Mr Lee Kuan Yew
First Prime Minister of Singapore

The Global Stage for University Startups

Inspired by one of the world’s most visionary leaders, the Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) is one of the world’s largest deep-tech university startup challenges. Every two years, our pitch competition lights up a global stage for university startups to showcase their groundbreaking innovations and connect with the world, fueling their growth.

Powered by Singapore Management University’s Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SMU IIE), we have fostered a global youth innovation village and launched countless successful ventures solving real-world challenges since 2002.

11th LKYGBPC Statistics

1,100
Universities
77
Countries
>1,000
Pitch Submissions
>28,000
local and international participants
>S$2.5M
worth of prizes

Focus Areas

Carbon Tech

Solutions to capture, utilize, reduce, or store carbon dioxide, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and leverage data to optimize carbon management, ESG reporting and financing strategies.

Climate Tech

Climate tech utilises climate-resilient infrastructure to reduce emissions and support sustainable development.

Energy Transitions

Advancements in energy generation, storage, transmission, and distribution to facilitate the shift toward renewable sources to enhance grid resilience, optimize energy use, and ensure access to clean energy.

Food & Land Use

Innovative solutions promoting sustainable farming and alternative protein sources that enhance food security and minimise environmental impact.

Green Buildings & Constructions

Energy-efficient materials, smart technologies, and sustainable designs that reduce resource consumption and emissions.

Homeland Security

Advanced surveillance, AI, and cybersecurity solutions that strengthen national resilience and enhance rapid-response capabilities by safeguarding critical infrastructure and public spaces.

Public Health

Digital health, AI and other tech solutions that boost patient outcomes and enhance healthcare access, preventive care and overall community wellness.

Sustainable Materials & Circularity

Innovative materials and recycling technologies that promote renewable resources, extend product life cycles, and reduce waste, enabling closed-loop systems.

Transport & Logistics

Smarter transport networks based on EV infrastructure and mobility optimisation that optimise efficiency, reduce emissions and streamline logistics operations.

Urban Mobility Solutions

Urban mobility technologies such as autonomous vehicles and AI serve to optimise traffic, reduce congestion, and lower carbon emissions.

Water Solutions

Innovations in purification, harness real-time monitoring and AI-driven analysitcs to ensure access to clean water, optimise water usage, detect leaks, and minimise waste.

Emerging Tech

Advances in science and technologies addressing urban solutions and sustainability that ultimately have a positive impact on people, health, environment and the planet.

Prizes

Lee Kuan Yew Beta Prize
S$100,000
Cash Prize

Lee Kuan Yew Beta Prize
S$100,000
Cash Prize

Lee Kuan Yew Beta Prize
S$100,000
Cash Prize

Lee Kuan Yew Beta Prize
S$100,000
Cash Prize

Alumni Spotlight

Virtetic CEO Ricardo Garcia-Rosas (left) with co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Raphael Maria Mayer

Chicken Rice, Kaya Toast and Expansion into Asia

Published on

How the Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan competition has enriched the life of Australian Ricardo Garcia-Rosas and his startup Virtetic.

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Giorgi on stage

A Lifetime Highlight in Singapore for a Founder of a German Startup

Published on

The Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition 2023 was a turning point for biotech startup MEDEA Biopharma. A year after the competition founder Giorgi Khubua still fondly calls it the “happiest time of his life”.

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Get Involved

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As a STARTUP

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