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Trailblazers - Judges

The Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) is honoured to onboard an esteemed international judging panel comprising leaders from industry, academia, venture capital firms, and government establishments.

The mission of LKYGBPC is to identify the revolutionary top 50 or RVTL50 deep-tech university startups from thousands of global applicants—and to celebrate the most influential change-makers within this group. The panel of international judges plays a critical role in upholding the highest standards of evaluation, ensuring a rigorous and impartial selection process.

A subset of the over 200 international judges supporting the LKYGBPC is featured below.


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Mario Fernandez
Head of Catalyst
Breakthrough Energy [US]

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Joyce Ng
General Partner
iGlobe Partners [Singapore]

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Cyril Ebersweiler
General Partner
SOSV [Singapore]

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Daniel TAY
VP, Emerging Technologies
Temasek

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Prof Shlomo Magdassi
Professor of Chemistry
Hebrew University of Jerusalem [Israel]

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Prof Catherine Morency
Canada Research Chair in the Mobility of People
Polytechnique Montréal [Canada]

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Prof Paul Davidson
Director, Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation
UIUC [US]

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Prof Romildo D. Toledo Filho
CEO
UFRJ Science Park [Brazil]

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Ms Leslie ZAMBELLI
Asia Senior Investment Director for Environment / Sustainable Development
Schneider Electric [Singapore]

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Karndee LEOPAIROTE
Executive Vice President
Foresight and Innovation, FutureTales Lab, MQDC [Thailand]

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Dr Lee Shiang Long
Group CTO
ST Engineering [Singapore]

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Genevieve Soh
Chief Product & Strategy Officer
Climate Impact X [Singapore]

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Frank Levinson
Co-Founder and General Partner
Convergent Ventures [US]

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Shingo Hori
Managing Director
Kajima Ventures Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Dr LEE Song Hao
Founder
Evovets

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James Tang
Partner
Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers (KPCB) [China]

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Prof Tuuli Toivonen
Professor
University of Helsinki [Finland]

Prof Carolina Rojas Quezada
Director of R&D
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile [Chile]

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Prof Kerry Kirwan
Deputy Pro-Vice Cancellor (Research)
University of Warwich [UK]

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Prof Neven Duić
Power Engineering and Energy Management Chair
University of Zagreb [Croatia]

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Wanweera Rachdawong
CEO
Thailand Management Association (TMA) [Thailand]

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Caroline Liow
Managing Director
Deutsche Bank [Singapore]

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Seungho Lee
CEO
DeltaTech-Korea [South Korea]

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Jose Arnulfo Batac
Senior Assistant Vice President - Corporate Ventures
Metaworld Corporation [Philippines]

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Jeffrey Paine
Founding Managing Partner
Golden Gate Ventures [Singapore]

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Farhan Firdaus
Partner
Meet Ventures [Singapore]

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Neha Poddar
Partner
Good Startup [Singapore]

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Andrew Hyung
General Partner
Valuence Ventures [US]

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Prof. Hadas Mamane
Professor
Tel Aviv U [Israel]

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Dr Chun-Ting LIN
COO, Operations Center for Industry Collaboration
National Tsing Hua University [Taiwan]

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Prof Peter D. Lund
Professor, Department of Applied Physics and Professor
Aalto University [Finland]

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Prof George Georghiou
Professor and Director
University of Cyprus [Cyprus]

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David Golding
Head of Global Innovation Partnerships
Innovate UK [UK]

Mr NG Keng Wei
Group Director & CTO
NEA [Singapore]

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Dr Einar Olavi MANTYLA
CEO
Auðna Tæknitorg (TTO Iceland) [Iceland]

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Dr Ng Wai Kiong
Executive Director, ISCE2
A*STAR [Singapore]

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Prof Lee Pooi See
Vice President (International Engagement) President's Chair in Materials Science and Engineering Professor, School of Materials Science & Engineering
NTU [Singapore]

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Prof Xiwang Zhang
Director of UQ Dow Centre, and Director of ARC Centre of Excellence for Electrochemical Transformation of Carbon Dioxide (GetCO2)
University of Queensland [Australia]

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Dr Nikhil Agarwal
Managing Director, FITT-IITDelhi
Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi [India]

