Airtel and WhatsApp launch ‘Airtel IQ Hackathon’- Details Here

Bharti Airtel has announced the launch of the first-ever “Airtel IQ” hackathon. The hackathon’s objective is to identify and build new-age business solutions usingtheWhatsAppBusiness Platformacrossfive key sectors of the economythatcan potentiallyimprove livelihoods and contribute to the sustainable and economic growth of the country. These areE-Commerce, Ed-Tech, Banking and Financial Services (BFSI), Travel and Tourism, and Contactcenter operationswhere start-ups have made a mark and entrepreneurs have developed robust businesses.

Airtel IQ hackathon is hacking for a connected future and solving business challenges in the age of connectivity, deploying the power of programmable communications with an aim to solve customer engagement problems. It aims tooffer emerging Indian startups, Independent Software Vendors (ISV) and the student communityan opportunity toleverage technology and drive customer experience and better customer engagement.

Airtel IQ Hackathon offersprizes worth uptoRs 1 Crore, Business Mentorship from Leadersat Airtel and WhatsAppacrossproduct, engineering,and business functions along withtraining engagements and learning modules on the WhatsApp BusinessPlatform.Airtel IQ willalsooffer winners,freeconversationson the WhatsApp Business PlatformandtheWhatsApp API helping them reduce theiroperating costsand focus on building the future of conversationalexperienceusingchat-based experienceson the WhatsApp Business Platform.Winners will also get an opportunity to leverage Airtel Business’expansive channel network to achieve reach and scale with enterprises.

A selectfew startupswouldbe offeredto onboardthe Airtel Startup Accelerator Program and hyper-scale their company with Airtel. Under this Program, in addition tothefunding in the range of $500K–$2M, startups gain access to Airtel’s core platform strengths of data, distribution, network, and payments. Further, startups get access to Airtel’s global partner ecosystem and advisory from Airtel’s executive team. Commenting on the occasion, Abhishek Biswal,Business head,AirtelIQsaid: “India’s startup ecosystem has seen outstanding growth guidedby the Government of India’s vision. Our technology talent pool has been doing some phenomenal work in building solutions that solve hard problems.

AirtelIQ is thrilled to partner withWhatsApp (Meta)bringing together our expertise to empower technology entrepreneurs, software publishers, and emerging startups to build future-ready CPaaS solutions. On behalf of Airtel, I invite startups to be a part of this Hackathon and benefit from the opportunities to chart their growth journeys, and scale up quickly and sustainably.” Ravi Garg, Director ofBusiness Messaging,MetaIndia, said, “India’s start-up ecosystem has been a cradle of innovations, impacting socio-economic change in the country. As technology becomes more immersive, businesses are utilising theWhatsApp Business Platform for developing end-to-end customer experiences innovatively. Our partnership with ‘Airtel IQ Hackathon’ intends to foster and nurture start-ups in building technology-based solutions toward achieving the Digital India vision.

Technology offers immense potential to make E-Commerce, Ed-Tech, Banking, and Financial Services, Travel & Tourism more accessible, convenient, and inclusive for millions of Indians.”

The hackathon is part of a range of projectsAirtelhas initiated with thegoal of developing and enhancing India’s technology talent.Airtel consistently seeks to employ more women engineers and is setting up a dedicated tech center in Pune to house tech talent acrossfields such as Artificial Intelligence, Data Analyticsand has also vigorously put in efforts to upskill and develop local talents in its countries. WithIndiawitnessing growth in entrepreneurship and tech start-up ecosystems, the hackathon will inspire innovations thatcan enable India’sdigital transformation journey.

Deadline to apply:

Applications will close on 09 October 2022 and participants will be evaluated over three rounds and a mega finaleon Dec 1st, 2022. For more details andregistration on the ‘Airtel IQ Hackathon’