS)

• Keluar Bar (FAFB)

• Leafy Lane (FAFB)

• Makan Apa Je Café (FAFB)

• Mobile App for Bottle Counting Using  Deep Learning (FOCS)

• Mobile App for Face Recognition  and Liveness Detection (FOCS)

• ProPeanut Butter (FOAS)

Thank you to the following Panel of Judges for your contribution and support:

• Dr Keong Chee Sheng, Senior Lecturer, CPUS, TAR UMT

• Mr Hanco Yap, Vice President, Junior Chamber International Kuala Lumpur Mandarin

• Mr Jackie Tan, Executive Council Member, TARCian Alumni Assiciation

• Mr Vincent Hor, Executive Director, Corporate Orient

We would also like to thank all the senior management staff of TAR UMT, external industry leaders, academicians, and students for attending and supporting this iSpark event.

See you all soon in other TAR UMT’s events.