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Prof. Stephen Cummings
Professor of Innovation
Victoria University of Wellington [New Zealand]

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Karen Ng
Chief of Staff
ENGIE South East Asia [Singapore]

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Guah Eng Hock
Director
SG Enviro Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Ryan Chaw
Senior Director, Global Scouting, Global Strategy and Corporate Development
The Coca Cola Company [Singapore]

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Jordi Rafols
CEO
Innoget [Spain]

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Dr Chung-Chih Wu
Vice President, R&D
National Taiwan University [Taiwan]

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Prof. Dr. Habibah Wahab
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation
Universiti Sains Malaysia [Malaysia]

Prof Ivan Lee
Vice President
SIT [Singapore]

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Dr Haji Masairol Haji Masri
Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Industry Engagement and Enterprise Development)
Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) [Brunei Darussalam]

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Sanjay Velappan
Investor
Berkeley SkyDeck Fund [US]

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Tim Zhang
Vice President
GIC [Singapore]

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Mr PHEY Teck Moh
Partner & Co-founder
AngelCentral [Singapore]

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Axel Tan
Venture Partner
IMC Ventures [Singapore]

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Dr Kim Shin Cheul
Associate VP for Research & Development (Knowledge Transfer)
The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology [Hong Kong]

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Prof Robert Rosner
Professor, Departments of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Physics; Enrico Fermi Institute
U of Chicago [US]

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Dr Reem AL-FAYEZ
Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center
University of Jordan [Jordan]

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Prof Subodh Mhaisalkar
Executive Director for Academic Research
National Research Foundation [Singapore]

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Mr George POH
CEO
Unisteel Technology Ltd [Singapore]

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Dr. Elif Güngör Reis
Board Member
AREL TEKMER [Turkey]

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Mr Alex SZABO
Partner & Managing Director
Stryber [Singapore]

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Dr. Agus Muhamad Hatta
Vice Rector for Research, Innovation, Cooperation, and Alumni
Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) [Indonesia]

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Ir Prof Anderson H.C. Shum
Vice-President (Research)
City University of Hong Kong [Hong Kong]

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Dr Sovila Srun
Director
Royal University of Phnom Penh [Cambodia]

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Apiwat Thongprasert
Managing Director
VISUP / VISTEC [Thailand]

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Dr WONG Mun Yew
Managing Partner
Greenwillow Capital Management [Singapore]

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Terence Teo
Senior Principal, Investments
EDBI Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Kirby Leo
Managing Director
Principled Investments [Singapore]

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Pang Chan Yip
Executive Director
Vertex Ventures [Singapore]

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Prof. em. Dr. Ralph Eichler
Professor Emeritus at the Department of Physics
ETH Zurich [Switzerland]

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Prof M.N. Kaumal
Director, University Business Linkage (UBL)
University of Colombo [Sri Lanka]

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Dr. Heba KAOUD
Director Of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Office (IPTTO)
Nile University [Egypt]

Prof Ariuntsetseg Lkhagva
Professor, Department of Biology
National University of Mongolia [Mongolia]

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Sandra Speer
Head of the Transfer Center enaCom
Universität Bonn [Germany]

Prof Osamu Watanabe
President
INPIT [Japan]

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Dr Jonathan Low
Assistant CEO
ARTC [Singapore]

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Dr Niclas NILSSON
Director of Innovation
Lund University [Sweden]

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NG Choon Peng
Co-founder / CEO
ImmunoScape [Singapore]

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Johnson Paul
Director, Group Strategy, Business Development
Meinhardt Singapore Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Matthew Choo
Director
NTUC Congress [Singapore]

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David Lee
Independent Non-Executive Director
Maybank Singapore Ltd [Singapore]

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Dr Wanwipa (Jeab) S
Deal Partner
Vectors Capital [Thailand]

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Douglas PERIS
Partner
Founders Bridge [Singapore]

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Vadim SHPAK
Operating Managing Director
Vickers Venture Partners [Singapore]

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Prof. Christopher Gordon
Professor
University of Ghana [Ghana]

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Dr Pham Tan Thi
Director
HCMUT [Vietnam]

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Martin Spraggon Hernandez
Dean / Professor
Canadian University Dubai [United Arab Emirates]

