KL Startup Summit 2021 (KLSS) follows in the footsteps of Cyberjaya Startup Summit 2018 and 2019 with a slight rebrand and a new theme of “Talk Less, Do More”.
The past conferences were physical, but due to the pandemic, it’s moved completely online for now. This virtual event spans 3 days from March 26 to March 28 and kicks off with Microsoft Developer’s Day.
Everyone from developers, CEOs, IT professionals to educators, and more, are welcome to attend to learn about the latest world tech and how to use them.
That aside, the hosts have more lined up for attendees who sign up, spaced out between the next 2 remaining days.
1. A “Shark Tank” Style Pitching Session
This will be a private pitching session between you and a curated panel of investors, accelerators and market access partners.
It’s open to early-stage startups (who must have a live product), Series A startups and growth-stage startups, and applications are being taken here.
Selected startups will get to pitch to the investors on Sunday, March 28 between 1PM-5PM. This will be a private session, so there will be no audience.
With fewer pitch sessions for funding opportunities happening during the pandemic, this would be a good opportunity to show what you’ve got and impress the judges in order to drive your business’s growth.
2. Masterclass Workshops By Industry Experts
There will be a variety of workshops ranging from social media marketing to perfecting your pitch deck and hacking the conversion funnel for profit, dedicated to honing your startup management skills.
Some of the industry experts behind these workshops include Christopher Tock of social media agency SocialGrooves, Izwan Zakaria of law firm Izwan & Partners, and Arvind Patmarajah of digital ecosystem network StartFund.
One can only read so many books and theorise, but having experienced mentors showing you the ropes and outlining actionables in an hour or so could do more than days of reading.
3. Interactive Panel Sessions On Trending Topics
These panel sessions cover a variety of topics in the fields of healthtech, lawtech, fintech, blockchain, mobility tech and edtech.
You’ll get to listen to experts in their fields like DoctorOnCall CEO Maran Virumandi, Datuk Brenndon Soh, Legal Advisor to the Chief Minister of Sabah, Nizam Mohamed Nadzri, CEO of Malaysia Debt Ventures Berhad, and Howie Chang, founder of Forward School, to name a few.
The topics shared serve to provide listeners with some insight into the specific ways of how each sector is shifting and how startups can position themselves to benefit from it.
4. Talks From Stakeholders In The Startup Ecosystem
KLSS has prepared a line-up of notable figures in the Malaysian startup ecosystem to share their insights on the current landscape and how startups can adapt to the changes.
Some names are MDEC’s CEO Surina Shukri, MaGIC’s VP Khalid Yashaiya, and Stripe’s APAC Business Lead Noah Pepper.
Topics that will be covered include scaling to ASEAN and beyond, building a vibrant ecosystem, and digital transformation.
Coming from players positioned at the forefront of these movements, these talks could be beneficial in informing startups of exactly what they can do to grow in line with these stakeholders’ objectives.
Other Programmes To Benefit Startups
Those main ones aside, there will also be networking sessions at the end of the day for March 27 & 28, and a startup showcase for founders and teams to share their products and services.
During the startup showcase, KLSS also promises that it’ll be complemented by relevant services or programmes that could benefit your entrepreneurship journey.
Registering Yourself
Registration is completely free for startup founders or aspiring entrepreneurs, and you’ll get full access to everything KLSS has to offer for the 3 days it’s running.
KLSS’ organisers are hoping to see a total turn-up of about 5,000 participants, with around 2,000 being startups. With this number of people, there would be plenty of opportunities to learn from a variety of players in the ecosystem as well as chances to increase your brand exposure.
There are no strict pre-requisites to be part of the summit, and with it being completely virtual, there’s no risk of exposure to the COVID-19 virus either.
Each day of the event will be filled with programmes that run from morning to evening, so be sure to clear your calendars. To add, you can plan your attendance and filter your interests by checking out the current agenda here.
- You can learn more about KLSS here, and get your free tickets here.
- You can read about other startup summits we’ve covered here.
Featured Image Credit: Inbaraj Suppiah, Summit Director of KLSS 2021
