Plan9 in collaboration with Information Technology University played host to the Lahore chapter of the global pitching extravaganza Get in the Ring. The high-spirited pitching event is held in over a 100 countries and with a following of millions, this one of a kind event provides enthusiasts with the perfect mix of excitement, adrenaline, music and entertainment.
For newbies in the GITR world, startups verbally fight it out, inside a boxing ring in the form of five rounds of 30 seconds each. The rounds include team introduction, achievements, business model and market, financials and proposition and freestyle.
The Lahore chapter of the global brand wasn’t any different. After the first stage of filtering, 12 startups made it to the Lahore final. Held on the 5th of May, 2017, GITR Lahore was a mix of excitement, major energy, competition and dramatic flair. The audience were kept thoroughly entertained by the comedic timing of Mr. Ali Gul, CEO MangoBaaz and Zainab Tariq, Program Manager Plan9. The startups were judged by our power jury consisting of Mr. Hasnain Sheikh, Mr. Suneel Sarfaraz Munj, Mr. Qaiser F. Ansari and Talaal Burny. The event culminated after cut throat competition and the startups battling it out in a literal boxing ring, with the startup NearPeer.org coming out on top and Neurostic and PaltooPK as the 1st and 2nd runner ups respectively. Winning and losing is always a part of the competition but the rucksack full of experience, the networking opportunities with viable contacts along with the opportunity to compete in the global finale makes participating in the event all the more worth it for startups.
NearPeer will be going to Singapore to compete in the Get in the Ring global finale. We would like to offer our heartiest wishes to them and hope that they make Pakistan proud. Dr. Umar Saif, Chairman Punjab Information Technology Board, announced the winning startup and offered his best wishes for their future endeavors.