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Dr Jifeng ZHANG
Director, Smart Energy Research Center
Yangtze Delta Region Instiute of Tsinghua University [China]

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Ms Av. İdil Hazer
Director, Technology Transfer Office
Middle East Technical University [Turkey]

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Ms Caroline ARUOJA
Manager, TalTech Startup Centre
Tallinn University of Technology [Estonia]

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Mr Alvaro Ossa Daruich
Director Innovación
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile [Chile]

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Dr Chava V. Saradhi
Deputy Director
NTUitive Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Mr Clarence TAN
Founder
Origgin Ventures Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Shawn TAN
General Partner
TRIVE Digital [Singapore]

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Kevin MOON
Investment Director
Amand Ventures [Singapore]

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Shwetank VERMA
Managing Partner
Leo Capital [Singapore]

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Naveen ASRANI
Head - Strategic Product & Growth, Digital Native Businesses and Software
Amazon Web Services Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Kirill PERFILIEV
SVP
NTUC Enterprise [Singapore]

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Patrick LIM
CEO
Action Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE) [Singapore]

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Shankar KRISHNAMOORTHY
Co-Founder and Director
Aspire Systems Global Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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NEO Weisheng
Partner
Qualgro Partners [Singapore]

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Ben CHEAH
Partner
Innoven Capital SEA [Singapore]

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BOBBY MAHASITH
CEO & Founder
GreenrocketVC [Singapore]

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Dr Ngin Hoon Tong
Senior Director
SFA [Singapore]

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Dr Nedeljko Milosavljević
Co Director
Labena Ventures [Serbia]

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Dr Ang Yee Gary
Consultant
National Healthcare Group [Singapore]

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Mr Rohan McDougall
Director of IP Commercialisation
Curtin University [Australia]

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Marek DAWIDOWICZ
YouTube Marketing Director
Google [Singapore]

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Amit KAISTHA
Global Head of Partnerships
Qapita Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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TAY Kok Chin
Executive Director
Smart Cities Council [Singapore]

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Mr David YIN
Partner
GSR Ventures [Singapore]

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Mr Anand GOVINDALURI
Founding Director & CEO
Govin Capital [Singapore]

Raymond Choong
Venture Partner
Focus Tech Ventures [Singapore]

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Ghanshyam AHUJA
Managing Partner
Thinkuvate Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Harish METHIL
Managing Director
AmpUp Advisory Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Timo UUSTAL
Co-Founder / CEO
Nursebeam [Singapore]

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Ryan Lim
Founding Partner
QED Changemakers [Singapore]

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Mr Bjørn SIMONSEN
Science & Technology Counsellor
Innovation Norway [Norway]

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Manish SINHA
Director & Head of Venture Building
NTUitive Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Dr Kevin CHEONG
Adjunct Faculty
SMU [Singapore]

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Dr Jonathan CHANG
CEO
HeritageSG [Singapore]

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Andre Stolz
MD and Co-Founder
Budding Innovation [Singapore]

Mr Xander SIM
Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer
Cell-ID, i3.lab [Singapore]

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Dr Dien PANDIMAN
Executive Director
Pidilite Industries Limited [Singapore]

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Kris CHILDRESS
Consultant
Kris Consulting [Singapore]

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YEE Chong Moon
Head of Commercial, Tech & Durables
NielsenIQ [Singapore]

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Chris POWELL
Deputy Director
NTU [Singapore]

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Pietro BORSANO
Deputy Executive Director, Industrial & Global Alliances
Chulalongkorn University [Thailand]

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Chris YEO
CEO
Doku [Singapore]

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Dr Yousif ASFOUR
Chief Innovation & Transformation Officer
American Univeristy of Beirut [Lebanon]

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Oliver KWAN
Founder & CEO
Motion G [Singapore]

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Ghislain LE CHATELIER
Founder & CEO
Edgile [Singapore]

Luca SCHNETTLER
Group CEO
Qumata Group [Singapore]

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Reynold D'SILVA
CEO
Chope [Singapore]

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Sri MANDALAPARTHY
Tech Due Diligence, Growth & Transformation Leader
C2F Corp Strategic Advisory & Execution [US]

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Naotaka ISHIZAWA
General Manager
Innovation Promotion Group [Japan]

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Jayanth BHUVARAGHAN
Founder
The PDG Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Oliver LU
Partner
Innoangel Fund [China]

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Filippo GIACHI
Founder
SustainX Ventures [Singapore]

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Tatiana SIUFI
Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer
Vidacity [Singapore]

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Mogan SUBRAMANIAM
MD
GrowthTech Insights [Singapore]

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Jerahmeel B. CHEN
Chief Innovation Officer
National Development Company (NDC) [Philippines]

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Prof. Sangam Shrestha
Dean of School of Engineering and Technology Director Global Water Sanitation Center Professor of Water Engineering and Management
Asian Institute of Technology [Thailand]

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Ronald ANG
Venture Builder
Stryber [Singapore]

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Dr TAN Yong-Tsong
CEO
Bluefield Renewable Energy [Singapore]

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Arnaud BLANDIN
Founder
The Beyond Institute [France]

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Prof Frank ROTHAERMEL
Regents' Professor
Georgia Institute of Technology [US]

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Prof Dongmin CHEN
Director, Tsientang Materials Research Laboratory, Emeritus Professor
Peking University [China]

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Dr. Hala Madanat
Division of Health Promotion and Behavioral Science Distinguished Professor Vice President for Research and Innovation
SDSU (San Diego State University) [US]

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Ms Yoonmin CHO
Partner
Sopoong Ventures [South Korea]

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Mr Veravej ORNTHANALAI
Managing Director
IDG Thailand [Thailand]

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Ms Radiana SOH
Director, Innovation & Enterprise
A*STAR [Singapore]

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Mr Jelmer IKINK
Founding Partner
Foxmont Capital Partners [Philippines]

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Dr Howard CALIFANO
Director
Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research & Technology [Singapore]

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Dr. Ajjaree (Kwan) Limpamont
Assistant Professor
The International School of Management (ISM), University of Thai Chamber of Commerce

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Anand Govindaluri
Group Chief Executive Officer
Govin Holdings

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Armen R. Kherlopian, Ph.D.
CEO & Partner
Covenant Venture Capital

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Paolo Nalin
Co-Founder & CEO
Hydroemission

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Jakkrit Thavorn, Ph.D
Faculty Member, Department of Organization, Entrepreneurship and HR Management
Thammasat University

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Ravi Arora
Vice President, Group Innovation
Tata Sons Limited

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Patrick Ng
Executive Director
PS Energy

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Rina Lim
Head
NUHS Centre for Innovation in Healthcare

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Dennis LING
Senior Director, Innovation & Enterprsie
Singapore University of Technology and Design [Singapore]

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Dr TAN Sian Wee
Senior Vice President, Innovation & Enterprise
National University of Singapore [Singapore]

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Mr David TOH
CEO
NTUitive Pte Ltd [Singapore]

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Dr SZE Tiam Lin
Senior Licensing Advisor
Singapore Management University [Singapore]

Trailblazers - Advisory Committee

Guiding the course of the competition is our eminent advisory committee comprising industry luminaries. Their invaluable counsel navigates us towards maximizing the impact of the competition while their strategic vision provides crucial direction. Each member of our committee is a distinguished authority in their respective field, offering unparalleled expertise.


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Shirley Wong
Entrepreneur-in-Residence, SMU Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship & Managing Partner
TNF Ventures Pte Ltd

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Jixun Foo
Senior Managing Partner
Granite Asia

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David Golding
Head of Global Innovation Partnerships
Innovate UK

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Lim Eng Hwee
Chief Executive Officer
Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA)

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Lim Teck Kiat
Deputy Secretary (Resilience)
Ministry for Sustainability ​and the Environment​

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Prof Shlomo Magdassi
Professor of Chemistry
Hebrew University of Jerusalem

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Jacqueline Poh
Chief Executive Officer
JTC Corporation

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Cher Heng Tan
Group Chief Research and Innovation Officer
National Healthcare Group

Professor Yaacob Ibrahim, Adjunct Professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (NUS), is an Advisor to SIT’s President and founding Director of CLASIC. He was Singapore’s Minister-in-charge of Cybersecurity (2015–2018), Minister for Communications and Information (2011–2018), Environment and Water Resources (2004–2011), and Community Development and Sports (2002–2004). He served as Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs for 16 years and as MP (1997–2020).

Sugandhi is the Chief Impact Officer of Singapore's impact investing private equity firm ABC Impact, a member of Temasek Trust Asset Management, with AuM of ~US$850m. The firm strives to deliver compelling market rate risk-adjusted financial returns alongside evidence-based, positive and measurable impact to society and the environment. As Chief Impact Officer, Sugandhi leads the firm’s approach towards assessing, measuring, consolidating and driving impact outcomes across its portfolio companies. She also invests for the firm in South and South East Asia.

Trailblazers - Mentors

Mentorship: The bridge between potential and performance.

Each edition, we assemble a powerhouse of industry leaders, entrepreneurs, academics and investors who generously share their expertise and networks with aspiring startups. This invaluable mentorship empowers our participants to stand on the shoulders of giants to leverage real-world wisdom, overcome challenges, and soar even higher. 

  

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Jeremy Goon
Chief Sustainability Officer
Wilmar International

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Peter Ho
Executive Chairman
HOPE Technik

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Professor Yaacob Ibrahim
Advisor to President of SIT
Singapore Institute of Technology

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Gary Kunis
Former Chief Science Officer
CISCO Systems

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Kheng Nam Lee
Deputy Chairman
Vertex Holdings

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Michele Lemmens
CTO & Head of Business Sustainability for APAC
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

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Hugh Lim
Executive Director
Centre for Liveable Cities

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Liu Xiaowei
Asia Director & Senior Advisor to Secretary General
World Energy Council

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Sugandhi Matta
Chief Impact Officer
abc IMPACT

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Wong Wai Meng
Chief Executive Officer (Data Centres), Data Centres & Networks Division
Keppel Data Centres Holding Pte Ltd

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Ivan Ng
Chief Technology Officer
City Developments Limited

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Andrew Tan
Former Managing Director / Operating Partner
Temasek International

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Pauline Tay
Director
National Health Innovation Centre (NHIC)

Competition Information

The inaugural edition of the Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) was held in 2002.

Named in honour of Singapore’s founding Prime Minister - who can be said to have developed the country’s defining business plan in pitching Singapore into the global spotlight –it was one of the first international business plan competition platforms for the world’s best and brightest next-gen innovators to solve global challenges.

In over two decades since, the competition, which is held every two years, has grown leaps and bounds: From just over 200 submissions from 74 tertiary institutions in 2002, to 1,000 submissions from 1,100 institutions in 2023.

Today, LKYGBPC is a recognised beacon of excellence in global youth innovation. As one of Asia's most globally representative and exciting deep-tech startup challenges, hundreds of next-gen entrepreneurs and leaders in the global innovation ecosystem converge in Singapore for an exciting week of live pitches, networking, mentorship and learning.

Beyond the competition, the platform has become a launchpad for a rising tide of alumni who are continually innovating to make the world a better place.

Prizes





Key Dates

1


CALL FOR APPLICATION | 6 JAN - 30 APR 2025

  • ROADSHOWS (LOCAL)
  • ROADSHOWS (INTERNATIONAL)
  • (NEW) DUEAI CHALLENGE
2


SHORTLISTING | MAY - JUN 2025

3


MENTORSHIP | AUG 2025

4

GRAND FINALS WEEK | 29 SEP - 2 OCT 2025

  • OPENING CEREMONY
  • VC OFFICE HOURS
  • MEET THE CORPORATES
  • CATEGORY FINALS
  • GRAND FINALS
  • BLAZE MIXER NIGHT
  • (NEW) BUSINESS FAMILIES @LKYGBPC
  • (NEW) LKYGBPC MENTOR SENATE


Rules

  • Each team / startup must have at least one founder, who is a current student or recent alumnus / alumna of a university who graduated within the past 5 years.
  • A “current student” is an individual who is currently enrolled full-time in a polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD programme at a tertiary institution as of 30 April 2025. “Alumni of less than 5 years” is defined as any person who graduated from a tertiary institute from 31 March 2020 onwards
  • There is no restriction on the number of members in a team or company.

Teams will be evaluated based on the following:

  • Innovativeness
  • Commercial Feasibility
  • Impact of Idea
  • Capability to Execute

The following materials will be required for your application during the Preliminary Round. Failure to submit the materials online by the announced deadline will result in disqualification. 

  • Executive Summary
    • Not more than 500 words, in pdf
    • File should be named in this format: Summary_TeamName.pdf
  • Pitch Deck Presentation
    • Not more than 20 slides, in pdf
    • File should be named in this format: Presentation_TeamName.pdf
  • Video presentation (Optional) 
    • This is encouraged but not required.
    • Video should be no longer than 5 minutes with preference for mp4.
    • File should be named in this format: Video_TeamName.mp4

All submitted materials must be the original work of the participating team.

Each team is eligible to submit one idea. In the event of multiple submissions by a team, the last submission made by the team by the deadline will be considered for evaluation.

All submitted executive summary and pitch deck presentation can only be in English.

All timings indicated are in the Singapore time zone (+0800 GMT).

Categories

Category 0 to 1:

Pre-revenue teams driving commercialization opportunities with transformative potential in urban solutions and sustainability

  • Academic research that drives groundbreaking deep-tech solutions, fostering commercialisation opportunities to tackle challenges in urban solutions and sustainability. These innovations may still require validation but promise transformative impact.
  • Team is in initial phases of ideation up to having a minimum viable product (MVP) that has yet to be launched in the market
  • Each team / startup must have at least one founder, who is a current student or recent alumnus / alumna of a university who graduated within the past 5 years.
  • A “current student” is an individual who is currently enrolled full-time in a polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD programme at a tertiary institution as of 30 April 2025. “Alumni of less than 5 years” is defined as any person who graduated from a tertiary institute from 31 March 2020 onwards.
  • Individuals who were previously enrolled full-time in any of the programmes, but who dropped out between 31 March 2020 and 30 April 2025, are also eligible to apply.
  • There is no restriction on the number of members in a team or company.

Category 1 to Infinity:

Revenue-generating early stage start-ups, up to Series A

  • Startup is in the phase of initial sales or looking to scale
  • The product or service has launched in the market, and the startup is seeking its next customer(s) and/or to enter a new market
  • Each team / startup must have at least one founder, who is a current student or recent alumnus / alumna of a university who graduated within the past 5 years.
  • A “current student” is an individual who is currently enrolled full-time in a polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD programme at a tertiary institution as of 30 April 2025. “Alumni of less than 5 years” is defined as any person who graduated from a tertiary institute from 31 March 2020 onwards.
  • Individuals who were previously enrolled full-time in any of the programmes, but who dropped out between 31 March 2020 and 30 April 2025, are also eligible to apply.
  • There is no restriction on the number of members in a team or company.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

The Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) is an international competition designed to inspire and empower young entrepreneurs. It provides a platform for students and startups to present their innovative business ideas to industry leaders, investors, and potential partners.

2,500 Best Minds represents the peer learning network at the heart of the Lee Kuan Yew Global Business Plan Competition (LKYGBPC) — bringing together visionary founders with mentors, judges, and industry leaders to exchange ideas, share insights, and scale their innovations. Together, they power 1 Epic Competition—a global deep-tech platform that fosters collaboration, accelerates learning, and empowers the next generation of changemakers to tackle the world’s most pressing urban and sustainability challenges.

This competition is open to all next gen startup founders. To be eligible, the team or startup must have at least one founder who is a current tertiary student or a recent tertiary graduate (within the last five years). 

Category and Composition

Category 0 to 1: Pre-revenue teams/startups with novel technology or business model innovations

  • Technology innovations that have emerged from academic research with commercialisation opportunities that may or may not be fully validated
  • Innovative business models that may or may not be fully validated
  • Team is in initial phases of ideation up to having a minimum viable product (MVP) that has yet to be launched in the market
  • Each team / startup must have at least one founder, who is a current student or recent alumni of less than 5 years.
  • “Current student” is defined as any person who is enrolled in a full-time polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD programme at a tertiary institute.
  • “Alumni of less than 5 years” is defined as any person who has graduated at a tertiary institute from 31 March 2020 onwards.
  • Persons who were previously enrolled full-time in a polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD program but dropped out between 31 March 2020 and 30 April 2025 are also eligible to apply.
  • There is no restriction on the number of members in a team or company

Category 1 to Infinity: Revenue-generating early stage start-ups, up to Series A

  • Startup is in phases of initial sales or looking to scale
  • Typically, product or service has launched in the market, and is seeking their next customer(s) and/or to enter a new market
  • Each team / startup must have at least one founder, who is a current student or recent alumni of less than 5 years.
  • “Current student” is defined as any person who is enrolled in a full-time polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD programme at a tertiary institute.
  • “Alumni of less than 5 years” is defined as any person who has graduated at a tertiary institute from 31 March 2020 onwards.
  • Persons who were previously enrolled full-time in a polytechnic, undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD program but dropped out between 31 March 2020 and 30 April 2025 are also eligible to apply.
  • There is no restriction on the number of members in a team or company

To apply, the following materials will be required for your application during the Preliminary Round. Failure to submit the materials online by the announced deadline will result in disqualification. 

  • Complete an application form on the official platform.
  • Executive Summary
    • Not more than 500 words, in pdf
    • File should be named in this format: Summary_TeamName.pdf
  • Pitch Deck Presentation
    • Not more than 20 slides, in pdf
    • File should be named in this format: Presentation_TeamName.pdf
  • Video presentation (Optional) 
    • This is encouraged but not required.
    • Video should be no longer than 5 minutes with preference for mp4.
    • File should be named in this format: Video_TeamName.mp4
  • All submitted materials must be the original work of the participating team.

Open for submission: 6th January 2025, 23:59 SGT (GMT +8).
Final submission deadline: 30th April 2025, 23:59 SGT (GMT +8).

Stand to win the early-bird perks if you submit your application by 5 Mar 2025.

  • 3 Lucky Early-Bird Teams
    Submit your application early for a chance to be one of three lucky teams to win an all-access pass to the LKYGBPC Grand Finals week in Singapore. This exclusive opportunity gives you unparallel access to Asia’s top innovators and leaders during the F1 Night Race week. For overseas startups, flights and accommodation will be covered.
  • Top 3 Highest-Ranked Early-Bird Teams
    Even if you’re not selected as a finalist, your early application could still secure you a spot! The three highest-ranked Early Bird teams that do not make it to the Top 50 finalists will also win the same all-access pass. Flights and accommodation will be included for overseas startups.

Apply early to maximize your chances of being part of this exclusive experience!

Upon successful registration, you will receive a confirmation email from the platform. If you do not receive this confirmation, please contact us through the Chat function on Agorize.

Yes, you can edit your participant profile and update most details after registration. However, you cannot change your email address. If you need to update it, you will need to delete your current account and create a new one with the desired email.

There is no restriction on the number of members in your team or startup, but only one representative from each team will act as the official point of contact for the competition.

Each team is eligible to submit one idea. In the event of multiple submissions by a team, the last submission made by the team by the deadline will be considered for evaluation.

All pitch decks must be submitted in English. However, if you advance to the Grand Finals, we may provide a translator to assist you in pitching live in your native language.

All submissions will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
  • Innovativeness
  • Commercial Feasibility
  • Impact of Idea
  • Capability to Execute

The final pitch event will be held in-person at Singapore Management University from 29 September to 02 October 2025.


Further details will be provided on the official website closer to the event.

Yes, winners will receive significant prizes, including cash awards, scholarships, and opportunities for mentorship with entrepreneurs and investors. There is also global recognition for the top teams.

Teams must fully participate in-person in LKYGBPC Grand Finals from 29 September 2025 – 2 October 2025. 

Failure to participate in any event during the competition may result in forfeiture of all prizes.

DateMilestone
06 January – 30 April 2025Launch of Competition and call for applications
May 2025Preliminary Screening
May – June 2025Announcement of RVLT 50*
June – August 2025Through mentoring, networking, and learning, the RVLT 50 teams will gain valuable knowledge.
September – October 2025LKYGBPC Grand Finals in Singapore


*Two members from the RVLT 50 will be eligible for sponsored airfare and accommodation trip to Singapore. Out of the two members, one member must be the main applicant.

Registration for and participation in the competition is free, with no purchase or payment obligation.

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